PRESS RELEASE - Nationally Known Artist Announces Completion of New Sculpture Kentucky artist Jeff Chapman-Crane has recently completed a new work entitled “The Agony of Gaia.” Originating from the Greek, “Gaia” is the personification of Mother Earth. Unlike most of his art, which is two-dimensional, this piece is a life-sized, figurative sculpture that depicts Mother Earth suffering the abuse of strip-mining. Inspired by the devastation brought about by such mining practices as mountaintop removal and valley fills, the sculpture spanned over 16 years in its creation.

“I believe that the earth is a living thing. I wanted to do a piece that conveyed the torment she must feel when she is abused in this way,” Chapman-Crane states.

The sculpture depicts a woman lying on her side in a fetal position, her face covered by hands drawn tight in pain and agony. Her head rests on a moss-covered rock, and her upper body is cloaked with foliage and trees. The tears dripping from her eyes fall into a mountain stream flowing beneath her. Behind her is a painted panel, permanently attached as a backdrop, depicting distant mountains and a sky gradually changing from clear to very stormy and threatening.

Much of her lower body has been stripped of its natural coveting, and the bedrock on which she lies has been blasted away, leaving high-walls and mounds of rubble. A regiment of heavy equipment is at work uncovering coal seams that, when completely mined out, will level the entire mountaintop, which in essence is Mother Earth.

The head and hands of the carving are of clay, fired to achieve a stone-like hardness. The rest of the sculptural form is constructed of rigid Styrofoam sheets, which have the advantage of being strong, lightweight and easi1y carved. The surface textures, extremely realistic in their detail, were achieved by attaching all natural materials including moss, sand, rock dust and twigs. The dozers, excavators, and other mining equipment are very detailed, 1/87 scale reproductions of Caterpillar and other brand name machinery, weathered by the artist to achieve an “on-the-job” look. The effect is so realistic that close-up photographs of the mining activities are hard to distinguish from those of actual mining.

The sculpture measures approximately 72” long by 28” wide by 32” high and is mounted on a table with folding legs. Hinged front and side panels fold up and lock together, and a hinged lid folds over the top, forming a crate in which to transport the work. It was designed to be very mobile and easy to set up for display.

Chapman-Crane has plans to exhibit the sculpture in a variety of venues, including galleries, museums, college campuses and events sponsored by environmental groups working to end such destructive practices as mountaintop removal and valley fills. One such group is Kentuckians for the Commonwealth (KFTC), a grassroots, social justice organization to which both the artist and his wife, Sharman, belong. The sculpture recently made its public exhibition debut at the annual meeting of KFTC on October 8-10 near Faubush, Kentucky, “The public needs to be made aware of what’s happening here in eastern Kentucky,” the artist said. “I hope this sculpture can help inform people about the devastation caused by mountaintop removal. We need to work together to save our mountains and streams while we still can.”