Tim de Christopher
Born 1954, Kentfield, CA
Lives in Northampton, MA; Works in Turner's Falls, MA
www.ohmysoul.org
Noah's Requiem, 2001, limestone and steel, 56" x 16" x 54", on loan from the collection of Richard and Gayle Silver
In Noah's Requiem, Tim de Christopher combines his skills as an architect, designer, and sculptor. The sculpture, with carved waves surrounding the base of the boat, is set on a cart with wheels suggesting forward motion. The heavyset bottom of the Ark indicates the stability and mass of the vessel, which carries on it the representatives of life on Earth to be saved from God's wrath. The sculpture incorporates visually enchanting elements, such as two side-by-side elephants seen from behind, a pair of large birds grooming themselves, and two dogs seemingly engaged in conversation. A man is blowing a trumpet, perhaps announcing to the world the coming of a new beginning, and another is at the helm playing the accordion. A requiem is a song, or a hymn of mourning for the dead, and in this case, as explained by the artist, it is "a requiem partly in response to 9/11 and the thought of mass slaughter and mass destruction."
In the Bible, as God flooded the Earth, Noah's Ark came to symbolize not only mass destruction, but also the prospect of a new world filled with joy and peace. Noah's Requiem is an artist's interpretation of the world around him, and a symbol of new hope for all of humanity.
