Everyday Objects Yield Optimistic Artwork

MAHOPAC—Jean Tock brings imagination and humor to the found objects she uses to create highly original artworks. Her thought-provoking exhibit, installed in the Third Floor Gallery at Mahopac Public Library, is entitled “Optimism in a Lonely World: Found Object Assemblage.” This show “is about finding hope in the darkness. In times that seem so dark and sometimes lonely, there is always hope. Without hope we are doomed,” states Tock.

Tock’s pieces are three-dimensional assemblages in the style of artist Joseph Cornell. Much of the work in this show reflects the artist’s contemplations on war, politics, and even terrorism. In each piece she tries to show that all is not over, that there still exists the power to overcome darkness and to heal. In her piece entitled “CSI Iraq” she depicts a soldier affixed to a large camouflaged metal sprocket. Nail heads with numbers attached mimic numbers placed by evidence found at crime scenes and are pinned to a cartoon background of a gentleman wielding a firearm. For Tock, the sprocket represents the depersonalization of the military into one large machine. Yet a gold halo placed behind the soldier’s head venerates him as the guarantor of freedom.

In another piece, entitled “Atomic Fireball,” Tock laminates three maps to the inside back of a box: the world, North America, and the Middle East. An electric On/Off switch, affixed to the Middle East map, is permanently in the “On” position. At the bottom of the world map Tock has piled empty “Atomic Fireball” wrappers—a sweet but powerfully spicy treat that also signifies the threat of total disaster.

Other pieces in the show are less serious. Rather than showing the darkness in the world, they concentrate on whimsy, color, and lead us straight to the optimism in the show’s title. “Dinnertime,” a tower of plastic dinner trays stacked onto automotive and plumbing fittings, is a play on the theme of women’s roles in the kitchen. A number of Tock’s works incorporate book covers and vintage or foreign language text. “Per Diem” is composed of 40 miniatures canvases, strung together in rows of ten, which were created using “detritus” found by Tock in local parking lots.

“I am artistically inspired by the possibilities of found objects,” says Tock. “It is by removing objects from their familiar place and giving them new associations that I am able to express that which words cannot.” Tock has succeeded in creating sensitive, moving and witty pieces that draw the viewer in to examine each element and reflect on their meaning. Visitors to the show can read the descriptions that she has provided for each piece or bring their own interpretation to the work. Either way, this optimistic show is beautifully crafted and inspiring.

Jean Tock’s show will remain on view at the Mahopac Public Library through January 31, 2010. The gallery is open during regular library hours and is handicap accessible. For further information please visit www.mahopaclibrary.org, or call 845-628-2009, ext 100.