Sherri Cornett - Sculptor

Post Card for Chrysalis Show

The title of this series, “Chrysalis,” comes from Jungian psychiatrist Marian Woodman, who writes about women building symbolic places, or chrysalises, into which to retreat when they are in vulnerable times of growth. These places could be in our homes, our gardens, along a stream in the mountains, the embrace of a loved one, or an imagined place inside us - any of which may provide a respite from society's multitude of distractions, enticements, and anxieties.

The attraction of enclosed or protected spaces first developed in my childhood in such forms as the snow caves and tree forts my brothers and I built in the wild areas near the various places we lived, the nest-like piles my Texas grandmothers taught me to put together from quilts when the beds were filled with adult family members and the Easter nests we made out of flowers and grasses to put in the garden. As an adult, my curiosity has led me on many adventures, which have deepened the symbolism of enclosed or partially enclosed space for me:

*Exploring caves, including the one on the Blacktail Ranch north of Helena, in which I participated in a women’s retreat lead by Jungian psychiatrist and author of women’s spirituality books Jean Shinoda Bolen.

*Being invited to Blackfeet Cree encampments, at which I observed the building of structures out of freshly cut trees & canvas for dances and ceremonies and listened to prayers in the dark of the sweat lodge.

*Traveling to other countries, where I discovered such inspirational spaces as the Blue Grotto on Capri, the Pantheon in Rome and La Sainte Chapelle in Paris.

From March 10th through April 1st of 2006, I had a one-person installation of this series at Toucan Gallery in Billings, Montana. Also called Chrysalis, it included life-size and smaller sculptures of many different chrysalis shapes - cocoons, caves, canoes, cradles, and nests. The work was a mixture of many media: steel, copper, bronze, glass, and wood, which were welded or woven together with wire and/or fabric. My intent in the intimate spacing of the pieces of this installation was to draw visitors, at least in their imaginations, into the sculptures’ interior spaces.

Sample images of Chrysalis pieces and Toucan Gallery show: