“One day when I was drawing a young girl, I suddenly noticed that the only thing that was alive was her gaze - One does want to sculpt a living person, but what makes her alive is without doubt her gaze ... Everything else is only the framework for the gaze.”

- Alberto Giacometti

One of three award winners from the Fifth Regional Exhibition in January, Sayaka Ganz, the young metal sculptor, brings a wispy breath of freshness to Artlink’s Regional Winners show set to open next Friday and run through November 9. That’s not to diminish the efforts of photo-magician Steve Perfect or the figurative water colors of Gwen Gutwein, whose works will complete the three-person exhibition.

The diminutive Ganz, who teaches drawing and design fundamentals at IPFW, simply scores high with her maturely executed menagerie of deer, horses, large cats, dogs, eagles and cranes. (Note: These are not your Walt Disney-like, anthropomorphic versions of critters rendered to take up space on an office desk..)

Using rusted scrap iron and steel elements scavenged from local yards Ganz spot welds the sometimes raw, sometimes reshaped, pieces in skeletonal, realistic representations of her wildlife pets. The business end of a pitchfork is caressed to form a horse’s mane. A handleless trowel becomes one ear; a thick hinge, partially folded, suggests the other. Pieces of bicycles - sprockets, frames, fenders, chains - together with a small birdcage are arranged as the animal’ s innards. Using a Miller arc welder frees one hand to position and hold an element while tacking in place with the other.

But more than the masterful craftsmanship and technique Ganz displays in her pieces it is the refined, riveting vision she shows in their conception that marvels.

“The scrap metal is ultimately what triggers my imagination,” writes the artist. “Every piece has its own history and memory - bent, torn and rusted from wear and the elements. Looking at them inspires me, and instinctively I see a dog’s head, a limb, and a deer’s back. Sometimes they end up getting used in some other way, or they are rediscovered anew. The whole process has a great sense of mystery that I find exciting.

“It is always the one subtle piece that I place in an unexpected way that makes the animal come to life in my eyes. I try to push consciously the overall asymmetry of the stance and the structure of each body. This, I feel, separates my work from some of the other scrap metal animal works that I’ve seen.”

“Indeed some viewers may liken Ganz’s work to the bronze horses of Deborah Butterfield, but those equines are often initially molded then cast in bronze or other materials. In addition, Butterfield’s work in some cases lack the animation Ganz gives to her works. The comparison is to a horse of a different color.

Ganz’s influences are many, varied and even surprising.

“I actually earned my BFA from Indiana Bloomington in printmaking which I continue to practice and enjoy,” the articulate teacher explains. “I count among my influences the works of Mark Tobey and Jackson Pollock. It’s a puzzle to some [even her former professors] that I can encompass appreciation for both the abstract and figurative styles.”

“It was toward the end of her degree program that Ganz was first introduced to metal work and welding, but without a car she was challenged to scout out the raw materials she needed. Unfazed by the lack of transport, she mined the left-overs, the leavings that her fellow students discarded in studio bins and outdoor containers. One person’s trash becomes another’s treasure.

In the short time since she’s left her studies Ganz has shown in a number of exhibition’s including appearances in Bloomington, Saint Francis, Artlink, IPFW, Arkansas, Illinois and Huntington. She has taught origami classes, catalogued prints at IU and developed clip art illustrations of modern and traditional Japanese objects. She spends Saturdays teaching her native tongue to elementary students in Indianapolis, and there is talk of a teaching installation at the Fort Wayne Museum of Art.

Born in Yokohama, Ganz traveled with her family to Brazil, Hong Kong and back to Japan before landing in Bloomington 10 years ago. Throughout her youth and adolescence the artist developed an affinity and love for both animals and origami.

“As a young child I remember getting very excited when I first learned how to make origami animals,” she recalled. “My sculptures reflect my experience of searching for abstract shapes and the folds of paper that come together to create the image of an animal.”

Therein exists a certain irony which became apparent during a recent visit with the artist at the modest home she shares with fellow art teacher and husband Chris (himself an accomplished printmaker), located within the proverbial stone’s throw from the IPFW campus.

Sayaka’s studio, situated in a small detached garage, nearly spills over with crates, boxes, bins and buckets of patina-coated scrap metal. So much so that at first glance it is difficult to discern her finished pieces against the backdrop of the weighty objects awaiting assembly.

Then, after a short studio tour - poof! - we’re sitting at the dining room table tackling the intricacies of folding a paper crane. My initial presentation of an origami sampan paled in comparison to her version of the internationally recognized symbol of peace.

From heavy metal to delicate paper folding Ganz demonstrates an unusual touch that is both rare and serenely satisfying.