Observance is about thirty years of carving monumental sculpture in the landscape.
Originally trained as a figure carver in marble, Mark Mennin’s scope grew beyond the figure into the landscape over thirty years ago, carving a large granite wall in the south of France. He became comfortable with the enlarged scale and the more durable material, while always keeping in mind the proportions of the figure in the context of Nature.
As with most of Mennin’s titles, Observance has two meanings that include the action of noticing or watching as well as the practice of fulfilling or respecting a ritual. It is a projection of his belief that one needs to know the rules of carving well before breaking them. His approaches to carving a very unforgiving material are both traditional and innovative using hand tools as well as fire, water and machine. His collaborations with the Landscape are often of enormous scale yet respectful of the environs. The physical approach and process demonstrates a sacrifice and reverence toward his contexts that celebrate labor and humanity. The human intervention by the sculptor himself is always present.