Canons from the collection of Van Every/Smith Galleries at Davidson College

Viewing collection Religious Studies Clear context

Canons, 2010

3 rubber band balls and corresponding x-rays. Each x-ray reveals a bronze cast human skull holding a book in its mouth. One holds a copy of a Christian Bible, one holds a copy of the Hebrew Tanakh and one holds a copy of the Islamic Qur’an

Dimensions variable

Attribution: Gift of the Artist

Inv: 2025.8.1

Location: Collection Storage Hanging Storage

Canons (2010) presents 3 enormous rubber band balls and corresponding x-rays. Each x-ray reveals a bronze cast human skull holding a book in its mouth. One holds a copy of a Christian Bible, one holds a copy of the Hebrew Tanakh and one holds a copy of the Islamic Qur’an.

The work is from the series Inevitable Forms (2004-2021). Wrapping objects shifts them from their original unique physical forms toward becoming the same ‘inevitable’ metaphoric form of a sphere. The act of wrapping functions as a reverential reference to cultural acts such as ceremonial wrapping, gift giving, and burial rituals such mummification. Simultaneously, the wrapping also references the gradual accumulation of layers and physical pressures of geologic and celestial accretion by which larger forms are created over vast periods of time, and at the planetary scale physical mass will inevitably succumb to the force of gravity and collapse into the form of a sphere. The fact that all forms when wrapped and placed under pressure will always move toward becoming the same form (a sphere) is a metaphorical reference toward philosophies, sciences and religions that imply all things are manifestations of or linked to a singular context. The finished work initially presents as a series of large paradoxically humorous ‘rubber band balls’ until the viewer realizes the contents and is invited toward a deeper contemplative experience. Canons invites the viewer to contemplate both the aspirational goals of three religions as well as the physical violence and discord historically linked to each of these faiths.

The use of X-rays reveals the interiors and reference forms "scientific" imaging that present Modernist concepts of truth in contrast to other forms of photography that postmodernism reveals as conditional truth or acts of simulacra.

Originally exhibited as a kinetic work where the balls were lifted and dropped to create a low frequency floor strike sending a physical shock wave through the floor to the viewer. This version of the work is non-kinetic as shown.

EPDM bands used to create this work are chemical and UV resistant and have an archival life expectancy of 200+ years.

From Van Every/Smith Galleries at Davidson College

Luis Sahagún

Instructions for Soul Searching, 2026

Photographic documentation

18.25 x 24.25 in (46.36 x 61.6 cm)
Linda Foard Roberts

Segregated Balcony, Presbyterian Church, Charlotte, NC, 2016

Gelatin silver print

28 x 24 in (71.12 x 60.96 cm)
Alice Sebrell

Fall from Grace, Animal Mannequins Witness the Destruction of the World, 1991

Chromogenic print

15.75 x 12 in (40.01 x 30.48 cm)
Michael Rothenstein

The Song of Songs, 1979

Screenprint on paper

20.75 x 14.5 in (52.71 x 36.83 cm)
Martin Rosenthal

Fish and Faces with Geometric Border, 1972

Oil on canvas

50.5 x 64 in (128.27 x 162.56 cm)
Jean-Paul Riopelle

Pieta, 1967

Etching and aquatint on paper

11 x 15 in (27.94 x 38.1 cm)
Georges Rouault

Christ and Disciple, No. 2, from "The Passion", 1939

Woodcut on paper

12.375 x 8.375 in (31.43 x 21.27 cm)
Harmenszoon van Rijn Rembrandt

The Return of the Prodigal Son, 1636

Etching on paper

6.125 x 5.25 in (15.56 x 13.34 cm)

View All Artworks

About the artist

Cort Savage

American

b. 1965

American sculptor, Cort Savage received a BA in Fine Arts from Indiana University and an MFA in Sculpture from Syracuse University. He was instrumental in establishing the Belk Visual Arts Center on the campus of Davidson College, where he taught sculpture and drawing for thirty years. He retired from Davidson in 2025.

His sculptures are characterized by kinetics and use of rubber-bands. His work has been exhibited throughout the United States, including at the Mint Museum of Art, Cameron Museum of Art, and the New Orleans Center for Contemporary Art. He received numerous grants and fellowships, including from the North Carolina Arts Council, the Southern Arts Federation, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Additional Details

Additional Artworks

Instructions for Soul Searching, 2026

Segregated Balcony, Presbyterian Church, Charlotte, NC, 2016

Fall from Grace, Animal Mannequins Witness the Destruction of the World, 1991

The Song of Songs, 1979

Fish and Faces with Geometric Border, 1972

Pieta, 1967

Christ and Disciple, No. 2, from "The Passion", 1939

The Return of the Prodigal Son, 1636

About the artist

Cort Savage