top of page

Artworks in Public Collections

Having an artwork enter a public collection is always a great joy for an artist. What spurs this joy is the experience of getting a dear and deep wish fulfilled. That wish is to make a lasting esthetic contribution that becomes a source of enchantment and wonder for the larger community we belong to. The experience comes from watching how people from all walks of life respond to specific creations, how they get attracted to them, and how they manage to share their resulting feelings, often mixed with genuine gratitude.

When thousands of people came to visit the new Indianapolis Airport terminal on Community Day in 2008 and saw for the first time my large urushi mural, On the Tip of Our Wings, the expression of joy on their faces, their smiles, their brightened eyes, were the best reward I ever received. Most wanted instinctively to touch the artwork—which they could—to feel better how it might have been made and textured. Most had never seen urushi art, and were full of questions. Getting people to nurture and express their curiosity is part of an artist’s public advocacy.

There are three sections to this corner of my website.

  • The first one is a presentation of On the Tip of Our Wings, which remains my most ambitious artistic creation to date.

  • The second section highlights a special public-art experience that arose from an unusual, truly wonderful initiative taken by the Arts Council of Indianapolis in partnership with billboard company Clear Channel Outdoor: “High Art.”

  • The third section exhibits the artworks that were acquired by several museums in the United States and abroad.

bottom of page