“Even one piece of art that affects one person can cause a change.”
After a weekend blacksmith class, Keith Zimmerman was hooked, and went on to attend a yearlong certification program. Now Keith’s organic sculptures are inspired by nature and personify emotion.
The creative process for Keith begins with an idea then several sketches, “I have a couple of sketch books full of ideas and things I want to make.” With Keith’s sculptures you can see a direct relationship to nature, emphasized through organic movement.
Most Keith’s sculptures start with a vision and have deeper meaning, like his piece Dystonia which is the personification of a medical condition. And like his sculptures which symbolize an emotion, Keith aspires for them to create an emotional reaction as well. “I enjoy making art that elicits an emotional response. I think it’s important to get in touch with your emotions.”
Keith is always experimenting with new techniques to push the boundaries of his medium. “With my piece Fire Snake I was trying to figure out kinetic sculptures. I started with a spiral up and down, then found a way to connect them.” Keith says kinetic sculptures require a lot of tweaking to get them to move properly. “I like the idea of movement in sculptures. You turn the piece in one direction and it gives you one feeling, you turn it the other way and it gives you a different feeling.”
Keith believes, like Cesar A. Cruz, that “art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable.” He says, with art, it is even more important to “celebrate what you’re doing well and what you need to work on. Art should bring out something that is within you that can help guide your life.”