Re-Purposeful Kinetic Sculpture - Shoe Shine

To most people, it’s a rusted saw, a silver spoon, or a discarded doorknob. To Massachusetts artist Judy Hurlburt, it’s the beginning of a sculpture. She wires, screws, and strings these found objects into Re-Purposeful Kinetic Sculptures — one-of-a-kind works of art that catch the wind, come alive with movement, and create gentle, unexpected sounds. Built to live outdoors, each sculpture is made with longevity in mind. Judy seals wood, beads, and other weather-sensitive materials to help them withstand the elements, while leaving the metal components untreated. Rather than fighting rust and patina, she embraces them as part of the sculpture’s ongoing evolution. Judy built this one straight out of memory: her dad, every Sunday night, buffing his work shoes to a mirror shine while the whole house filled with that unmistakable polish smell. Three vintage cobbler's lasts stack in a row, strung together on cord and spaced out with turned wooden beads, still stamped with their old size and width codes. Hanging between them, a cluster of tin shoe polish lids do the actual chiming — Griffin A.B.C. Wax, Kiwi Boot Polish in brown and tan, Esquire Boot Polish — each one worn enough to prove it did its job once. A small dark bell closes it out at the bottom, the last note in a ritual about getting ready for the week ahead.