4th Annual Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition - March 23, 2013 – March 15, 2014

The exhibition is free and open to the public, with a self-guided walking tour available at the Information & Welcome Center, just inside North Georgia’s main entrance on South Chestatee Street, as well as at the Department of Visual Arts office in Hansford Hall, off West Main Street, in Dahlonega. The hours of the Information & Welcome Center and the Department of Visual Arts are M-F, 8AM-5PM. There is parking available to visitors at all times near the parking deck entrance at the end of College Circle, off West Main Street. Large groups should arrange visits in advance—guided tours may be available.

For more information, call the Department of Visual Arts: 706-867-2832  

Wesley L. Stewart is primarily a sculptor, but creates art across many disciplines including, but not limited to, drawing and painting. His work encompasses both linear and planar aspects, incorporating color to accentuate specific areas of the work or to the surrounding area where it is placed. Born and raised in Augusta, Georgia, his interest in sculpture began when working for the family business – Stewart Sheet Metal. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Augusta State University and a Master of Fine Arts from Georgia Southern University.

— "The metal sculptures I create are three-dimensional drawings. I draw and doodle constantly in my sketchbook, making subtle changes with each new page. These countless drawings express various gestures, shapes, and linear qualities that will relate to how I intuitively fabricate. I call this process “Drawing in Space.” Inspired by street art and video games, my work contains similar qualities that are shown through the combination of strong line, gestural energy and layers of bold colors on planar shapes." Website: www.wesleylstewart.com  

Bob Doster
A South Carolina native, Bob Doster has owned and operated his studio and gallery, Backstreet Studios, located in Lancaster, South Carolina, since 1975. His monumental sculptures and functional artwork can be seen in galleries, museums, private collections and in public displays from the corporate collections of Saks Fifth Avenue and Founders Federal Credit Union to the State Art Collection of the SC Arts Commission.

— "Art is conversation between the eyes and the soul….my creations arise from my visual memories as they are experienced in my whole being. My hope is that the viewer will walk away with memories of their own experiences." Website: http://www.bobdoster.com/ 

Jim Parris
Jim Parris is a practicing lawyer, and a graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law. He lives in Lenoir City, Tennessee.

— "I enjoy the physical and creative aspects of welding. Using tools and heat to transform flat sheets of steel into functional objects, or simply pleasing shapes is very rewarding. I find that my thoughts and interpretations of a particular piece are not always shared by the viewer, and learning the different ways of viewing something I created is educational and fun. I came to welding and the world of art after a long career as a lawyer. The change from law to steel is on-going and continues to be a work in progress."

Scott Lacey
Scott Lacey is an art student at the University of North Georgia. He lives in Dahlonega, Georgia.

Deedee Morrison
Deedee Morrison was born in New Orleans, received her college degree from The University of the South, in Sewanee, Tennessee, and lives and works in Birmingham, Alabama. She has been working as a professional studio and public artist for over ten years. Her experience includes a broad spectrum of commissioned work and public art planning and development.

— "Art has value because it affords potential to provoke emotion, soulful thought, glimpses of beauty and realization of those things larger than ourselves. Interaction with sculpture is a tactile experience that allows one the potential to explore intellectually and emotionally, to engage, to enjoy." Website: http://deedeemorrisonsculpture.com/  

Jim Gallucci
Jim Gallucci, lives and works in Greensboro, North Carolina. He is a graduate of LeMoyne College and Syracuse University, and has been a sculptor for over 30 years. Jim has taught art at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and the University of Alabama at Huntsville. He was also an Exhibit Designer for the North Carolina Zoological Park in Asheboro.
Presently, Jim works full time designing and fabricating sculpture in his Greensboro studio assisted by a staff of 6. Most of the works are commissions for public, corporate, and residential spaces around the country. For six years he has shown his work at the annual Pier Walk International Sculpture Exhibition in Chicago, and his work has also been selected for such international shows as the World Expo 88 in Brisbane, Australia and the 7th Henry Moore Grand Prize Exhibition at the Utsukushi-ga-hara Open-Air Museum, Hakone, Japan and UBE Japan. In 2007 Jim earned a Diploma of Nomination from the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

— "My works are publicly placed objects that invite interaction with the passer-by. Art is a physical manifestation of an idea or event that calls forth an emotional response from the viewer. It speaks to us and evokes a chord deep within us. Good art challenges us, can make us feel righteous, moves us, soothes us and can bring us peace."
Website: http://www.jimgalluccisculptor.com/

Kyle Van Lusk
Born in the mountains of North Carolina, sculptor Kyle Van Lusk has been inspired by the balance of beauty and strength in the Blue Ridge Mountains since childhood. Lusk continues to create sculpture that manifests this relationship and his affinity for process and materials. Raised in a small community near Brevard, NC, Lusk was encouraged by his parents from an early age to engage in the study of art. His first formal study was at Brevard College, then earned his BFA in 1995 from East Carolina University in Greenville, NC. Renowned for its excellent sculpture program, East Carolina University was also where Lusk chose to study as a graduate, earning his MFA in Sculpture in 1998. Since completion of his graduate work, Lusk has created and displayed work in several juried public sculpture exhibitions. He also has works in many permanent collections and on loan to college campuses throughout North Carolina. Kyle has taught art at Appalachian State University and currently is Assistant Professor of Art at Brevard College in Brevard, NC. With his wife Heidi, children Declan, Julia, and Ian, Lusk currently resides and maintains his studio in Brevard.

— "I strive to create work that is engaging and original. I primarily work non-objectively so that my intention is to not directly represent an object or individual from life. I do, however, often use proportions and forms from the real world as inspiration. I believe that sculpture should be exciting and new to the viewer and yet still contain an element of familiarity. My hope is that upon experiencing my work the viewer has the feeling of being shown something they have never seen before yet they still feel strong, indefinable and compelling connection." Website: http://www.kvlsculpture.com/  

Tom Holmes
Tom Holmes was educated in New York, and lives in Greeley, Pennsylvania. He is an artist, musician, and sculptor. He has been self-employed exploring his art since his mid-twenties.  He works in stone, metal, wood, light, ice, and water.

— "I am drawn to working in the six elements of stone, metal, wood, light, ice, and water. It gives me the ability to work intuitively. All possibilities can exist briefly before I impose parameters to my emotional and intellectual contexts. The undercurrents of natural decay, unity, duality, symmetry, space, time and dimension are at the heart of my creative energy. Process, for me, is the essence of my art."

Andi Steele
Andi Steele received her BFA from the University of South Carolina in 1994 and her MFA in sculpture from the University of Georgia in 2004. Between degrees, Steele spent six years at Penland School of Crafts, participating in the Core Fellowship Program from 1998-99.

In her work, Steele seeks to bring attention to our surrounding environment; what already exists, how we interact with it, how it can be changed. She uses linear elements to create sculptures that shift how we perceive the forms and space around us. She exhibits her work nationally.

Steele currently lives in Wilmington, North Carolina where she is an assistant professor of sculpture at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

— "The lines of Through both divide and encompass space. They frame different areas of the surrounding environment but also create new spaces within the sculpture. The diminishing sizes of the forms emphasize the interior space, inviting the viewer into the form. The interior and exterior become interchangeable, challenging spatial perception."

Damon Lusky
Damon Lusky lives in Dawsonville, Georgia, where he operates Studio 308. He began his journey in metal arts more than a decade ago. His evolution as a metal artist first began as a self taught practical welder and blacksmith. Over the years he has broadened his range to include participation in local art shows, one man exhibits as well as showcases at local galleries, businesses and residential settings.

— "A passion for metal, a love of organic shapes and textures inspire my use of metal as a medium.  Guided by the nature around me, seeing each piece evolve , following the bends, curves and lines of the metal, sometimes manipulating the color myself, other times allowing nature to patina the color for me, make each piece one of  kind. I enjoy working on both a large and small scale with a myriad of materials and finishes. Designing many pieces myself bringing to life the ideas of others at times has become a life long passion." Website: http://studio308.com/ 

Joni Younkins-Herzog   
Joni received her MFA in Sculpture  from the Henry Radford Hope School of Fine Arts, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, and her BFA in Art from the Lamar Dodd School of Art, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia. She lives in Sarasota. Florida. Website: www.joniyounkinsherzog.com 

Gwendolyn Kerney
Gwendolyn is a practicing lawyer, and a graduate of the University of Tennessee College of Law. She lives in Lenoir City, Tennessee.

— "I am addicted to big, bold, bright colors, funk and fun through which I celebrate the joy and gladness of life. Having graduated from crayons to acrylic, I typically work on an unconventional canvas be it wood, metal, glass, furniture, tshirts, etc. Typically, my art projects feature the heart since it is the magnetic field through which we are connected. I find my professional life as a lawyer sucks the creativity right out of me, but when I play with color I never fail to experience the joy of living glad. As a young girl, I grew up making construction cards for family members which was a business unto itself with a big family of six children. My mother has yet to learn that for me brown is not really a color, but that is a whole other story. If I can’t find a child’s face I’ll paint my own just for the fun of it. I can’t wait for Spring and Summer to watch the flowers bloom and dance in color. As an amateur gourmet cook, I strive to make the food presentation pop with color. I love to travel and bring objects of color home with me. In short, I enjoy and practice the art of color here, there and  everywhere."

An archive of past Outdoor Sculpture Exhibitions can be found HERE.