His thought-provoking installations made from found objects.
Area metal sculptor James M. Kitchen’s latest works on display in downtown Springfield and on the campus of Western New England University are big in form and meaning.
Kitchen, 60, known for using recycled metals he finds in the Pioneer Valley to create his works, said he is likes his numerous art installations used as attractions for the city.
The recent two are in addition to his installations at 32 locations around Main Street, between Taylor and Stockbridge, that form a walking tour sponsored in partnership with the Springfield Business Improvement District. One of the largest is the 35-foot -recycled steel, "Birdicus Gigantium," at One Financial Plaza.
Joining others installed previously, in front of the Federal Building at 1550 Main St. (there are also some 60 Kitchen pieces in public spaces inside the building), is his 20-foot-high steel sculpture, “Day’s End, which Kitchen said is about the "human condition." It depicts a human-like figure in motion and is made of simulated railroad spikes.
(The piece was installed in May, and is temporarily on location in Worcester's Elm Park as part of that city's "Art in the Park," which features 20 artworks by 18 artists through Oct. 13. For more information, visit www.artintheparkworcester.org.)
James Kitchen and his "Day's End" in front of Springfield's Federal Building on Main Street. “By placing art downtown there’s something positive the city can talk about. People walking around hopefully will have a good experience,” Kitchen said..
Several miles uptown at Western New England, 1215 Wilbraham Road, Kitchen has his other recently placed piece — “Einstein’s Onion: Universal Connections” — a nine-foot-tall sculpture.
Kitchen said it represents Albert Einstein’s view that “imagination is more important than knowledge.” The artist said the name of the somewhat circular piece, conveys the layers of people’s lives.
Anthony S. Caprio, university president, called the location of “Einstein’s Onion” at the center of the campus a “perfect setting” and noted the piece fits in with the school’s mission to grow the arts program. The structure has been a fixture in front of Deliso Hall since April and will remain on campus for six months.
“We are always trying to expose our students, staff and employees to beautiful creations and this just seemed like it belongs here,” he said.
“I think they’re fascinated by the piece just by its sheer form. Even if they didn’t contemplate the purpose or the intention of the artist it’s a beautiful piece to look at. And it just fits the décor here.”
Barbara Moffat, the university's vice president for marketing and external affairs, added, “The piece really speaks to the convergence of imagination and knowledge and that is exactly what higher education does.”
The area materials used to create “Einstein’s Onion” include the metal rim of an old ox cart and recycled rebar, which is made of steel and generally used for reinforcing concrete in construction.
Kitchen, who lives in Chesterfield, used a clear lacquer rather than paint to protect the sculpture and to encapsulate rust found on its exterior because “I believe I cannot improve on Mother Nature,”
Artist James Kitchen used the metal rims of an old ox cart and rebar to help create "Einstein's Onion." “The sculpture is a perfect metaphor for this university. I realized if you’re a chemist or a pharmacist or a history or English major, everybody looks at things in a different way,” said Kitchen, who has read three biographies on Einstein.
“I thought about the different schools (within the university) and how they affect each other and how sometimes we’re all looking at things through our little lens and it’s about making these connections.”
Before Kitchen got the idea to create downtown's “Day’s End,” he made a smaller version out of real railroad spikes. He considers himself part historian, part archaeologist.
“I saw these tired looking pieces and thought about the spikes, the train and all the hundreds of tons of weight and the pounding and the grinding. It’s a metaphor,” he said. “It’s the human condition. I put together those tired pieces together in a human figure.”
Kitchen sees the piece as a reflection on life's demands, particularly in the area of jobs.
“What I want you to think about is how many hours in a day should focus on work? Where’s the balance? I’m an artist and it’s all balancing,” he said. “We’re so busy and nobody has time to think.”
Kitchen works only part-time on his artwork. His full-time job is as a construction supervisor for The Home Store, a custom modular home manufacturer in Whately.
To clear his mind for his next project or just to take a break from daily responsibilities, Kitchen walks without any interruptions an hour every morning near his home in Chesterfield.
“Few people take the time to not be texting or listening. I just like to think,” he said. “I am hoping people stop and think a moment and it’s their time to stop and take a breath.”