San Diego Unseen: An Urban Portrait
Artist Paris Davis makes big-kid art from found materials - Photo by Kinsee Morlan
Paris Davis’ sculpture and jewelry is made from found materials—like used bike parts, discarded silverware and old keys—but he doesn’t want you to dig his work simply because it’s green.
“I like it best when people don’t buy because of the theme,” Davis says. “Mainly, the goal of my art is just to be beautiful—to look good…. That it’s made of recycled things is an extra, but hopefully not the main selling point. But I do really love that I find all of the materials here in San Diego.”
Davis’ sculptures are currently sitting in the middle of the San Diego Sculptors Guild’s courtyard in preparation for his upcoming featured-artist show, which opens from 5 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 3, during December Nights.
“I used to do all these jobs—I was a bike mechanic and I used to cook at a restaurant,” Davis says, walking through the courtyard, which is housed in studio 36 at Spanish Village in Balboa Park. He grabs hold of a large, spherical sculpture made of welded bicycle gears and gives it a spin, then bends down to do the same to a piece made from fused-together knives. Many of Davis’ sculptures are kinetic. He likes it when people play with his work.
“I’ve even been making little signs that say ‘Spin,’” he says. “It’s big-kid art.”
