Everyday art from the heart of two sculptors
NEW CASTLE – On a bright summer-like day I pulled up to Watson “Waddy” Bowes place in downtown New Castle where two sculptors of some renown were laboriously tearing down his 100-year-old barn, one board at a time.
Thanks to a friend who had given me the lead on the story, I had done my homework. As I approached, the two young men who were hard at work stopped what they were doing and started across the yard. “Al, Chris,” I greeted them with a smile that was hopefully as bright and warm as were their own.
Renowned sculptors Al Garnto, left, and Chris Fennell take down a 100-year-old barn one board at a time at an old home in New Castle. Photo by Gwen Johnson
Since they had been expecting me it was no big surprise to them who I was, but I think it impressed them that I knew who they were.
“Isn’t the Internet just wonderful?” I asked with a smile. “I did my homework and looked at both of your websites.” They were absolutely delighted and more than willing to take time for a small town, home-grown reporter who knew nothing about modern art.
Al Garnto is into kinetic sculpturing, that is art work which shows some kind of movement when harnessing the wind’s energy.
This is Chris Fennell's signature piece, "Barn Wave."
Chris Fennell is into static art work. Although there is no movement to his art, his work alludes to movement as demonstrated by 12-foot ocean waves and even a tornado made of bicycles. Both artists have the knack and love of taking anything discarded and giving it new life by turning it into art.
Fennell admitted he doesn’t always know what he is going to do when he first starts on a sculpture. Sometimes he sees it in a structure he’s tearing down or a fallen tree. And at other times, he prays a lot about it, he said. At one point in describing his work he pointed at some boards sticking out up out of pieces of the barn the two had already dismantled and said, “For instance, look at those boards right there. Don’t you think they look like a turkey’s tail feathers?” Well, yes, they did indeed.
“I usually ride around in my old truck with materials on back and always carry a butane nailer with me,” Fennell said. “My workshop is wherever I happen to be at the moment.” With the help of his butane nailer he constructs a frame or scaffolding for whatever shape he wants to create.
“After I’m finished, the inside of a tea cup, for example, is beautiful and round while the outside of it is a crazy ‘twigness’ shape.” His descriptive terminology is as artfully fashioned as are his famous pieces of sculpture.
Fennell’s newest undertaking is a 100-canoe wave memorial that will be placed on the Snake River in Idaho in honor of Lewis and Clark. “So if anyone has any old canoes they want to get rid of, I will give them $100 and come pick it up.” Fennell can be reached by e-mail at chris@cfennell.org
Sculptures by the two artists include a Kinetic Water Drop by Al Garnto which is part of his Appalachian Sculpture Project.
One of Garnto’s most well-known pieces is “Country Calder” which pays homage to Alexander Calder, the father of kinetic sculpture. “Calder basically invented the concept of mobile art,” Al explained. Not being into modern art I still didn’t know what he was talking about until Chris hit upon a term I understood for sure.
“OK, do you remember crib mobiles?” he asked. Then a smile slowly crossed my face. I was beginning to understand kinetic art a lot better. When I asked Al to explain why he named the sculpture County Calder he said, “Because it is modern art as seen through a country boy’s eye.”
The sculpture is the first piece of art work in Garnto’s Appalachian Sculpture Project which begins in Meeks Park in his hometown of Blairsville, GA., and will end in Maine.
Garnto began the project with the goal of exposing areas of the Appalachian Mountains to art and sculpture that would not be possible if left only up to funding by small towns and communities. He is currently looking for colleges, state universities and rural towns along the designated route that would be interested in becoming a part of this project for educational purposes. He can be reached at algarnto@gmail.com.
It appeared the two artists had been friends for a long time, however, this was the first time they had worked together although they live just a stone’s throw away from each other.
But it wasn’t work for them, it was fun. It was what they did and who they were, they explained. The fact that these two busy artists stopped tearing down a barn long enough to relocate a nest filled with four tiny birds spoke volumes about who they were.
“We came across the nest in one corner of the barn and knew we had to save the birds,” Fennell said, “so we decided to move them to a nearby tree.” At the time the mother bird was feeding the babies as the three of us stood in awe.
While their love of turning society’s cast-offs into dynamic works of art gives them a common bond, Fennell and Garnto’s lives have followed different paths. Fennell, whose work is displayed in 11 states including Virginia, has a BS in mechanical engineering and a BA and BS in sculpture. In addition, he has won many awards and received many honorariums for his work.
By today’s standards both Fennell and Garnto are considered “green” artists because of the fact they use recycled materials. However, when Fennell first started out 10 years ago he said, “I didn’t think of myself as a green artist but as an artist who was broke and needed materials so I started recycling.”
Garnto grew up fighting one failure after another due to a severe learning disability, a rare form of dyslexia that causes him to see negative spaces instead of letters when trying to read. He was expelled from school when he was 15, his website explains, and his condition went undiagnosed until he earned his GED and entered Young Harris College.
There he said his teachers and staff helped change the course of his life. They discovered his learning disability, had him tested and worked with him to overcome it. Garnto says he was able to bring his grade point average up to a 4.0, made the dean’s list, and was presented with a scholarship to the Atlanta College of Fine Art.
In 1994 he returned to his hometown and opened his own business, the Al Garnto Fine Art Studio.
Garnto’s works are not confined to kinetic sculptures but include composite photography, mixed media collages, charcoal drawings and paintings done in oil and acrylics. Now Garnto, who has a strong faith in God, said he wants to use his art work to the glory of God and to bridge gaps for those with learning disabilities.
It goes almost without saying these two sculptors will leave their mark on the society, one way or the other. Whether it is through their art or through their own unique personalities or both, the world will be a better place because they care.
For additional information and to view a full range of works by both artists, visit www.cfennell.org. and www.algarnto.com.
Enjoy Al’s sculptures while walking the trail at Meek’s Park. A visit to his studio is an eye-opening experience. Knowing Al is a great pleasure. After reading this, it makes me want to meet Chris, too, and become acquainted with his work.
I’m so glad you enjoyed the article Patty. You can get to know Chris through his web site as well. It was great fun meeting both of these delightful and talented young artists.