“Almost as if suspended in space, the children of my ships surge forward through a universe of wonder and hope. The submarines are only shells really, suggestions of the finite nature of our earth existence. I have done several other “submarine” pieces over the years, and flying machines—vehicles which carry children into worlds of imagination. They all have one thing in common. They act as vehicles of empowerment for the child.

Transcending the limits of earth, these children soar by the strength of their own imaginations and the locomotion of their fondest hopes and dreams. Powered by their trust in the basic goodness of earth experience, they transcend the limitations of this existence with an undimmed vision of the future—with a hope for continuance beyond the bonds of death. So the sculptures, in essence, become a very intimate expression of personal faith. Art is about sharing the power of our dreams with one another in a language of forms that could not be expressed in any other way.”

Dennis Smith. “Bright Light of Our Soaring Dreams”, New Era (August 1993)