“Navajo”

“In the early 1990s, Gene created small sculptures in wax to work out design problems prior to moving into a larger format. He often created them while we were on car trips. When it was his turn to be a passenger, he brought out the wax, and with a towel spread across his lap, he worked on new animals. After working out the design in those small formats, he tossed the maquettes into a box under the workbench in the studio and forgot about their existence.

In 1992, we had a show at Adobe East Gallery in Millburn, NJ, and were entertained at the home of friends of the gallery owners. As we departed that evening, I noticed the homeowner had glass shelving next to the front door on which was a collection of Pueblo carved stone fetishes they had collected over the years. As I commented on the beauty of the display, she told me that she and her husband no longer had the room to collect large works of art, but if we ever sculpted small pieces, she would like to know about them. That was the inspiration for our miniature collection. Gene pulled the maquettes out of the box and cleaned them up for casting.”

– Rebecca Tobey – Excerpt from “Partners in Art”