To some, the ongoing focus on Hindu iconography in my sculpture may seem strange, coming, as it does, from a white atheist prairie boy like myself.

As a human being, there is nothing within human culture that is alien. To refuse to appreciate and learn from diverse sources of human experience is to be wilfully ignorant.

As a sculptor, the whole of human history's artistic production -- indeed, all the physical objects, real and imagined -- is part of my visual "culture." The Greeks are my culture, as surely as are the Africans, as much as the Indians ... at least as much as the Albertans.

I don't "choose" what I'm inspired by, and it's impossible for me to say for sure why I might be so inspired (or even that it's Hinduism, per se, that is the effective inspiration).

There are many factors that influence the directions of my work, and all may be active, consciously or unconsciously, at the same time. However, I can say that I try to take advantage of whatever inspiration comes my way, regardless of the source of the influence.

All the sculptures I've made in this series of works have focused on Ganesha. On one hand, I'm particularly interested in the philosophical concepts integral to Ganesha's mythology; and on the other, I appreciate the possibilities for sculptural expression inherent in the traditional elements of his physical form, as translated through my medium and my process.

I've always been interested in different systems of religious and philosophical thought. My intellectual appreciation of the concepts of Hinduism stems mainly from recent study of the philosophy of Arthur Schopenhauer, whose own work draws inspiration from Hindu thought.

As a sculptor, one can't help but admire the work of the Indian masters of the Middle Ages and their artworks which, for me, rank among the great sculptural achievements of human culture.

For centuries, Hindu tradition has transcended boundaries and influenced philosophical ideas around the globe. Schopenhauer called Hindu scriptures "the consolation of my life" and in them, found precedent for much of his thinking. Speaking on "the openness of taste," the art critic Clement Greenberg (like Arthur Schopenhauer, a philosophical follower of Immanuel Kant), affirmed "that you look at Hindu sculpture, say, in the same way, by and large, as you look at contemporary art or the art of the old masters or any other kind of art."

The great thing about art (like philosophy, or science) is its transcendence across such arbitrary boundaries of race or nation. I do not choose what to be moved by; none of us do. I've seen many parts of the world (four continents so far), studied various philosophies and religions, looked at artworks from a variety of cultures in and out of some of the worlds great museums, and here I am, living in Edmonton, welding bits of scrap together to look like a pot-bellied man with an elephant head.

Is there any easy explanation?

Among the most influential collections of Hindu sculpture that I've seen are the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, and the Glenbow Museum in Calgary. The Glenbow is, perhaps surprisingly, home to an extraordinary collection of Asian art. According to its web-site, the Many Faces, Many Paths collection "comprises over 80 world-class religious sculptures from Asia, some of which are on loan from Bumper Development Corporation Ltd. of Calgary; some have already been gifted by the corporation."

Alongside the artworks in the gallery, there hangs a brilliant statement from Robert Borden, "A message from the collector: The gallery you are entering contains an exhibit of objects that are works of art, not just cultural artifacts. For those of you who wish to view it as an ethnological exhibit or as a religious experience, information is provided alongside each object and you may seek to extend your knowledge through further study.

"However, in the eyes of this collector, the exhibit is first and foremost, one of art. These beautiful objects demonstrate and create an awareness of line and form that would satisfy any art lover. Here you will find shapes, masses, colours, designs, shadows, grace, and beauty as magnificent as that of any art ever produced by human beings of any culture.

"And it is only when we understand and appreciate the creative ability of artists of many cultures that we can fully appreciate the art of our own culture.

"Enjoy the exhibit at your leisure. Enjoy the art. Enjoy the peace. Enjoy the thoughts of artists as they captured and expressed the joys of life. Come back often and stay awhile."

This sums up the attitude of the true esthete. I couldn't have said it better myself.

Ryan McCourt, Edmonton