"Female Action Figure"

After hiking long distances random stones and sticks begin to take on recognizable shapes. On one such occasion I found a root which had a female appearance. I brought it to my studio, made some slight "clarifications" and then made a rubber master mold. With the ability of multiplicity I began casting concrete Female Action Figures to place them on trails. I hope that an innocent by passer will notice the subtilty of the odd material, neither stone nor wood, that they will think it looks like a strong woman, not really a toy, not really a Venus figure. Some Female Action Figures have been picked up right away. Some are in truly obscure places and will probably deteriorate before they are collected. I have placed most of them , but some chosen people have agreed to be collaborators in my project.

Because this piece is a large grouping of many individual situations spanning one year in time, I have many thoughts and my intentions evolved throughout the duration of the project. I was first interested in the hiker. Would this person be attracted to this somewhat ambiguous talisman? Would they carry it for a distance and drop it for a lovelier stone? Would they take it home as a reminder of a trip? Would it be left in place as a protected artifact?

I did however document where I put them. The idea that started seemingly random has archived images, maps and stories. The next turn of events happened when travel writer Jerry Schad wrote about this project and two others as a destination. The artist name was withheld from the readers and this small gesture had two profound effects. It made the piece mysteriously "guerilla-like" and more importantly, in this time of publicity, deliberately disallowed the aspect of publicity.

As I assemble all the fragments, it suddenly changes it from a piece that had virtually no commercial value into something purchasable. What holds me to this piece is the curiosity of what is happening to the Female Actions Figures. I have always been open to allowing anything to happen to them. For instance, I never felt possessive, or that something specific should become of them. When they turn up missing, another story ensues. I find it intriguing returning to the sites searching for clues as to the whereabouts of the frequently missing Female Action Figures.

The latest in the series of Female Action Figures are among the featured pieces at Spruce Street Forum. The series was born when Karavasiles, after finding an unusual root with a female-like shape, began to make cast female figures and place them on hiking trails. What would become of them? Would someone want them, and if so, why? What value, history or meaning would a stranger assign to them, if any? These and other questions intrigued Karavasiles and the life of the work continues to evolve, with many unwitting players. These types of "experiments", ones that press against the boundaries and question the preciousness of art, are signature Karavasiles.