Jim Gallucci, “Gothic Gate” – by Shane Gilmore

When one thinks of a gate, it is normally not a giant arch in the middle of a grassy field with no fence around it, however, this is the case when it comes to Gothic Gate by Jim Gallucci. The large archway has a center rotating gate like sense to it, but it is not your typical wood picket fence gate. Instead, it has an abstract appearance as if it is an old historic gate that has protected something very important for years. This makes the viewers subconsciously want to go up to it and try to feel it and open it. Gallucci gives all this to the viewer in this one single sculpture. The monumental scale of this large arch-way attracts your attention and the bronze material makes it feel old and rustic, the combination of those two elements gives the sculpture a grand stature as if it is not from this world.

Very much like the works from the gothic period, Gothic Gate resembles an altarpiece, with the arch framing a central image. For example, the very well known painting, Madonna and Child, uses this same technique, a technique that was common at the time. There is the main subject that is framed in a very structural element, usually an arch, but the elements that support the arch are natural and free-flowing. In the case of Gothic Gate and Madonna and Child, there are delicate leaves that decorate the surroundings. If you were to stand in the middle of the archway of Gothic Gate, you would become the central figure surrounded by the structure of the arch and the free forms of the leaves; you would become a gothic painting like the Madonna and Child.

Gothic Gate is one of the many sculptures located on the campus of USC Upstate. Located off to the side of the walkway, Gothic Gate almost goes unnoticed to the average Upstate student. But those who choose to stop and look at it, begin to notice something special. There is an organic leaf design all over that makes it look as if the sculpture is blowing away in the wind. This design element and the choice of a rustic bronze metal material make the sculpture blend in with its natural surroundings. While this Gothic Gate is off the side of the walkway, it appears as if the artist wanted students to interact with the piece. The sculpture consists of two main pieces, an exterior arch, and an inner gate. The inner gate spins, making one want to go up to it and interact with the sculpture. The gate is fairly large and combined with the leafy design, it almost seems like an entrance to fantasy land. Everything about this sculpture is aimed to make students go back to the basics of what art is: structured like the arch, but loose and free-flowing like a leaf. Art is a combination of many elements, but at the end of the day, one has to be able to flow with it and have enough structure to support it. If one were to walk through this gateway, they would, in a sense, be entering the world of art and creativity, this is Gallucci’s aim.