BRISTOL, VA - More than six months of work went into Virginia Intermont College Art Professor Marvin Tadlock's latest sculpture, "Got Oil?" which recently received Best in Show honors at the Art in Public Places exhibit, a program of the Dogwood Arts Festival in Knoxville, Tenn.
The sculpture is 13.5 feet tall, 5 feet long, 4.5 feet wide, and weighs around 500 pounds. It abstractly depicts an offshore oil rig, mounted on wheels, with a handle for pulling.
""Got Oil?' comments on man's appetite for oil. I believe that the oceans are a gift from the Creator, a pristine and living environment that sustains us humans and provides us free food and recreation," said Tadlock. "To disregard the great forces of wind, storm, earthquake and human error and drill for a toxic chemical, crude oil, in waters miles deep, is, at best, a reckless act born out of greed. The handle on "Got Oil?' is inviting each of us to grab a hold - as we are all consumers."
The Dogwood Arts Festival is an annual celebration of the arts that lasts a month and features the Art in Public Places competition. The exhibit showcases numerous sculptures displayed in downtown Knoxville and at the McGhee Tyson Airport, exposing Knoxville residents to artwork by contemporary artists.
