Redtail Hawk on a Cross

Located on the grounds of Second Baptist Church of Memphis, TN is a Labrynth, a prayer garden as such.  Inside of the Labrynth, on the left side, is a bronze red tailed hawk on a cross.  It, along with the Labrynth, is dedicated to Spence and Becky Wilson.  Their gifts of love and support for not only Second Baptist Church but also for the community which is Memphis, Tennessee and out into the world, is a reminder of their dedication to the one who died on the cross.

For a season, we enjoyed a pair of Redtail Hawks at Second Baptist Church, often perching from the cross steeple, watching over the grounds of “the Grove”.  That image is what caused me to create the Bronze Redtail Hawk on the cross.

Email me for a price quote at kerry@kerrysmith.me.

A decoy being created, and one ready for testing.

Each decoy is tested on the water.

Wood Duck

Wood Duck

Cooper's Hawk Production

Coopers Hawk

Embracing the Journey

Embracing the Journey

Great Horned Owl

Great Horned Owl

In my own struggle to find relief from chronic pain, after three back surgeries with no relief, I had a spinal cord stimulator implanted and it has really helped. One night when I couldn’t get any relief from pain and couldn’t sleep, I got up and created this piece out of clay.

Release!

Given how those who suffer with chronic pain try to reach and stretch out of the shear craziness of pain, the dove, the bird of peace, in my art piece titled Release!, is attempting to pull out of the messiness and ugliness of pain and fly away.  Thus, as the title suggests, the desire to have a release from pain.

It is produced in conjunction with a local foundry and there are a limited number of signed pieces in production for anyone wishing to purchase one. It is made out of bronze and mounted on a redwood burl base. Looking at the piece closely, one will notice my finger prints captured in the bronzing process.  Email me for a price quote at kerry@kerrysmith.me.

Tupelo Gum, Buckeye Base, Oil Painting

In 1988, my friend Becky Wilson created something significant called Bridge Builders, which today is still the largest program of the umbrella organization called Bridges.  The vision for that organization, founded in Memphis, Tennessee, was to bridge the socioeconomic gap by bringing together people of all colors and economic backgrounds and break down the barriers existing in our society.  Throughout the year, youth from all over the city gather to discuss and break those barriers.

Mourning Dove at Rest

This particular art piece was my gift to her on Bridges 20^th anniversary. It is carved out of Tupelo Gum wood, mounted on a buckeye base, and painted with oil paints. The dove is seen universally as a bird of peace.  In scripture, it is the dove that is seen as bringing a form of peace to people.  Whether bringing an olive branch to Noah, in the story of the flood as found in the Old Testament, or as a representative of God’s Spirit at Jesus’ baptism in the New Testament, it is always bringing the gift of peace.

Becky, through her life work and the creation of Bridge Builders, brought peace to many, just like the dove from scripture.

You can learn more about Bridges by visiting their website at: http://www.bridgesusa.org/