An artist friend came by the farmhouse today to look at the art being gathered there, he especially wanted to see Ed Gulley’s lawn sculptures.

Like me, and like Maria, he was immediately drawn to the goose, one of Ed’s latest sculptures. I wasn’t sure what he meant, but Maria and I talked and I was able to understand it more clearly. Ed gets it, he sees it, he has the confidence and vision to do it, and in that sense, his Goose is a landmark work of creation for him.

When we first met Ed, he was understandably tentative. He was a life-long dairy farmer, gruff and insanely busy. He had a tendency to adorn some of his work, to clutter it up or listen to people who told him what he should make.

He has been around animals all of his life, and Ed is, in so many ways, just like any other artist and writer, he has been watching and observing, collecting images, stories and ideas.

When he saw this twisted metal that was buried and dug in on his property, he saw a goose, he knew it was a goose, and gathered the parts. I am not a curator or art expert, but I can see the piece has authority and originality. We are fortunate that Ed has chosen to debut it at our Open House, along with his wind chimes and other works.

He didn’t need to clutter it up, he just needed to make it as he saw it and put it out into the world. That is just what writers and artists do.

Ed sees. He gets it, he has the touch, and to me, the Goose is a landmark piece for him.  The wind chimes are pretty amazing too. All of Ed’s works are made from discarded tools, engine parts, buried debris. He looks at things other people would call junk, and sees the art. You can read more about him on the great blog he and his wife Carol publish daily, the Bejosh Farm Journal.

He writes well too. We are pleased to have his work at our Open House this weekend. The Goose and most of his sculptures are for sale (several have been sold already.)