This is a blog containing my responses to research of Artists I have discovered/been informed of, for the Advanced Sculpture course.
This is my first attempt at such a thing, so please bear with me!
James Rodger Alexander
After being told about James Rodger Alexander, due to similarities in medium and style, I decided to research him further; this is what I have discovered.
After being told about James Rodger Alexander, due to similarities in medium and style, I decided to research him further; this is what I have discovered.
So far, it does not appear that James has a website or an online portfolio of his work, making this research a tad more difficult.
James was born in Cleveland, Ohio; he earned both his B.Arch in Architecture as well as an M.Arch in Architecture and Urban Design from Cornell University; after working as an architect for six years, he attended Louisiana State University and received his MFA Sculpture and Ceramics in 1976. He is currently teaching sculpture and ceramics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he is a faculty member of the Department of Art and Art History and serves as the Director of the BFA program. He as well taught at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and at the Auburn Center for Architecture and Urban Studies, Birmingham.
Being both a trained architect and sculptor, he is consistently utilizing form to delineate and articulate space rather than just simply defining the object sculpturally. He uses his architectural background to create the framework of his sculptures' concepts. In many of his pieces, both large scale and small, are primarily focused on one reoccurring issue: the resolution of the conflict between opposing forces; these forces could be literal and take on a physical form or be conceptual and be considered in a philosophical sense. He is seldom satisfied with his sculptural forms that he creates, and regularly uses repetitive pieces to define a certain space.
Some Awesome Quotes I found
“When people ask how I reconcile ceramics or wood, often craft materials, with my fine arts practice, I simply tell them that art is what you think, craft is how you make it.”
“Sculpture is a lot like music. It is about pattern and repetition, notes and spaces, solids and voids. I just adapt these ideas to what I am interested in, and use it as a map to negotiate every one of my artistic challenges. “
“One of the reasons I’ve always been interested in sculpture is that it is the one creative practice that isn’t restricted by materials. Painting obviously requires paint, ceramics requires clay, but as we have seen from Duchamp to Carl Andre to the present day, sculpture doesn’t restrict your media. As a result, it creates challenges, but doesn’t set defined parameters.”
Some past pieces
Equipoise: Segmented Arc
Name wasn't listed
Current work
Pieces currently in his workshop; photos taken by Leticia Bajuyo
Name wasn't listed, but shows current work in a formal setting. Sorry for the poor quality, but this is the only picture I could find.
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Brad Pearce
On Facebook I follow several of the nearby art galleries, this way I can see upcoming artist events and upcoming opening/closing receptions for shows. Once such opening reception (April 6 - May 19) was for Brad Pearce and his first ever solo exhibition "Full Circle"; the pieces represented within are apart of his Marea Collection (marea is Italian for ocean tide).
On Facebook I follow several of the nearby art galleries, this way I can see upcoming artist events and upcoming opening/closing receptions for shows. Once such opening reception (April 6 - May 19) was for Brad Pearce and his first ever solo exhibition "Full Circle"; the pieces represented within are apart of his Marea Collection (marea is Italian for ocean tide).
During his school years at Ray High School, Pearce broke his foot and thus turned his attention from football to the arts. After watching a TV segment on glassblowing, he was inspired to visit a glassblower by the name of Steve Russell who had a studio in Rockport. After his tour, he was asked if he wanted to attempt to gather some glass from Russell's furnace, and then he was hooked for life.
After high school, Pearce worked at the Taos Institute for Glass Arts, then headed to the Cleveland Institute of Art to earn a BFA in glass and a minor in ceramics. Once he earned his degree, he assisted teaching in Washington (Pilchuck Glass School, Seattle), Maine (Haystack School of Craft, Deer Isle), and North Carolina (Penland School of Craft, Spruce Pine), but came back to Corpus Christi in 2015 to start his own business.
His Artist's Statement from "Full Circle"
The foundation of Brad's work is deeply rooted in the processes and techniques of traditional Venetian style glassblowing. For him as a maker, he finds the beauty of his work not in the final result but rather in the process necessary to achieve that result. By combining form study, color theory, and various pattern applications, Brad creates his unique and modern interpretations of classical Venetian glass.
Brad is also largely influenced by the material itself. Glass is a material that has changed Brad's life immeasurably. Since the first gather at the age of eighteen, he has been captivated by this incredible material. The act of transforming a molten liquid into a refined shape is something that displays thoughtfulness from start to finish, a keen and deliberate decision making process, and above all else a tremendous skill set. It is those attributes that continually inspire Brad to passionately pursue his craft.
A large Marea bowl with a medium Marea bowl on either side
An angled decanter with two cups
Two flat vases
A decanter with two glasses
The pieces in his Rockport exhibit bring for an essence of his coastal roots. The vivid lines within each piece create swirling lines and patterns that capture the wind, waves, and motion of the sea; though their appearance looks intentional, they are completely random, and the swirls are only guided by Pearce's hand.