The Band-aid Solution

“  Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall

Humpty Dumpty had a great fall

 All the King’s horses

and all the King’s men

Couldn’t put Humpty together again.”
                             - anonymous nursery rhyme

A nursery rhyme’s the perfect crime, Treason ! For what could be more subtle than to teach the following generation about the injustices which surround them, coded in clever rhyme and allegory ? To plant the seeds of dissent that they might flower in political upheaval. After all, what were all those kings, horses, and men good for anyways ? The powers that be can do nothing in the face of the ravages of time and calamity. Some have postulated that Humpty Dumpty might have been a satirical portrayal of The last Plantagenet King, the hunchback. Richard III. Despite his willingness to trade the whole damned Kingdom for a horse, they found his twisted remains in a car park some few years ago.* Academic discourse not withstanding, could it be an allegory for a broken heart, a broken home, a love long gone, or some sad song ?  Could it simply be a riddle about an egg ? Perchance to smile, as there is often humor found in  literal interpretation, a situation running parallel to the absurdity of 1:1 scale representation**. And like questions regarding the quantification of the stickiness of adhesive bandages over time,  a discourse best left to philosophers and theologians. 

It is with pride this presentation is made for your perusal! ‘The Band-aid Solution for Humpty Dumpty’, carved by my hand using diamonds and water. A permanent solution in Hematite, a band-aid is forever  ;)

Photo Credit: Peter Lattimer

* the exhumation of Richard III
 ** 1:1 scale representation

Heads or Tails

Last weekend saw the leaves in color,  clinging fast to the last vestiges of summer. 
The fog rolls in and taking half the day to clear, the sun reveals autumn...
It is time for letting go. 

It took a while to finish this one, I started it in 2004 then put it aside, published some books, started a snowflake collection, played some chess, traveled, visited with friends and relations. I would work on this carving whenever I had a spare moment, and in those moments had the time to reflect on important matters such as the Elizabethan notion of artifice; transformation, and the relevance of les objets de virtu in the age of the smart phones. And so this piece is finished, made in hematite, carved by my hand using diamonds and water.  Heads, tails, its your call. Things happen gradually in nature,  invisible processes working away in their own time. Then, in the flashing of an instant we notice,  everything is different. Context is variable.

 robertchaplin (at) lightspeed (dot) ca
-Copy Cats are Dirty Rats

Photo Credit: Peter Lattimer

An Object Lesson in Macro-Economics

what is this mysterious object ? this sphere of hematite carved by my hand using diamonds and water? The designs are inspired by the backside of a Greenback, American dollar bill and circumscribed with magic text. “Made round to go round”, Something my Father used to say when he gave us our allowance. An object lesson in macro-economics, perchance to help with quantitative easing?

My Grandfather said, “ you can’t spend yourself rich” and, “ the next depression would be high priced ”. He was right of course, the elderly very often are. The US government is printing money faster than anyone can spend it. The effect is that it costs more to buy anything. It’s not that things have increased in value, rather that the money is very very cheap. Fiat money never survives long, a symptom of a regime in decay.

This stone is a crystal of iron oxide, yet it will never rust. When Hematite is carved it makes blood red dust. It can be magnetized and it’s hardness is about 5 1/2 on Mohs scale. It is a durable, hard stone, carving and it will remain intact until the sun consumes the inner planets. Metaphysicians believe this stone has grounding properties. With money and metaphysics, grounding has value.

robertchaplin (at) lightspeed (dot) ca
-Copy Cats are Dirty Rats
photo credit: Peter Lattimer