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Artist Statement
Joe Sheridan is a rustic furniture maker, painter and educator. He has
been living and creating works of art in central Virginia since he graduated
with a Masters Degree in Fine Arts from James Madison University. Born
in Albemarle County, Joe currently lives in Waynesboro with his wife
and three children. He works as Chief Curator of Art for John Kluge at
Morven Estatejust outside of Charlottesville. Joe has taught Drawing
and 2D Design atJames Madison University, Printmaking at Mary Baldwin
College and Painting at Piedmont Community College. He has also taught
numerous workshops on building rustic furniture and he has lectured on
numerous art related topicsin the school system.
His most recent exhibition was a solo show of his paintings and collages
at Hunt Gallery at Mary Baldwin College in January of this year. He has
participated in recent group shows at the Cudahy's Gallery in Richmond,
VA, 8 Furniture Artists, The Lynchburg Fine Arts Center, Lynchburg, VA
Chairs, On and Off the Wall, Sawhill Gallery, Harrisonburg, Virginia
JMU Faculty Exhibitions and UVA Medical Center, Charlottesville, Virginia,
10 Artists. He has also been included in group shows at Les Yeux du Monge
Gallery, in Charlottesville and the Shenandoah Valley Art Center in Waynesboro,
VA.
 His
work is collected by several prominent, local collectors (Mr. and Mrs.
John Kluge, Charlottesville, Virginia, St.Paul France, Dr. and Mrs. Robert
Cross, Charlottesville, Virginia) as well as the University of Virginia
Medical Center. Joe also has exhibited his work at The Thomas Jefferson
Center in Charlottesvulle and his work can be seen at the Barn Swallow
Gallery in Charlottesville, Spruce Creek Gallery in Nellysford, and The
Artisan Center of Virginia.
"I have always been interested in art. Since I was a very young
child, I have observed the elegance and beauty of natural forms, yet
was also fascinated by the complexity of man's creative works. Growing
up in the mountains of Albamarle County, I have been surrounded by beauty,
rolling hills and breathtaking vistas. It was here that I developed a
keen sense of the spiritual in nature. I was blessed with parents who
allowed and indeed encouraged my artistic "spirit."
 I
have been making furniture out of sticks and branches for more than 10
years. As a rustic chair maker I feel that I am not a carpenter as such,
cutting and imposing my will on a piece of wood. I see myself collaborating
with the spirit of the tree and the furniture that I'm making. The joy
of a rustic piece comes from its simple existence, from the way it echoes
the shapes and textures of nature and from the distinctive way in which
a particular piece combines the beauty of a tree and man-made design
into a creation that is magical.
Joe collects tree limbs, sticks and unique pieces of wood and retains
their natural shapes to create free-form furniture. He finds the natural
twists and curves flow into ideas, inspiring creations far from ridged
controlled notions of the assembly line. Trademark accents are glued
mortise-and-tenon joinery with fiber rush used to weave the seats and
backs of chairs. He has a preference for solitude and enjoys having complete
control of a project from onset to completion to manifest his artistic
blueprint.
Joseph F. Sheridan
Rustic Arts
136 Dupont Circle
Waynesboro, VA 22980-
(540) 942-5645
E-Mail: jsheridan@ntelos.net
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