Michael B. Pocock

Much of my work explores and expresses the human condition. Hope, tension, and resilience are recurring themes. Hope juxtaposed with disaster is often depicted in my sport-themed sculptures. An extreme skier, placed at the edge of control, explores the physical and psychological capacity required to maintain composure under duress.

Tension is also central to my nature-themed work. Trees are often placed in extreme environments. Against the natural laws of physics, I depict them growing into the wind before being pushed back. These sculptures explore active endurance and resilience, capturing the moment a tree leans into the wind as a testament to how we must lean into our own challenges to succeed—a metaphor for the human experience.

My larger outdoor sculptures explore the human condition from a broader perspective. These works can be described as Contemporary Industrial Abstraction, drawing from Constructivist principles that prioritize the honesty of steel and the purity of geometric form. At formidable scale, the sculptures initially confront the viewer with aggressive, overlapping planes set at acute angles, creating a sense of “tectonic density.” As the eye moves through the work, the lines begin to harmonize into rhythmic forms that evoke natural landscapes—mountain ranges and forest canopies.

I believe that art should evoke emotion. A successful work should create a visceral response—whether to love it or to hate it. I want the viewer to feel a personal connection—or even revulsion—toward the sculptural imagery and to engage in conversation about it.