Semper fi informal

 sem·per fi·de·lis (semÆpeR fi d!Ælis; Eng. semÆpÃr fi d!Ælis, -d"Æ-), Latin.

Always faithful: motto of the U.S. Marine Corps.

There are frequently many layers of meaning in a piece of art.

This particular sculpture is one of those pieces. 

After 9/11,  I was moved by the stories of the rescue dogs, and the work that they did at ground zero.  Later, after the U.S. had gone to war with Iraq I was moved again by an NPR story on the number of animals we had employed in the war.  This was the original inspiration for this maquette of a monument to Search and Rescue dogs.  It is intended to be a tribute; the dog having an expression of a “find” on his face.  The name Semper Fi was suggested by a friend, and seemed perfect in light of the overtones of war.  The structure that the dog is balanced on began as the girders of a collapsed entryway. 

As I was working one evening, I noticed a cast shadow of the sculpture from my lamp against the wall.  It was three crosses.  The “coincidence” of this and the implied symbolism of a crucifixion became the emotional center of this piece for me. 

The model, Luke, is a beautiful German Shepherd who I believe exemplifies the title: "Semper Fi"