The Revolutionist: What’s your process as an artist, how do you bring your ideas to reality?
Pavia Justinian: I really enjoy looking through found steel and other materials and seeing how I can combine them to create something new. It’s a little bit like looking at clouds and finding shapes in them. Sometimes I come up with ideas just by looking at different pieces of old metal and seeing how they speak to me. Other times, like with Zafira, I have a vision in mind first and choose materials to support that vision. Some of my artworks are made mainly of steel, while others like Zafira are made mainly with cement and/or epoxy over a steel framework. Still others are made with a combination of these and other materials. First, I weld a framework for each sculpture to create a strong structure. Parts of this structure may be decorative metal like chrome, colorful fenders, or something with an interesting shape that I want to show in the finished piece. Other parts are more simply structural, and those parts I sculpt over with concrete or epoxy and paint with a colorful palette. As both a sculptor and painter, I really enjoy adding color to my sculptures.
TR: What other works of yours are around the valley?
PJ: I sculpted a small herd of bighorn sheep in the Redlands roundabout on Highway 340, several artworks for Mesa County Libraries including the east-facing mural at the Central Library, the dog and bookworm benches in the Discovery Garden, a collection of small steel wildlife sculptures and two paintings in the Clifton Branch. I have painted many other murals, including three collaborations with District 51 students – one at New Emerson School, one at Rimrock Elementary, and one with Fruita Middle School students for the Wellspring Project. Those are just some of my permanent installations in the Grand Valley, and I’ve also had many temporary installations in rotating sculpture exhibits like Art on the Corner and Palisade Art Vision.
TR: What inspired Zafira? Where does the name come from? Where else has she been displayed?
PJ: Zafira is an Arabic name meaning “successful”, but I didn’t know that when I chose it. To me, Zafira’s name evokes her graceful strength as a dancer. I really admire the art of dance, both because it is a beautiful form of creative expression and because it’s never been something I had any skill at myself. I think Zafira is a very joyful and uplifting piece, both because of her colorful palette and her dancing pose, which is based on the golden mean. It’s a shape that appears throughout nature, from our vast Milky Way galaxy to the shells of tiny sea creatures, and artists have been using it for centuries. We often see it represented horizontally, but when I flipped it on its side I kept seeing this dancing figure in it, and I really wanted to sculpt her. I think this pose makes her seem almost weightless, like she’s already leapt off her base, joyfully embracing the unknown. Zafira has been on display in Grand Junction, Longmont, Aurora, and Westminster, and she won awards in all of those locations, so perhaps she is living up to her name’s traditional meaning despite my ignorance when choosing it.
TR: What were the terms of the commission? Were there any guidelines?
PJ: A commission is when someone asks an artist to create a new artwork specifically for a certain site or context. Instead, HeART of Fruita is one of many rotating sculpture exhibits where artists are asked to submit work they have already created to loan to a city for a period of time, typically one year. The only guidelines listed for the work were that it should be constructed of durable materials suitable for outdoor display, and that it should not have sharp protrusions that could endanger the public.
TR: Wasn’t the board that approved it the same board that later censored it?
PJ: Yes. I am told that the Fruita Arts and Culture Board initially voted for Zafira as the top choice for the show, but they later unanimously voted to remove her from the exhibit in the face of public pressure from a vocal faction of the community.
TR: Was there any discussions about potential backlash?
PJ: Most of that was not discussed with me personally. I heard through the grapevine that there were concerns about detractors boycotting downtown businesses and sponsors pulling their support from the HeART of Fruita program, but I never personally heard anyone threaten anything of the kind.
TR: Is Western Colorado just not ready for labia? Why do you think a taboo still exists about the female form?
PJ: I can’t really speak for all of Western Colorado – I know that I have personally received many messages from people in our community expressing support for Zafira and disappointment at the City’s decisions to censor and later remove her. I think many people wanted her to stay, but unfortunately, the people in charge disagreed. I have never really understood why such a taboo exists around the female body. I think sexism is too simple of an answer but is certainly a contributing factor. I wonder if deep down, some men are afraid of women’s ability to create and sustain life, and seeing the female body in a non-sexual context brings that to mind.
TR: How would you explain the difference between art and pornography to the critics of Zafira?
PJ: I think pornography typically depicts some kind of sexual act that goes beyond simple nudity. I’m sure there can be overlap between the two, and I don’t really think any one person is qualified to say what is or isn’t art, but Zafira exists to exude joy, and that is all I intended for her to do.
TR: What does the future hold for Zafira? What’s in the future for you as an artist?
PJ: Zafira will be going on display at the Copper Club soon, and we’re planning to have a party for her there on October 18th to celebrate art and community. I’m looking forward to getting back into the studio to create new artwork – cool weather is the perfect time to weld.
TR: How has this controversy impacted you personally?
PJ: I’m really not used to being in the spotlight and talking about my artwork this much. Usually I spend 90 to 95 percent of my time creating art, and only 5 to 10 percent doing artist talks, interviews, social media, and other marketing/admin. I prefer it that way. I’m a pretty hardcore introvert, and I would much rather be creating artwork while listening to a good audiobook than answering a lot of comments. I’m looking forward to getting back to a nice quiet life in the studio.
This Saturday October 18, 4-7pm at the Copper Club, 153 N. Mulberry St. Fruita, there will be a “Dance with Zafira” event including an artist talk, music and celebration of her new home.
###
The Revolutionist is 100% volunteer run and subscriber funded. We do not sell our soul for advertising dollars, nor do we prostrate ourselves for grants from the non-profit industrial complex. We are community media. Join the community! Subscribe today at whatever rate you can, and get a hard copy of The Revolutionist in your mailbox. Subscribing subsidizes free distribution copies.
The Revolutionist 