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October 3, 2008
From scrap to artistry
Dentist uses skills to express imagination.
BAILA LAZARUS
I never look at timing chain and think, "Gee, that would make a great hat for a guy playing a saxophone." OK, I don't often examine timing chains that closely, or even from far away.
But for Dr. Ivan Gasoi, little bits of timing chain, washing machine pieces, transmission parts and other miniscule scrap metals appear to him as not only hats, but as fingers, wheels, chairs and flowers. These bits and pieces form the structure of his detailed metal sculptures in Metalmorphosis: A Transformational Experience, now showing at the Sidney and Gertrude Zack Gallery.
The exhibit, which is full of fun and whimsy, is an expression of Gasoi's fascination with metal work. Pieces for his work, which he keeps in his studio near Clarke and Venables, come from various auto parts recyclers around the city.
Originally from Montreal, Gasoi came to Vancouver and established a dental practice in 1970. Twelve years ago, he looked at getting a hobby to fill extra time, and ended up taking a welding course at the British Columbia Institute of Technology. He has used his abilities that were honed in finely detailed dentistry work over the past 30 years to create the sculptures in Metalmorphosis.
It is really amazing to move in close to one of these artistic creations and try to see the purpose of the metal piece before it became a shoe or a tail.
In "Say Ahhh!" for example, gears form the head and nose of the dentist; little springs are used for hair on the patient.
It wasn't even a piece Gasoi intended on doing, but he couldn't fight fate:
"Being a dentist, you don't want to do a dentist," he said. "But one day I found timing chain that looked like a dentist chair."
In his last exhibit, and in earlier work, Gasoi said, he was a little rougher around the edges when it came to detailing his work. But this time, he's really gone the distance, right up to the bulging eyeballs and stuck-out tongue of the dental patient; the flowers in Romeo's hand in "Oh!! Romeo"; the gloves on his dancers; and the little claws and teeth on "Tyrannosaurus 2."
"Hands humanize the pieces with gestures," Gasoi explained, giving a tour of his exhibit. "I like patchkying [fiddling]," he said. "Getting more and more detailed."
Gasoi will poke around collecting "junk" for his artwork in the fall, just grabbing whatever he thinks might work, or picking up pieces that "speak" to him. Then he works through the winter, because he can't do his welding in the summer heat. His poking around has introduced him to interesting characters whom he refers to as "salt of the earth" and he enjoys that process, in and of itself. "It's very expansive, very stimulating," he said. "It's opened up a whole new world."
Of course, those seeing Gasoi rummaging around in scrap heaps might question his sanity.
"I'm very close to being a dumpster diver," he said.
Gasoi works on weekends, spending about three hours a day in the early morning. The work itself takes tremendous concentration, and he has been burned, literally, on more than one occasion. One time, before he had developed a proper way to dress and work, a hot piece of metal fell into his boot and caused his sock to melt to his foot. It was an experience Gasoi didn't want to repeat.
Burning experiences aside, however, Gasoi is very pleased with his work and the reaction it's been getting. Already several pieces have been sold. And although Gasoi can develop a bit of an attachment to his full-of-life metal pieces, he's not sad to see them go.
"The reasons people buy pieces can be very personal," said Gasoi. "So I feel like my 'friends' have found a good home."
Gasoi exhibited at the Zack Gallery three years ago in a combined exhibit with paintings by Carolyn Kramer, entitled Metal and Lace – A Divine Encounter. Gasoi "wanted to be challenged" by doing his own show this time and, after going through all the work necessary to put it together, said, "I'm not giving up my day job."
Metalmorphosis runs until Oct. 26 at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver. The Zack Gallery is open Monday to Thursday, 8:30 a.m.-10:30 p.m.; Friday, 8:30 a.m.- 5 p.m.; and Sunday, 9 a.m.-9 p.m. For more information, visit www.jccgv.com or call 604-257-5111, ext. 244.
Baila Lazarus is a freelance writer, photographer and illustrator living in Vancouver. Her work can be seen at www.orchiddesigns.net.
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