Jay Hall Carpenter
 (larger than life; bronze and granite; 2003) Jay Hall Carpenter STATEMENT My approach to designing for existing sites is to create work that blends seamlessly with the established aesthetic. I borrow forms and proportions from the site and pay homage to them in my design. My historical figures are often portrayed incorporating the style of the time in which each lived. My site-specific work tries to address three essential aspects of design: the needs of the location, how the sculpture must function to harmonize with and enhance the setting, i.e. scale, sight-lines, approaches, and the historical significance of the site; also the needs of the community, how the sculpture can best serve the client and community by reflecting its values and traditions, and enhancing the aesthetic experience; and the needs of the sculpture–how the design can be most faithful to the theme depicted and be the most compelling as work of art. A proposal is the first stage of a thorough process to achieve those goals. A process that will include working closely with the committee and other participants to ensure the most engaging and effective design possible. BIO A professional artist since 1976, I honed my skills during the 20 years I served as sculptor for the Washington National Cathedral. There I created the original carver’s models for over 500 sculptures that adorn the gothic, limestone building. These sculptures include saints, angels, grotesques, and gargoyles. Many American churches have commissioned my work, as have the State Department, the Smithsonian, Canterbury Cathedral, and the New England Medical Center. Other clients include, the University of Missouri at St Louis, and the State of Maryland. I was elected into the National Sculpture Society before the age of thirty and have received multiple national awards for my sculptures. I have also won numerous sculpture design competitions, including those to create an eight-foot bronze of Frederick Douglass, and a life-size bronze and granite sculpture of Jim Henson and Kermit the Frog for the University of Maryland, where Henson was a student in the 1950’s. I enjoy the collaborative process. When George Lucas selected me to create the sculptural centerpiece for a new film school at the University of Southern California, I worked closely with Urban Design Group, which was designing the new complex of buildings. My heroic bronze of Douglas Fairbanks, Sr. stands atop a decorative fountain in the entry courtyard. My Classical training includes study at Pratt Institute and The Catholic University of America. I served as sculptor’s assistant to Master Sculptor Frederick E. Hart, working on Hart’s major projects for the Washington National Cathedral and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC. ARTIST CONTACT [click to email] IMAGES  (6′ h; bronze and granite; 1995)  (11′ h; bronze and granite; 2011)  (6.5′ h; bronze; 2009)  (10′ h: bronze and granite; 2014) |