Sam Mahon: The Year of the Horse

By JIM WHEELER

With his first book, artist Sam Mahon has supplied us with an enjoyable read. It is immediately obvious that Sam's writing is as natural as breathing, and he moves easily from real-time accounts to memories, stitching together bite-size thoughts and scenes.

Written as a letter to a friend - a format which makes us feel intimately included - we hear of his life before, during and after a huge sculpture commission:he the casting in bronze of a life-sized horse and rider.

Sam and his amazing partner Alison try to tackle this mountainous job on their own. The unpredictable artist's lifestyle, which draws direction from inspiration, bends but does not break under the strain of the harshest of routines. Sam is able to convey this mixturehe of crisis amid recreation believably, delivering delicious visual descriptions, such as fishing breaks in the middle of accurately rendered foundry processes.

Sam considers himself an observer within his small-town community. Conversely, anyone who knows artists, or even observes their lives from a distance, will find this book interesting.

The main issues of creativity within society are portrayed honestly here: how an artist's individual vision contrasts with a corporate viewpoint; the lack of knowledge by nearly everyone of a sculptor's workload and the small amount of respect shown.

This creative project was only possible thanks to the enthusiastic help of a wide range of technical experts - the miracle is how people react when given a chance to work on something they find interesting.

An alarming fact is that these skills - toolmaking, blacksmithing, pattern-making, foundry practice - and individuals are nearly extinct and exist in a harsh, actively discouraging environment.

Will there be a day when we no longer have these skills? They are not being taught systematically and apprenticeships are nearly non-existent.

What is Art? Is it misunderstood? Finally, will creativity, despite its current in-vogue status, benefit from the fattening influence of money? Writes Sam: "Art, for the moment, is our favourite child and we sprinkle money on it as if we were watering a wilting plant, expecting it to fruit and multiply. But instinct is not something to be fed and bloated like an athlete or a prize bull."

All of these big questions are handled lyrically by giving us a cast of characters whose irreverent personalities grab our loyalties. Sam transports us beyond the year-long grind with vivid weekend trips mountain climbing, or flights with Alison in his small aircraft.

Within life's everyday moments insights are discovered quietly. Even mundane material-gathering at a lime quarry is enlightened by an artist's finest tool: the ability to perceive beauty in the ordinary.

Love, relationships, life's collisions and how they define us, ancient formulas remembered then used ... All are served to whet our appetite for the tale. This is a year worth reading.

Longacre

$34.95

* Jim Wheeler is an Auckland sculptor who makes bronzes.