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Stuart Wagner, a native of Connecticut, has lived in the Bay Area
for all but
six years since 1964. He served in the Marine Corps after high school
and completed
his undergraduate work at The University of Connecticut and his graduate
studies at
Stanford. His Ph.D. dissertation research took him to Bogotá, Colombia
where he
lived for a year. Stuart taught Latin American history at the
University of Minnesota
for five years. He returned to the Bay Area in 1974 to begin an
electronics business,
which he administered until 1989, when he retired. Stuart became an art
student in
1992. He considers himself primarily a 3 dimensional artist who works
with a wide
variety of materials from steel to digital images.
Artist Statement
If I could
draw, I’d be a cartoonist. Instead, I use more dimensional materials.
Because the components are so critical to the content of my art, I have
developed a broad palette which includes
fiber, steel, ceramics, wood, precious metals, recycled materials and
both conventional and digital photography.
I am essentially a 3-D artist; even my photography
often has a third dimension. I emphasize realism over abstraction and
usually work in life size. I consider myself a "local" artist and
submit work regularly to nearby area exhibitions. I have been honored
with a number of awards at the Marin County Fair, Sebastopol
Center for the Arts, Berkeley's ACCI Gallery and from the Marin Society of Artists.
My art is conceptual in that I construct visual
representations of thoughts, memories and ideas. These, in turn, derive
added meaning from the materials and construction techniques I use. My
work is rarely personal in the sense of being introspective, but it is
subjective, nearly always evincing a strong point of view. In rare fits
of sanctimony, in a quixotic delusion, I point
a spear at
some imagined or real injustice. During those times--when I
realize that I've crossed the line from art to therapy--I hurry back to
satire. Actually, humor and irony underlie the vast majority of my
work. If my art simply makes someone smile--even if they do not go
deeper into the underlying motivation for creating the piece--I feel
that I have accomplished my purpose. As I said, if I could draw I'd be
a cartoonist.
Partial List of Juried Shows
2010
Art at the Cheese Factory,
Petaluma, CA:
Journeys
Art Works Downtown, San Rafael, CA: Mosaics
University of San Francisco
School of Law,
Equal Justice Society, San Francisco, CA: Yearning to
Breathe Free
Sanchez Art Center,
Pacifica, CA: 1 in 100: America Behind Bars
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STUDIO Gallery, San Francisco, CA, Mischief
ACCI Gallery, Berkeley, CA,
National Fine Craft Exhibition
Marin County Fair, Terra Linda, CA, Fine Arts Exhibit
Fort Mason, San Francisco, CA,
Green Dimensions
Marin Museum of Contemporary Art, Novato, CA, Alchemy
Falkirk Cultural Center Gallery, San Rafael, CA,
fiber/Dimensions at Falkirk
Marin Society of Artists, Ross, CA, Open Craft and
Sculpture Exhibition |
| 2008 |
Art Works Downtown, San Rafael, CA, Plexus Art Group, The Prison
Project: 1 in 100
Herbst International Exhibition Hall at the Presidio of San Francisco:
fiber/Dimensions: Intersections 4
Textile Center, Minneapolis, MN, Freedom: The Fiber of Our Nation
DiRosa Preserve, Napa, CA, Slideslam
Marin Society of Artists, Ross, CA, Open
Craft and Sculpture Ehibition
Arts Benicia, Benicia, CA, EDGE
Smith Ranch Gallery,
San Rafael, CA, fiber/Dimensions at Smith Ranch
ACCI Gallery, Berkeley, CA, EDGE Art Group
at ACCI Gallery
|
| 2007
2006
2005
|
Swarm Gallery, Oakland, CA, The Little Show
College of Marin Fine Arts Gallery,
Kentfield, CA,
The Devil You Know. Solo show
ACCI Gallery, Berkeley, CA, National Fine Craft Exhibition
Richmond Art Center, Richmond, CA, Pacific Rim Sculpture Group,
Snooze Button
Marin Art Festival, San Rafael, CA
Artisans Art Gallery, San Rafael, CA, Mechanized Genius
Community Congregational Church, Tiburon, CA, f/Dimensions at the CCC
College of Marin, Kentfield, CA, Hybrid
ACCI Gallery, Berkeley, CA,
Recovery: Man over Matter
Marin Society of Artists, Ross, CA, Open Sculpture and Crafts
Art Works Downtown, San Rafael, CA, Bay Area
Fine Crafts: Silver & Gold
Fiber Scene Online exhibit,
www.fiberscene.com. Independent
Flags
Atrium Gallery, San Francisco, CA,
Pacific Rim Sculpture Group:
Objects of Engagement
Herbst International Exhibition Hall at the Presidio of
San Francisco: fiber/Dimensions: Intersections III
ACCI Gallery, Berkeley, CA, Remake/Remodel:
Rebound. Studies in Transformation
Pence Gallery, Davis, CA, fiber/Dimensions
at the Pence
Sebastopol Center for the Arts,
Sebastopol, CA, Explorations in Art & Language
Mill Valley Public Library, Mill Valley,
CA, Art for the Fun of It Solo show
Alameda Art Center, Alameda, CA,
Cornucopia
Democracy for America, Sausalito, CA, The
Art of Politics
Belvedere-Tiburon Library, Tiburon, CA,
knowlEDGE
Artisans Gallery, Mill
Valley, CA Small Works
Marin Society of Artists, Ross, CA, Open Sculpture and Crafts
Marin County Fair, Terra Linda, CA, Fine Arts Exhibit
Sausalito Arts Commission, Sausalito, CA, Ro Sham Bo-Rock--Paper
Scissors
600 Townsend, San Francisco, CA, Pacific Rim Sculpture Group, Strange
Days
San Francisco Bay Model Gallery, Sausalito, CA, Fiber Dimensions at the
Bay Model
Falkirk Cultural Center, San Rafael, CA, Falkirk 2005 Annual Juried
Exhibition of Marin Artists |
| 2004 |
Sanchez Art Center,
Pacifica, CA: fiber/Dimensions at Pacifica
Falkirk Cultural Center, San Rafael, CA: Bags & Baggage
Herbst International Exhibition Hall at the Presidio of
San Francisco: fiber/Dimensions: Intersections II
Marin Society of Artists, Ross, CA: Third Dimension
|
| 2003 |
Artisans Gallery, Mill
Valley: Artisans 2003 National Juried Exhibition
Artisans Gallery, Mill Valley: The Fine Art of Craft
College of Marin, Kentfield: Student Art Show
Marin Society of Artists, Ross: Open Sculpture & Crafts
ten78 Gallery, Chico, CA: Naked
|
| 2002 |
Sight & Insight Gallery,
Mill Valley, CA: Phoenix Rising
The Museum of Art and History, Santa Cruz: Refuse/Reuse/Redux
College of Marin, Kentfield: Student Art Show
Herbst Pavilion at the Presidio of San Francisco: fiber
Dimensions: Intersections
Marin Society of Artists, Ross: Open Sculpture & Crafts
Downtown Art Works, San Rafael: The Fine Art of Craft
Sight & Insight Gallery, Mill Valley: The Rhythm of
Change: Artists Responding to an Evolving World
|
| 2001 |
Turtle Bay Museum of Art &
History, Redding: Transforming Trash: Bay Area Fiber Art
MeSH Gallery, Sebastopol, CA: Trash: Art from Recycled
Materials
Marin Arts Council, San Rafael: Encore Recycling Show, Marin
Country Civic Center
Marin Society of Artists, Ross: Open Sculpture & Crafts
College of Marin, Kentfield: Student Art Show
Marin County Fair, Terra Linda: Fine Arts Exhibit
Sebastopol Center for the Arts, Sebastopol: A Fine Hand
Belevedere-Tiburon Library, Tiburon: Fiber at the Library
|
| 2000 |
Marin Society of Artists,
Ross: Open Sculpture & Crafts
Marin Technology Center, Fiber Dimensions at The Marin Technology Center, San
Rafael CA |
| 1999 |
Downtown Art Center, San
Rafael: Fiber as Art
Marin Arts Council, Larkspur: Stretching the Boundaries
Marin Society of Artists, Ross: Open Sculpture & Crafts
Marin County Fair, Terra Linda: San Rafael: Fine Arts
Exhibit
Bolinas Museum, Bolinas: Fiber Art
College of Marin, Kentfield: Fiber Dimensions 10th
Anniversary Show
Artisans Gallery, Mill Valley: Book Makers: West Coast
Marin Arts Council, Corte Madera: Member’s Exhibition
|
| 1998 |
Marin Society of
Artists, Open Sculpture & Crafts
Marin County Fair, Terra Linda: Fine Arts Exhibit
Sebastopol Center for the Arts, Sebastopol: Food,
Glorious Food
Marin Arts Council Member’s Exhibition |
| 1997
|
Marin County Fair, Terra
Linda: Fine Arts Exhibit
Sebastopol Center for the Arts, Sebastopol: Movers &
Shakers
Marin Arts Council Experimental Media: Fiber Sculpture
|
| 1996 |
College of Marin,
Kentfield: , Student Art Show
Marin County Fair, Terra Linda: Fine Arts Exhibit
|
| 1995 |
College of Marin,
Kentfield: , Student Art Show
Marin Society of Artists, Open Sculpture & Crafts
|
Art in Public Places
College of Marin,
Kentfield, CA, Fine Arts Building, Puzzle Totem
Publications
jweekly.com,, January 7, 2010
Pacific Sun. October 31-November 6, 2008
San Francisco
Chronicle, Datebook. November 2. 2008
Fort Mason Center Monthly, October, 2008
Marin Independent Journal, Lifestyles, October 4, 2008
Benicia Herald, April 8, 2008
Inside Benicia, March 2008
Times
Herald (Solano County, CA), March 21, 2008
Listen
& Be Heard Weekly,
March 12-19, 2008
Pacific Sun,
September 6, 2007
The California Aggie Online, March 14, 2006
Surface Design Journal, Spring 2005
www.edgeartgroup.com (site
designer)
Marin Independent Journal, October 28, 2004
Pacific Sun, December 29, 2004
Artweek, October 2004
San Rafael Focus Magazine, Fall 2004
Surface Design Journal, Winter 2002
The Echo Times (College of Marin), May 7, 2001
The Echo Times (College of Marin), October 16, 2000
Ross Valley Reporter, October 13-19, 1999
Gallery Representation
Various & Sundries, San Anselmo, CA
Virginia Breier, San Francisco, CA
Arts Memberships & Service
Plexus Art Group
Judge, Mill Valley Fall Arts Festival, 2006
American Crafts Council
fiber/Dimensions
Edge Art Group
Pacific Rim Sculpture Group
Board of Directors Artisan Gallery,
Mill Valley, CA 1994-1998
Web Sites
www.stuartwagner.com
www.fiberdimensions.com
www.plexusartgroup.com
www.edgeartgroup.com
www.fiberscene.com
www.turtlebay.org/exhibitions/transforming_trash_exhibition/index.html
www.edgeartgroup.com
www.sanchezartcenter.org/ARCHIVES/2004_FiberArts.html
www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk/ |
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