Guild Member Salon Show 2021

Rich Foa

Guild Member Salon Show

Rich Foa ABOUT: I have been a woodturner, wood and mixed media artist, and sculptor for the past nine years. After a 34-year-career as an academic and practicing neurologist, I spent a year learning woodworking and boatbuilding at the Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding in Port Hadlock, WA in 2010. Before and after that time, I took additional courses at Snow Farm in MA, the John C. Campbell Folkschool in NC, the Arrowmont School of Craft in TN, the Appalachian Center for Craft in TN, and the Haystack Mountain School of Craft in ME. Variably focusing on welding, woodturning, sculpture, and carving, these classes honed my artistic skills. I have also attended numerous local and national workshops and symposia related to woodturning. From 2013 onward, my work has been shown in numerous juried exhibitions sponsored by the Strathmore Center for the Arts (MD), the Maryland Federation of Art (MD), Maryland Hall for the Performing Arts (MD), RiverArts Gallery (MD), Goggleworks Art Center (PA), BlackRock Center for the Arts (MD), the Wayne Art Center (PA), the Glen Echo Park (MD), the Cato Institute (DC), and the Artful Dimensions Gallery (VA). In addition, I write a series of articles for the American Woodturner, the journal of the AAW, on medical problems that commonly affect woodturners (and others) and how to deal with them. While I enjoy making classically turned objects such as bowls, platters, and small utensils, my current artistic focus is on wood sculpture, often starting with turned elements and frequently incorporating a variety of found objects. With classical woodturning, I strive to create elegant yet practical items that reveal the beauty of the grain and the color of the wood from which they are made. With my sculpture, I seek to offer generally wry commentary on contemporary culture in a manner that offers insight, while bringing smiles to the faces of the viewers of my work. NOTES ON “SPACE EGGX” & “NESTLED”: Inspiration for my work comes from a variety of sources. I may challenge myself to reflect on current events, to portray special relationships, to explore a technique that is new for me, or to simply have fun with my materials and my imagination. I will often try to do more than one in the same work. As a result, although built around core elements of turned wood, my pieces tend not to resemble one another except to the extent that they share a sense of gentle humor. THIS YEAR: 2020 has been a year of interruption for everyone. Personally, it has included closure of the shop in which I worked for the past decade, cancellation of shows that have motivated my work, relocation from Maryland to Michigan, and storage of my tools while I plan and develop a new work space. Through this I’ve learned is that making matters to me more, now that I can’t, than it did when I could. The lesson is in the value and importance of having the ability and means to create, whether art or anything else—for everyone. CONTACT: Website, r.f.c.woodturner@gmail.com.

“Space Eggx,” Wood, Acrylic Paint, Glass Eyes, 2020, 19L x 15H x 9W in, $750.

“Nestled,” Wood, Copper, and Stainless Wire, Acrylic Paint, 2019, 10H x 8W x 7D in, $600.

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