Amalgamation (2024)
Amalgamation (2024)
Artist: Sharon and Charles Havelka
Medium: Reclaimed fabric Quilt, Cypress & Walnut Wooden Spine
Location: Germantown Community Library, 1925 Exeter Rd, Germantown, TN 38138
Amalgamation is a 15-foot-long sculpture that transforms the structure of a Chinese Dragon Centipede kite into a human spine. Crafted from wood and embellished with a quilted patchwork of clothing and upholstery fabric donated by friends and family, this colossal sculpture unifies Eastern and Western cultures, personal histories, and artistic expression. This piece invites viewers to consider the intricate relationships between people and cultures, questioning the concept of assimilation in favor of more reciprocal and rewarding cultural interaction.
This project is funded by the Germantown Public Art Program
Artist: Sharon Havelka and Charles Havelka
Sharon Havelka experiments with the traditional craft of quilting by using clothes, linens, and other found materials given to her by family and friends. The history and experience of the three generations of her family who once immigrated from southern China to the Mississippi Delta are worn in these unique, threadbare fabrics.Her work highlights the marginalized, the overlooked, that which is considered weird or unusual, and sews them into beautifully crafted and highly detailed objects. In addition to incorporating and reforming memory and history, using leftover materials is a direct response to the disparities of access vs excess in today's world. She is also inspired from her skills and experience learned as an ICU RN. She was born and lives in Memphis, TN.
Charles Havelka is a carpenter and woodworker who views craftsmanship as a personal art form. He uses hardwoods that have naturally fallen in his region, neighborhood, and backyard. Woods such as Black walnut, Osage Orange, Paulownia, and cherry are milled, planed, and dried. Specializing in traditional wood joinery and homemade varnishes, his carpentry skills are used to transform the natural organic shape of trees into unique and functional sculptures. He was born in Lansing, Michigan but currently resides in Memphis, TN.
