Title: Where The Heart is

Artist: Jack da Silva

Rarity: Unique

Method: Repurposed London bus panel

Material: Aluminium, folding wood ruler, lumber pencils, paint, stainless steel screws & nuts

Size: 38 x 28 x 1.5cm

Weight: 1.6KG

Nationality: American

Our notions regarding Home tend toward the romantic. ‘Be it ever so humble...’ ‘Home Sweet Home.’ I selected ‘Where the Heart Is.’ The piece of aluminium that I received for this exhibition arrived with a burned torch cut hole in the
upper left corner. At first, I thought about removing it. However, the nature of this exhibition, to raise awareness and funds for the unhoused, revealed for me
an aspect of the burned torch hole that became a catalyst for my concept of ‘Where the Heart Is’.

I pierced a Heart shape from the aluminium sheet, making sure that the damage from the torch cut appears on the stylised heart shape itself. This reflects consequences that can sometimes occur, whether intentional or unintentional. Decisions may have subtle or enormous impacts on our lives and the lives of others. These can place us in circumstances well beyond our control. I represent the romantic frame of mind with the word ‘HOME’, the folding ruler and lumber pencils: orderly, regulated, ‘normal’. Contrasting this is the raw, lacerated ‘Where the Heart Is’ scratched into an otherwise sweet Valentine’s Day style heart. The heart has been extracted and offset from the main body of the aluminium rectangle, clearly exposing the empty space that is left behind both physically and metaphorically. As best we can, we struggle to survive somehow. It may be humble, if not sweet, 'Where the Heart is' - Jack da Silva

A native of California, Jack da Silva is from a family of artisans. A third-generation gravestone maker, Jack enjoys teaching 3D Design, metalsmithing, anticlastic raising, jewellery making and hand-crafted arts advocacy. In 1981, he received an MFA in Metalsmithing/Jewellery Design from Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, focusing on research and hands on experimentation of ancient traditional metalworking techniques. Jack owns and operates the Jack Da Silva’s Metal Arts Studio Jack serves as a Jewellery Metal Arts Instructor at City College of San Francisco, CA; has offered college level courses since 1981 at Indiana University, Bloomington, IN; Adjunct Professor at California College of the Arts, Oakland, CA; and retired 2012 as Tenured Professor Evergreen Valley College, San Jose, CA. In 1982-1983, Jack da Silva was invited as a Visiting Professor in Jewellery/Metal Arts at Kook Min University and Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea.

Jack continues to present workshops, lectures, exhibiting nationally and internationally. In 1999-2008, Jack founded and funded MAKER: Metal Arts worKshop & Educational Retreat, a week long, hands on, adult metal arts camp at Camp Loma Mar, near Pescadero, CA. A Crew of 14 set up and assisted in the classroom spaces for 5-7 simultaneous workshop Presenters given by internationally renowned metal artists.

Jack's metal work is found in publications, and public/private collections including the Victoria & Albert Museum, London; Museum of Modern Art, Seoul, South Korea; Indianapolis Museum of Art, IN; City of Fremont Public Schools, Fremont, OH; City of Antioch, Antioch, CA; Portugal and across the USA. Jack has completed research in Greece, Israel, Mexico, Korea, Japan, Portugal, and exhibitions in South Korea, Mexico, England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Taiwan and across the USA. He brings over forty years of experience in the Jewellery/Metal Arts, including public service and over fourteen years as an elected non-profit Board Member.