Sculpture

THE HALLOWEEN BUNNY in Reclaimed! Show

(C) JOHN FANSMITH 2018

I am very pleased to announce that juror Bryant Holsenbeck has invited my welded steel sculpture THE HALLOWEEN BUNNY into the Arts Council of Fayetteville/Cumberland County “Reclaimed!” Show, a show which is focused on the use of reclaimed, recycled, and repurposed materials. The “Reclaimed!” Show will be located at 301 Hay Street, Fayetteville, NC 28301 and will run from June 28, 2019 until August 17, 2019. This is THE HALLOWEEN BUNNY’S second visit to North Carolina, previously having been part of the “Menagerie – Wild and Wonderful” Show in Washington, NC.

HESITATION, DEJECTION, and REVULSION accepted at the Fe Gallery

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I am very pleased to announce that three of my hand built, raku fired paper clay sculptures from the “Cognitive Emotions” Series: HESITATION, DEJECTION, and REVULSION have been accepted into the “Pattern and Abstraction” Show at the Fe Gallery, 1100 65th Street, Sacramento, CA 95819. For this national juried show, only 54 pieces were selected from 784 entries, and I am honored to have had three of the 54. The Show will run from June 2, 2019 until July 26, 2019.

ATTICUS PAINE GALLERY

I am very pleased to announce that five of my pieces DARK MOON RISING, a smoke fired/raku wall hanging, its companion piece HIGH MORNING SUN, ORACLE, a mixed media/found object sculpture, REQUIEM FOR A MUSE, a raku fired paper clay assemblage and THE GREEN MAN: WINTER SOLSTICE, a mixed media sculpture will, along with work from other members of the Cheltenham Ceramics Collective, be part of the Opening Exhibition for the Atticus Paine Gallery. The Atticus Paine Gallery is located at 107 Central Avenue, Cheltenham, PA 19102 and the Exhibition will run from June 2, 2019 until July 7, 2019.

GMO #37

(C) JOHN FANSMITH 2019

GMO # 37 is a mixed media sculpture using a found object and hand built raku fired paper clay. Somehow, using a purely natural object (a piece of yew root), and something completely manufactured (paper clay), seemed the appropriate way to depict a “genetically modified object”. GMO #37 is part of a series of mixed media sculptural pieces I’m going to be concentrating on this year. For want of a better title, I’m calling it my “Look What I Found” Series.

Prelude

(C) JOHN FANSMITH 2019

PRELUDE, part of my “Look What I Found” series of sculptures using found objects and hand built paper clay elements, draws upon my “Rim of Fire” series for its inspiration. The pieces in the “Rim of Fire” series use stained glass and paper clay fired together to depict the early moments of a volcanic eruption. PRELUDE, as its name implies, is of an earlier moment: the clouds of ash are rising but the eruption has not started. PRELUDE is composed of distorted Styrofoam, handmade paper clay, resin, underglazes, and acrylic and enamel paints.

Skepticism in the 311 GALLERY – ABSTRACTS MATTER SHOW

(C) JOHN FANSMITH 2018

 

I am very pleased to announce that jurors Kim Balentine, Cheryl McCardle, and Jenna Webb have invited my hand built Raku fired paper clay sculpture SKEPTICISM into the 311 Gallery show “Abstracts Matter”. SKEPTICISM, part of my “Cognitive Emotions” Series will be on display at 311 Gallery, 311 West Main Street, Raleigh NC 27601 from February 28, 2019 until March 30, 2019. There will be an opening reception from 6 until 9 pm on Friday, March 1st.

BODIES OF….JURIED EXHIBITION OF CERAMIC ARTS

Bodies

I am very pleased to announce that Juror Sigrid Zahner has invited my ceramic sculpture MEMORIES OF FORGOTTEN KINGS into “Bodies of…Juried Exhibition of Ceramic Arts” a nationally juried show at the Crooked Tree Arts Center in Traverse City, MI. The show will open with a reception from 2 to 4 pm on Saturday, April 27, 2019 and run until Saturday, July 20, 2019. I am particularly pleased to be in this show because I recently had two of my Joomchi pieces in a nationally juried Papercraft show at the Crooked Tree Arts Center. Being able to exhibit works at the same location in two different mediums is something of which I am very proud.

ORACLE

(C) JOHN FANSMITH 2019

 

In ORACLE, two High Priests seek guidance in a desolate place amidst a surreal mixture of the natural and unnatural. ORACLE is a mixed media sculpture: the base consists of handmade paper clay using rehydrated scrap clay and recycled newspapers fired together with glass tiles; the “tree” is a found object, part of a yew root from a necessary brush cutting; the “Oracle” is composed of a different type of glass tile than in the base, and the “High Priests” are hand built and raku fired using a different type of paper clay than used in the base. Underglazes, epoxy, acrylic paint and shellac complete the piece – as I said, a combination of natural and unnatural.  (11” x 13 ½” x 7”) ($325.00)

UNUSUAL VIEWS

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I am very pleased to announce that my stained glass/ceramic sculpture, CHILD’S GARDEN ON GILESE 832 X: BLUE FLOXNIA, will be part of the Descanso Gardens “Unusual Views” Exhibition. CHILD’S GARDEN ON GILESE 832 X: BLUE FLOXNIA can be viewed at the Stuart Haaga Gallery at Descanso Gardens,1418 Descanso Drive, La Canada Flintridge, CA 91011 from the opening reception for the Exhibition on February 10, 2019 until its closing on June 9, 2019.

THE HALLOWEEN BUNNY

(C) JOHN FANSMITH 2018

I am finding that the more I become involved in creating art, the more I use found, salvaged, and recycled objects and materials as part of it, whether it be ceramics, paper making, print making,  collage, or in this case, welding. All of the welding I did at Snow Farm involved sorting through a large pile of scrap steel of various sizes, shapes and weights to find the makings of a sculpture. The HALLOWEEN BUNNY series started with a pair of hand shears which reminded me of a rabbit’s ears and face and were lying next to some small garden tools which reminded me of paws (well actually claws). This creative scavenging is something that I find very enjoyable and am hoping to continue. It’s not really practical for me to set up a home welding studio/shop so I’m currently looking for a local place to work (as Snow Farm is a 5 ½ hour drive away).