REVIEWS HAWAII TRIUNE HERALD "Bianchini is more interested in the inner essence of his materials, pulling and wrestling the soul out of a massive chunk of Ohia to free the image within." Bertil Long T-H Art Review HAWAII TRIBUNE HERALD, Dec. 29, 1991 "Each piece seems to require invention and reinvention. But instead of yielding to the obvious possibility of overworking a piece, he creates works that have a simple dignity and a broadness of form, works that evoke something older, more vital and mysterious. They form a strong connection with the old Hawaiian sculpture, of which Bianchini says, "The moment I came into contact with the few traditional Hawaiian sculptures that were available, I had a strong desire to find a modern or contemporary way to represent that art. To interpret Hawaiian art the traditional way in our own age, is by incorporating it with the western-eastern influx into Hawaii itself." Leila Mehle Gallery Director East Hawaii Cultural Center HAWAII TRIBUNE HERALD, February 5, 1984 BRETT WESTON-BIANCHINI EXHIBIT OPENS TODAY "The combination of Weston's and Bianchini's work is intended to create what Gallery Director David Busey has described as "a symbiosis of form and composition. The abstractions and romanticism of each artist creates a perfect foil for the other, a visual merging of images enhanced further by the exquisite qualities and techniques of two master artists." Quick to recognize those of similar persuasion, he became impressed with the work of Big Island sculptor Henry Bianchini. Weston's artistic eye was greatly influenced during his youth, most of which was spent with his father Edward, in Mexico, by his intimate association with such artists as Diego Rivera, Jean Charlot, Jose Clemente Orozco and others destined for international recognition. Many of these qualities he now sees in the work of Bianchini. While photographing in the Volcano area in 1979, Weston noticed one of Bianchini's wood sculptures at the Volcano Art Center, purchased it, and created the beginnings of an artistic kinship. In describing the sculptor's work, Busey states, "Bianchini's work speaks for itself: it is bold yet gentle; dynamic and demanding of attention, yet gracefully withdrawn and seductive." Connoisseurs Gallery Mauna Lani Bay Hotel THE SUNDAY STAR BULLETIN ADVERTISER, Honolulu, HI, August 8, 1989 "In speaking of his work, sculptor Henry Bianchini has noted that 'the tactile values of materials have deep urgings.' For all its intuitive impulse, his work is clearly disciplined both formally and historically. One may find in this work the resonances of modern artists Gris and Braque, Lipchitz, Moore and Giacometti as well as those of indigenous Hawaiian and Northwest Indian sculpture - influences which do not reduce Bianchini to derivation, but connect him to a larger and longer tradition. It is a tradition in which the facets of form lead into both spatial and temporal sequences of perception and, in so doing, create address meaning both literal and metaphorical. Much of Bianchini's work is figurative; this frame of reference thus embraces both the particularities of human gesture and experience, and the universal compulsion of life's energy." Marcia Morse, Star-Bulletin Art Critic and Art Instructor at Honolulu Community College and an artist in her own right BIANCHINI EXHIBIT AT STUDIO SEVEN "The figurative images express a fascination for the abiding conditions of life and human activities. The interaction of people dancing, embracing, conversing, etc., are constant expressions of the artist and reaches a core of people's existence and ritualistic habits. Bianchini is less interested in a literal description of his subject matter and more concerned with symbolic simplification of the gestures of the forms. These symbols become motifs that are repeated in variation throughout his work. The pieces have both primordial and tribal sensitivities of human conditions that are playful, joyful and ceremonial." Studio 7 Holualoa, HI STAR-BULLETIN, Honolulu, HI THE INTERPLAY OF FORM, Sculpture, Painting and Prints by Henry Bianchini Volcano Art Center "The artist's interest in the human figure remains constant. Ultimately, the figurative image comes to have metaphorical weight as the signifier of an abiding fascination for the condition of life and its deep sources of energy." Marcia Morse Star-Bulletin Art Reviewer