I was born at a very young age. It could have been anywhere right? But fate smiled and I landed, wet and screaming, in an artists collective in upstate New York. Crazy luck! After a few idyllic years there, our family took a long, wild hitchhiking adventure around South America, before finally settling in Santa Fe, NM. The child of professional sculptors, I grew up squishing and eating clay in their studio and on road trips doing arts/crafts shows.
Time moved slowly at first. I learned a thing or two about this and that. Eventually stumbling into adulthood, I took a career in the arts more seriously. An enthusiastic autodidact, I wallowed in technique. Various bodies of work came and went. I sculpted clay and carved stone. I hand-bound books and welded kinetic art. Parenthood, with its urge to nest, led to a 15 year career as a stone mason, an ancient and venerable craft, and a more grounded way of life.
As time passed I grew older. Now settling into my 5th decade (and realizing that stone masonry is for younger men) I’ve heard the call to return to my roots in the arts world. Having grown so close with stone, this has meant swapping my big chisels for tiny ones and learning to carve marble. It has meant learning to cast molten bronze with the excitement of a kid and cool head of a grown-ass man. It has meant learning to sculpt clay like I mean it.
I like making stuff. It’s really that simple.
There are many methods to my work, but nothing mysterious. I simply show up in the studio, drink some coffee, and tinker. Some lucky days are all flow state and breakthrough. You might catch me doing a little happy dance. Other days are pure frustration. I sigh. I take notes. I learn a thing or two and sweep up the mess. Regardless, like a dog fed from the table, I keep coming back. I know I’m on the right track when a piece makes me stop and look closer. Every piece builds on the last, my skills improve, and a body of work slowly emerges.
I currently have three (very different) mediums of choice. While I usually pursue them individually, I occasionally combine them in unexpected ways.