Dan Woodard

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After many years as a scriptwriter and director, I began channeling my creative energies into my love of sculpture.  In doing so, I drew from my own subconscious and my interest in the worlds of archetypes, myths, and rituals to create both abstract and figurative pieces.  My figurative sculptures are not based on models, photographs, or actual persons.  Instead, like my abstract work, they arise from memory, imagination, my inner world, and a spontaneous interaction with a variety of materials. 
My primary materials are terra cotta and cement, although I frequently employ wood and various metals as well.  The forms created from these materials are typically covered with a rich textual surface that is often aged or distressed to convey an emotion and a connection that transcend time and culture to bring artist and viewer into a shared inner space.
My work has been described as elegant, yet also earthy and powerful.  It is imbued with a mythic, numinous, and archetypal awareness that comes directly from my process of creation.  My psychological and emotional state while I’m working are also strongly reflected in the sculptures.  Some express a calm, almost beatific sensibility.  Others display extreme disturbance and anguish.  Generally, it is only upon completion of an individual sculpture, or often a series of sculptures, that I’m able to tease out the meaning and significance for me personally.
However, regardless of the emotional impact, I seek a connection with the viewer.  Whether figurative or abstract, my ultimate goal is to have the viewer feel a sense of familiarity with the work...a sense of knowing, of understanding.  I believe this feeling of déjà vu arises from both a collective unconscious and a mystical center we all share.