Faculty Artist Featured in <i>Art Business News</i>

\"My earliest memory is one of collecting objects and papers to put together to make a doll,\" says Denise Buckley. \"I cannot remember a time when I was not using a form of art to communicate. My art defines who I am. I have had many fine teachers along the way who inspired and pushed me to think, work and persist.\" After receiving a bachelor`s of fine arts degree from Massachusetts College of Art and a master`s of fine arts degree from Syracuse University, Buckley began a career as an artist/teacher, believing that good art teachers are working artists and are passionate, creative, productive and relentless. Having set up a small foundry, she is able to control the process of making art from the armature that supports the first clay image, through the many processes which conclude in the pouring and finishing of the bronze sculptures. \"I am alive when I make objects,\" says Buckley. \"I get lost in the visceral experience of the materials, be it bronze, clay, plaster, glass, or marble.\" All of Buckley`s sculptures are modeled, marked and wounded in some way to express the beauty of imperfection. The ability to look and see beyond the obvious has allowed her to use figurative forms to investigate universal themes. Quickly modeling the form in clay, then taking a plaster mold off the clay, she paints liquid wax into the mold to produce a wax pattern of the form. Spending many hours reworking the wax, she then prepares the piece for bronze casting. Although the metal is hard, the use of patinas enables Buckley to bring out the color and textures of the metal, giving the forms a rich and vibrant surface. This method of working allows her to explore human relationships, the strengths and vulnerabilities manifested by the struggles and joys of life. \"I create these pieces in part to honor the strength, endurance and nobility, which reside in all of us,\" she says. For more information, contact Denise, or visit her website. Read the complete article.