ARTIST STATEMENT
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Statement
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Artist Statement -



My work, whether shaped exclusively with a hammer or the cutting and forming of plates, is informed by the traditions and visual language of blacksmithing.

The process of heating metal until it is malleable enough to be reshaped by the smith goes back more than a thousand years. However, my designs are not restrained by adhesion to specific historical references and I frequently employ modern technologies and forms. I am inspired by the waterways, plant life and weather of my familiar landscapes.

Through years of working on both sculpture and decorative architectural work, I have developed my artistic vocabulary. The large-scale sculptures, while not necessarily forged, are an extrapolation of this vocabulary driven by my blacksmith’s desire to reshape the metal and make the surfaces my own. The decorative arts pieces blend my creative vision with utilitarian purpose, and to that end I find a beautiful symmetry between form and function.

I make no distinctions between what is thought to be functional and sculptural objects, but rather concentrate on designing pieces that fulfill my intention for the object within the framework of my aesthetic choices.

Artist Exhibitions



www.johnmedwedeff.com/resume

Selected Exhibitions

2015 Prow, a forged steel sculpture on loan for a year, Knoxville Botanical Garden, Knoxville, TN. Prow has also been exhibited at Raw Space, SOFA Chicago.

2013 Rhythm, Line & Form, The Sculpture of John Medwedeff, Gallery 210, University of Missouri St. Louis.

2012 Iron Twenty Ten, A Juried Exhibition of Contemporary Blacksmithing. A touring exhibition.

2010 Iron: Forged, Tempered, Quenched, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, Houston, TX

2009 John Medwedeff, Sculptor+Metalsmith, University Museum, SIU Carbondale.

2007 Sculpture Invasion, Koehnline Museum, Des Plains, IL.



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Artist Publications



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Artist Collections



PUBLIC COLLECTIONS

City of Carbondale, IL
City of Clarksville, TN
City of Fairhope, AL
City of Jackson, MI
City of Murphysboro, IL
City of Sarasota, FL
Illinois State Museum, Springfield, IL
Lewis Clark College, Godfrey, IL
Memphis Arts Council, Memphis, TN
Minneapolis Institute of Art, Minneapolis, MN
The Deere Company, Moline, IL
The Metal Museum, Memphis, TN
University Museum, Southern Illinois University Carbondale
William Rainey Harper College, Palatine, IL


SELECTED CORPORATE CLIENTS INSTITUTIONS

Alan Wanzenberg, Architect, New York, NY
Christ Church Cathedral, St. Louis, MO
Dulaney Design, Washington, DC
First Presbyterian Church, Murphysboro, IL
General John A. Logan Museum, Murphysboro, IL
Grosvenor Design, Dripping Springs, TX
H.O.K. Studio E Architects, St. Louis, MO
Henry B. Urban, Inc., New York, NY
James Scott Weaver, AIA, New York, NY
Jed Johnson Associates, New York, NY
Robert A.M. Stern Architects, New York, NY
Rogers Menzies Interior Design, Memphis, TN
SAS Institute Inc., Cary, North Carolina
Scott Cornelius, Architect, New York, NY
St. Andrews Catholic Church, Murphysboro, IL
University School of Nashville, TN
Weingeroff Enterprises, Inc., New York, NY


SELECTED PRIVATE COLLECTIONS

Michelle Andrews
George Andrews
Roy and Marianne Abramson
Joni Beth Bailey
Larry Bloch
Bruce Bringle
Julie and Charles Cellini
Scott Chambers and Jan Craft
Frank and Cynthia Cheatham
Dana Martin Davis
David Dodwell
Paula Dunlap
Sam Fox
Chuck and Barbara Gately
Shannon and Ted Hamm
Norman Hascoe
Robyn Horn
Dr. Joseph and Lane Hudgins
Karen Hytop
Jay Johnson
Aldona Johnson
Denis Kerasotes
Barbara Lesar
James and Coralee Lawder
Steve Lieber
Charles McCain
Andrew Macdonald
Susan Phillips
David Ryan
Martin Schreiber
Dr. Paul Smucker
Dr. Alan Solomon
Arthur �Skipper� Tonsmeire III
James Wallace

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Artist Favorites