John Upchurch

Born in Chicago, 1968

BFA, 1990. Kansas City Art Institute

I’m interested in both prototypes and relics—in the beginnings of ideas and their remnants. The artifacts we create and leave behind reveal our ability and desire to understand the world. They also expose the limits of that understanding. The tensions between tradition and innovation; the known and the newly conceived; and the successive, overlapping Systems of the World provide a foundation for my exploration of form and materials.

Wood, stone, metal, found objects and other, largely-salvaged components are employed in varied configurations. These are directed both by the characteristics of the material–density, pliability, texture, connotation–and my ability to shape them. Fabrication is informed by various traditions of formal and vernacular craft, but the process is decidedly intuitive and personal. The resulting objects often suggest patent models, specimen collections or curious tools. A piece is finished when it’s attained some plausible sense of identity, history or utility–and sometimes just when it manages to make me laugh.