Rooted in the landscape of upstate New York and driven by a lifelong dedication to working with my hands, my artistic practice is an ongoing exploration of three-dimensional form. I hold an MFA from Louisiana State University and, following three years of teaching 3D Design in Louisiana, I currently serve as the Assistant Professor of Sculpture at Northwest Missouri State University.
Tom is a sculptor and educator whose practice is rooted in a deep appreciation for material and tactile processes. Raised in upstate New York, his experiences exploring the Adirondack Mountains heavily influenced his artistic trajectory and commitment to working with his hands.
Tom holds a degree in Art Education from Buffalo State College and a Master of Fine Arts from Louisiana State University. Following teaching 3D Design at Southeastern Louisiana University, Tom relocated to Missouri. He currently serve as the Associate Professor of Sculpture at Northwest Missouri State University.
Associate Professor of Sculpture
Northwest Missouri State University
Master of Fine Arts in Sculpture
Louisiana State University
Bachelor of Science in Art Education – Minor in Sculpture,
Buffalo State College
Artist Statement
A continuous goal in my work is to make the invisible, visible. I am drawn to systems, patterns and structures that are unseen but cultivate and construct our reality. Sometimes the systems are political, emotional or natural but I enjoy conceptualizing the unseen and trying to represent it as a physical object. My method of constructing objects becomes a sort of scientific approach where I set up scenarios and allow for circumstance to complete the piece. The variability of the conclusion is fascinating to me and allows my work to carry a sort of living quality to the object. The setups speak as metaphors; for instance gravity in my work represents our inevitable return to nature and can speak about our resistance to time.
Currently I am examining the interconnectivity of people, place and things and I am constructing objects using sensors and micro controllers that when the audience participates with the object, a reaction is caused. My aim is to create a invisible connection to the place or object that the viewer completes based on how they move or interact with my work. The way in which I construct my work is material driven that encourages a “process first” approach. The materials inform the process and the process directs the composition. I want to shift interactive work away from the screen and flat projection and into more of the material world. The common way we interact with technology is in a flat, straight forward way where we are observing it. I want to create a different tone to my work where space and movements become our way of interacting, and the viewers’ interactions become more explorative then directive. This esthetic is party informed by the growing interconnectivity to technology and our surroundings but specifically driven by the objective of pieces that are continuously evolving and changing. I want to bring my process art into the digital format and allow works to evolve over time with the variety of circumstance that occurs within the space. These objects become an artifact explaining the surroundings and interactions they have experienced. I enjoy the idea of a piece having multiple interpretations and if viewed twice might have a different understanding.
I see understanding in art to be slippery and should be not overly coded or too obvious and transparent. Abstraction becomes a common tool in my work because of its ability to speak to a more emotive and subconscious understanding of the work. I strive to speak to bigger constructs and by abstracting my forms and materials I believe the objects are better suited as vehicles that viewers can interject personal experience with and become more relatable.