Undergraduate Sculpture Thesis

For this past year, I have been creating works in series for a thesis art exhibition, the conclusion to my four years studying sculpture at Guilford College.  The exhibition was a group show consisting of eight artists; three sculptors (including myself), one potter, a painter, two photographers, and a printmaker.  The show was installed in the gallery and commons of Founders Hall at Guilford and ran from April, 20 to May, 5.

Body II/Coelomate:

Onward

here's what's up in the studio:

Hildebrandt Studio:

Here's a peek at what I've been up to and how my workspace is developing. Feel free to drop by, or shoot me an email (armbruster@guilford.edu):

Sibling/Trap 2/A Low Roof For David

rope, steel, cast iron

Vernacular Form

New photo from the wonderful Mr. Sharp Hall.

Somnambulist/ Trap 1/ Sleeper

wood, steel [2.5'x 6.5'x 7']

a new series

• Here is the first of a new series in material studies, working primarily with individual railroad ties as object/material.

A-86 [2' x 2' x 10']

Juried works on exhibit at the CVA

Here are two works I submitted to the Center For Visual Artists' Annual Juried Student Exhibition. The first is a Vernacular Form (I can't shake the feeling), an exploration of familiar forms and objects. The second is a collection of objects produced in an exercise of eleven straight hours of sketching in 3d, producing an object for every hour. The working title is How can I make you understand.

They will be on exhibit until 4-29 at the CVA. If you are interested in buying a work, contact the gallery for price and information.

Got my face in the paper again!

The installation has been getting a lot of attention from the local community and the triad. Here is a recent blurb from the News and Record on Patrick and the work we've all been doing: here


Also, I'm glad they called me a "local artist" + had my name rather than just write student or volunteer. YAY!

Visiting artist Patrick Dougherty @ Guilford College

wow! been a while since my last post. sorry about that. Okay, here goes...

During the upcoming 2011 Spring semester at Guilford College here in Greensboro, world renowned sculptor Patrick Dougherty will be doing one of his large scale sapling installations in the center of campus. I will have a chance to work with the artist through my job at the college Art Gallery and through my Teaching Assistant position in our Sculpture and the Environment class, which will be helping with the actual installation process. The class is being taught by Greensboro artist Mark Dixon, and will be focused on the subject of environmental art. Check in this month for more updates on this stuff and new works by yours truly.

Onward!

Reclamation: :

Exhibited at the Center For Visual Artists at the Greensboro Cultural Arts Center throughout the month of July. Photo credit Amanda Armbrust:

Hiatus from Greensboro.

I'll be back to Rhode Island for the month of August, and then I'm off to Siena, Italy for some classes. It's mostly going to be drawing work over there, so this next month is going to be dedicated to a sort of sketching in 3D exercise:

• The plan is to spend several hours (min. of 2) every (or every other) morning at a specific site, working with materials, exploring the space, getting ideas. The idea is to not go more than two days without spending some time getting my hands dirty. The exercises in the morning should act as fodder for latter thought throughout the day and evening.
• Additionally, I will visit at least one site or location each week. This doesn't have to be the one that I work at each morning, but it can be.

The point of these exercises is to set a minimum of work so that this next month can be dedicated to rest without loosing steam. Im sure much time will be spent on the beach, working with rock and plant matter, but Im hoping for some surprises. Please post any suggestions, or if you'd like to brainstorm.

Also, high-quality images from the recent installation will be uploaded soon, as well as scans from the local newspaper (I always feel like seeing it 'in print' is so much better than reading an online article).

News Paper Publication

News and Records did an interview with me and the story came out this past thursday. Check it out here.

Exhibition Update:

Just had an interview today with News and (Greensboro). There will be a story out some time next week (the week of the show) or the following, depending on when they get it out.

Until then, here are some images from the building process as of this week. Keep checking for updates as they come. The Opening is Friday July 2 at 6pm.

Photo Credit: Katrina Fischer

Upcoming installation...

Through June and July, I will be installing and showcasing an on site, indoor sculpture at the Center for VIsual Artists at the Greenhill Center in downtown Greensboro. the process will be documented along the way and the final piece will be open to the public during the CVA's newest exhibition, Trash. the show opens Friday, July 2. Check back for updates as the date approaches!

The Well

Here is a glimpse at my latest endeavor in the woods of North Carolina. More images will arrive soon, but if you happen to be close, here is how to find if. Go to Guilford college campus, down to the lake, and take the main path to the left of the lake (the one with the road gate at its start). Follow it until about ten meters short of the fork in the path. On your right there is a clearing with low growth where you will see a creek carving through the ground (here is where the serpentine form in rock was laid). Across this creek you can see the well. Go up to it, look inside. Get inside, its nice and cool down there in the dirt and the water and the shade.

The Idea:

the personal mythology I have been building is continued with this, a passage way between mirrored worlds. The Well is an entrance into the earth, through the mud and water.

It's counterpart, a phallic structure mirroring this yonic symbol stands in the distance.

11/11

Eleven objects in eleven hours.
Coming back to Greensboro from a month back home in RI, I was most definitely feeling stagnant.
I wasn't the only one. My current sculpture professor, Mark Dixon, had an idea; basically, it's like when your grandmothers car is acting weird so she brings it to a mechanic. He knows whats wrong, the car's been going about twenty miles an hour, about six hours a week. It's an easy fix; he just runs the engine at 80mph for a while. The car warms up, and it's like new.
"That's what we're doing here"

Perameters:
-My pallet defined by a list of materials.

• wood (drift, scrap)
  
• fur (foe)
  
• joinery (needle/thread, glue)
• filler (stuffing, "Great Stuff")
  

-No prior notes, sketches, or models (eleven hours of "sketching" in 3D)

[photos are coming soon]

Box #1

This sculpture is intended to be exhibited as an interactive piece. Special thanks to David Newton and Mark Dixon. Also, Jeff Wayman for the beautiful wood and Carly Kester for the gull head.

Box #1 w/ Lid
(Walnut and Cherry Wood with found objects)



detail .1


detail .2


detail .3

Burden (or, Defeat)
(Steel, Wood, Rope)

This sculpture was created in response to, or rather, in conjunction with an intaglio etching I had begun around the same time (Spring of 2009). The print focused on a similar form. Special thanks to my professor and friend, David Newton.

This work was featured in the Guilford College Jurried Student Art Show (Winter 2009) and most recently at the Center for Visual Artists at the Greenhill Center in downtown Greensboro. The work has since been stolen.

not a mission statement

I've just begun this as a way to document and archive my ideas, ongoing projects and finished works in a public domain. Today is day one...
~
It is winter, and I've come home to Rhode Island for a few weeks. Between all the friends, family, flora and fauna, this is going to be a short stay.
~
The cold has moved in for a while, my favorite time: winter in the north east. Great for ideas, and great for rest.