I am a figurative sculptor, based in Western Massachusetts, working mostly in carved stone and welded steel. My journey as an artist has been a process of constantly exploring both the possibilities and limitations of different materials — steel, stone, ceramics, plaster, wood, and glass — and of combining them in different ways in my work.
I fell in love with sculpting when I was 15, during a 9th grade art class where I spent the entire school year creating an oil clay bust of Claude Monet. Our Park School teacher, sculptor Fern Cunnigham-Terry, had us construct a skull upon which the muscles, skin, and hair were later applied. Once the modeling was complete, we made molds, cast plaster into them, and then chipped off the mold to reveal the finished sculpture. This experience has launched me on a lifelong exploration of creating in three dimensions.
I continued developing my art skills at Milton Academy — where I also discovered my passion for rock climbing — and then at Brown University, where I earned a degree in Visual Art and also took studio classes at the Rhode Island School of Design. Along the way, I supplemented my academic studies with sculpture courses and internships at places like Stonybrook Metal Arts & Sculpture School in Jamaica Plain, MA (bronze casting and welding), and Liberty Arts in Durham, NC (ceramics and metal casting with sand molds). During two formative summers at The Carving Studio and Sculpture Center in West Rutland, VT, I began carving marble and also combining it with metal, wood, and glass that I salvaged from the former quarry site.
In 2017, an artist residency at the Plumbing Museum in Watertown, MA, gave me the time, space, and access to metalworking tools and materials to produce many sculptures from welded scrap metal and often using these rusty structures to support beautiful stones that I found and carved. After settling in Western Massachusetts, a job at Salmon Studios in Florence, MA, expanded my skills in metal finishing, fabrication, and especially the hand filing of metal, which is essential to achieving crisp lines and curves in my sculpture. I now work full-time in my studio, creating sculptures for commissions and exhibits. I am forever on the lookout for natural and human-made objects to incorporate into my pieces, whether they’re lying in quarries, riverbeds, scrap piles, attics, or garages. I am also an active board member of the New England Sculptors Association.
I am grateful for the many people who have supported my artistic journey, including my family, friends, teachers, and mentors. Their encouragement, lessons, and willingness to share their knowledge and ideas with me has helped me become the person and artist that I am today.