Read How I Got Into The Arts Here:
- Read Part 1 Here: How I Got Into the Arts Part I: College and Jewelry
- Read Part 2 Here: How I Got Into the Arts Part II: Cookie Cutters
- Read Part 3 Here: How I Got Into the Arts Part III: Frank and The Artwalk
- Read Part 4 Here: How I Got Into the Arts Part IV: Making a Splash at MGA
- Read Part 5 Here: How I Got Into the Arts Part V: The Police Station
Important Things to Know:
Last year was a whirlwind year of making art for me, and was the first year I made some personal projects in addition to working full-time for MGA Sculpture Studio as lead designer. Let’s go on a visual journey visiting some of the projects I worked on that led to being named an Emerging Artist:
REFLECTING
Reflecting was a piece made for the ArtsXchange show You Good?, an exhibit amount mental health in January 2021. 15 artists were awarded a $1,000 commission each to create their work. My piece was a 30″ x 40″ mirror sculpture with waterjet cut mirror letters. It won the Grand Prize of $2,500.
THE FIRST FLIGHT MONUMENT
The First Flight Monument was actually completed in December of 2020 by MGA Sculpture Studio, but the grand opening was February 2021 so we’re going to include it. The monument is located at the St Petersburg Pier, and is a replica of the first commercial flight that took place in St Pete on January 1st, 1914. I spent 14 months designing the plane from black and white photos, and the final pieces measures 45′ wide and 26′ long and is comprised of 16,000 lbs of stainless steel.
ACUMEN
Acumen is MGA‘s 20’ tall ammonite sculpture located in Ft Collins, Colorado. Installed at a police training facility in February 2021, the shell is a symbolic for growth and learning through repetition.
NURTURE
Nurture is MGA‘s 20’ tall crane sculpture located in Altamonte Springs, Florida. Installed at the popular Cranes Roost Park in May 2021, the sculpture depicts intimate scene of a mother crane and her baby colt.
FLORA-DA-SCOPE
The Flora-Da-Scope is a project I built with MGA’s head fabricator George Retkes for the newly open Fairground St Pete interactive art exhibit. It is a Florda-themed 6′ long LED kaleidoscope weighing in at 500lbs. Installed in June 2021, the kaleidoscope was my first foray into LED lighting and programming. Super stressful yet rewarding project.
THE NORTHPORT SCULPTURES
MGA‘s Northport Sculptures is a set of 5 sculptures installed at a retirement home in Northport, Florida. The series, installed in July 2021, feature an 18′ bird-of-paradise flower, with 4 other smaller sculptures that are around 6′ tall each: a corkscrew shell, a lightning whelk, a monarch butterfly, and a bouquet of azaleas.
ILLUMINATION
MGA‘s Illumination is a 15′ diameter acrylic chandelier located in Northglenn, Colorado. Based on the state flower of Colorado, the columbine, this sculpture greets you as you enter the Parsons Theater at Northglenn’s newest community center. Installed in September 2021, this is one of MGAs most ambitious projects, consisting of over 4,000 pieces.
HULALITH
The Hulalith is a project I completed with Courtney Dodson and Bailey Gumienny in October 2021. The 8′ tall 3-sided dichroic mirror sculpture was for the 20,000 person music festival called Hulaween in Live Oak, Florida. This was my first piece made for a music festival.
Check out Courtney’s Work Here
RISE
MGA‘s Rise is a 9/11 memorial located on the ArtsXchange campus in St Pete, Florida. Completed in December 2021, the plaza features a 23′ tall phoenix wing made of copper and a 11′ I-beam from the World Trade Center.
WHAT. A. YEAR. Definitely the most amount of work I’ve made in a calendar year at probably not a sustainable pace. But a breakthrough year nonetheless and the foundation for a year of doing some big things in 2022.
Stay Tuned for My Next Post: My Inspirations
