Creations By Pat Mack

While most of my pieces are made from metal (bronze, steel rod) I have made a few pieces that are wood. One sculpture I want to share with you this week is a piece I made for St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in Indianapolis.

The idea for the sculpture came from Fr. William Munshower, pastor St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church. He was seeking something that would present Jesus as a child. Additionally, Fr. Munshower sought to have the Mother be a universal person to all but not necessarily Western European looking. And lastly, wood would be used because Fr. Munshower felt it was warm, inviting, and connective to those that saw the sculpture.

To take this idea forward from these simple concepts to something that would be a core part of St. Thomas required that I capture mockups using small clay pieces and photos from a volunteer model.

Verionica Pimentel was the volunteer model along with baby. The photographs of her and the baby provided perspective and dimensions used to create rough outlines for the wood block.

Working in wood is different than working with bronze or steel rod. Wood is one of those mediums that has little opportunity to fix mistakes; If too much wood is removed, you have to accept and work with it and try to blend the mistake. So attention to detail is very important in the initial planning and layout phase.

The final part of this sculpture was the installation. I designed and built the peace garden and its surrounding fence, not to keep people out, but to provide a sense of seclusion and personal privacy. And yet the Mother and Child are able to be seen by all as they approach the church.