Mark Sutherland

Artist's Statement: My purpose as a model shipbuilder is to express traditional 19th century marine design and aesthetics through the lens of my own experience and artistic sensibility. My desire is to enhance the expressive elements of the maritime arts through my own design interpretations while being true to historical accuracy, form and function.

My professional career as a craftsman began in 1979, when I was twenty-five. I had been preparing for this since age four, when I realized that ships and the sea were the major interest in my life. In the 18 years since 1979, I have been immersed in the same imagery: ships and boats of the 19th and early 20th century, along with scrimshaw artifacts, decorative ship carving, and figureheads. A major influence on my work has been my direct contact with antique marine folk art and scrimshaw through conservation and restoration projects I have done. Because this activity requires matching construction and paint styles, it has helped me develop my own style through the synthesis of all that I have learned. Consequently, I try to impart an antique aesthetic into my new work. What I have learned from the disassembly and restoration of these artifacts is virtually unobtainable through institutional study.

Although seldom used these days, I use bone frequently both in restoration and new construction projects. My first commissions were for small models of whaling ships made of bone. I learned to work the material on my own and after ten years felt that I had gained mastery. The texture, patina and grain of bone is distinctive and gives a rich finish to the piece. In combination with the judicious use of paint, the contrast between paint and bone can be striking. My bone work forms a direct link to the traditional sailors' art of scrimshaw. All my work is based on a long tradition of maritime ways and knowledge. Specifically, wooden ship and boat design and construction, masts and rigging, figureheads and decorative carving, color schemes and maritime history. I have assimilated all this through research and working on period artifacts. To maintain integrity with these maritime traditions, my work must be historically accurate as well as aesthetically pleasing. In recent years I have become involved with surface qualities in my work. This includes texture, color, patina as used to enhance the impact of the piece. This has led to an exploration of traditional oil painting materials and techniques and their application. My most satisfying projects are my own original designs, or ways of displaying the models that allow for originality in a historical context. Artistic interpretation is important to my work, so I avoid exact miniaturization and duplication. I want each piece to stand on its own artistic merit and not viewed as an exact representation to be compared with the original or some imaginary ideal. This can often be the case with ship models. My ultimate goal as an artist is to integrate the craft of ship model building with the realm of fine art. My studies of art and art history have helped expand and sharpen my aesthetic sense. The lessons learned from an artistic approach to life have brought me steps closer to this goal.