Christopher Truax

Christopher Truax’s sculptures seem as though that they can come alive and start moving at any moment. After experimenting with animation and model making, Truax was inspired to express himself in a 3-D format. His figures seem almost robotic. His sculptures are a combination of hard and soft materials. His mix of metal and organic wings adds an element of the unexpected to his sculptures. His flying Toaster, a suspended shinny toaster with a giant wingspan, is a perfect example of this creative juxtaposition. “Inspiration is all around me everyday, sometimes I can’t help but to see things pop out. My art is far more than the finished piece; it’s the flashes and glimpses of otherworldly insight. It’s the joy of the process, it’s the dance.”

The Clackamas County resident is a parts technician for his father, who owns the Bird Nest in West Linn, specializing in Thunderbird parts for cars from 1958 to 1966. But Truax takes vintage car parts that might otherwise be discarded and turns them into art.

“Most of my art incorporates the feel of emotion, and most pieces have a movement – they are pose-able and unique on a detailed level,” he said. Some of his pieces are robotic in nature, with parts that “mimic and bend like a normal joint,” while others are whimsical, like a toaster with wings.

Last spring, Truax won best in show at an art exhibition at Clackamas Community College for Lilli, which he describes as robot with “beautiful wings coming out.” She is made “mostly from Thunderbird parts from 1955 to 1966. Basically it took me a year and a half to make her.”

Lilli’s wings are crafted from a real goose. He looks upon the use of the wings as “recycling,” and said he saved the wings from being destroyed. “I went on You Tube and learned how to taxidermy the wings, so there is no smell,” he said.

Another of his creations is Elli, an elephant made from “90 percent Thunderbird hardware and 10 percent tea pot,” he said. He incorporated a red low-fuel light into Elli’s body for a reason. “There is meaning behind my madness. I saw a low-fuel light and realized that some Asian elephants are being depleted [by starvation].”

For sheer whimsy, it is hard to beat the flying toaster with three sets of wings. “I used an old vintage chrome toaster – it is funny. It is meant to be,” he added.

http://www.christophertruax.com/