After receiving a BA in art education at Western Michigan University, Jim Growden moved to San Francisco in 1969 to attend the San Francisco Art Institute where he received an MFA in 1972.  In graduate school, he was an exchange student in Japan, and has since traveled to Europe, Greece, and Egypt. Being particularly interested […]

Susan Leibovitz Steinman salvages materials directly from community waste streams to construct public art installations that connect common daily experiences to broader social issues. Projects include conceptual sculpture gardens that meld art, ecology and community action. Conceptualized and designed by Steinman during her residency, the Recology San Francisco Sculpture Garden is a three-acre site with multiple functions. It is […]

Fine artist turned fashion artist, Donnie Hunt rarely used a canvas.  Better for Hunt was old army fatigues, or polyester on which he did his first acrylic painting.  He used anything that could have a life outside of a museum.  Hunt painted boldly, and used primitive figures that literally screamed off the sleeve, the jacket, […]

My artwork is made of sheet metal, mounted with a sculptural relief of cut metal shapes and found objects. These may include salvaged automotive machine parts, plumbing pipes, fencing material, discarded utensils such as spoons, wheels, wire, toys, and old etching plates. I also include discarded garments, hats, pillows, and fabric. The objects and cut […]

Estelle Akamine, a leading designer in the wearable art as costume movement, created outfits out of material she found at the dump, some of which were glamorous enough to be worn to the San Francisco Black and White Ball in 1993. The materials for Akamine’s imaginative formal wear include computer tape, zipper discards, plastic bags, […]

Russ Nordman is a multimedia artist from Iowa who works in video and assemblage.  He and Katina Huston collaborated for four months and created twelve sculptures and assorted drawings during their residency. Nordman makes sculptures that evoke nostalgia.  They are deep in atmosphere and emotional tone. His constructions are formed from found materials that create […]

My father was an archaeologist. He would travel to foreign countries and dig for relics of past civilizations. He would find things and look at them. He would figure out what they were and how they were used. The relics would be labeled and displayed, revealing just a little bit more of what it was […]

Among the philosophies I have accumulated over the years is a belief that if there is no passion in what you do, you must do something else. I also believe the best time to change is when things are going well, not when motivated by anxiety or desperation. At the height of an executive career […]

I moved to Brooklyn in the summer of 1986 to attend graduate school at the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan. This was my first experience living outside of California, and in an East Coast city. The sculptures made during that time reflect my initial reaction and observations of life in a big, densely populated, […]

My medium is sculpture in glass and light. I combine glass and light along with water, rocks, metal and other materials. Most of my sculptures are site-specific installations that provide light and drama to both outdoor and indoor spaces. In January 1998, the office in which I had been working as an environmental planner for […]