Joël Urruty
biography |
portfolio | artists listing
b. 1968, San Francisco, California
SELECTED COLLECTIONS
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA
Wood Turning Center, Philadelphia, PA
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2009 Los Angeles Art Show, represented by del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2008-09 Selected Works, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2008 Collectors of Wood Art Forum, Scottsdale, AZ
2007-08 Shy Boy, She Devil and Isis: The Art of Conceptual Craft, Selections from the Wornick
Collection, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA
2007 Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Exposition, New York, NY
2006 Selected Works, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
1998-06 Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Exposition, Chicago, IL
2005 Turned Wood - Small Treasures, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
Turned & Sculptured Wood, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2000-05 Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Exposition, New York, NY
2004 Cut it Out, Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, MA
The Language of Wood, WDO Gallery, Charlotte, NC
2002 Turned & Sculptured Wood, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
Two Man Show: Joël Urruty & John Goodheart, WDO Gallery, Charlotte, NC
2001 The World Competition of Arts & Crafts, Kanazawa, Japan
Furniture & Sculpture, Rolf Hoeg and Joël Urruty, Society of Arts and Crafts, Boston, MA
2000 Allentown Art Museum 27th Juried Show, Allentown Art Museum, Allentown, PA
Art of the State: Pennsylvania 2000, State Museum of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, PA
Time Out: Studio Furniture Invitational, Peter's Valley Craft Center, Layton, NJ
1998 Craft Forms, Wayne Art Center, Wayne, PA
Annual Juried Show, Abington Art Center, Jenkintown, PA
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
2007 Shy Boy, She Devil and Isis: The Art of Conceptual Craft, Selections from The Wornick
Collection. Kangas, Matthew; Muniz, Julie & Ward, Gerald. MFA Publications,
Boston, MA.
2003 Wood Art Today: Furniture, Vessels, Sculpture. Meilach, Dona. Schiffer Publications,
Westchester, PA.
2002 Scratching The Surface. Hosaluk, Michael. North Light Books, Cincinnati, OH.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Joël Urruty was born in San Francisco, CA in 1968, the son of French Basque immigrants. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Technology from San Francisco State University. He apprenticed as a furniture maker under David J. Marks, Master Craftsman, and later went on to earn a Masters of Fine Art degree in Furniture Design and Woodworking from the School of American Crafts at Rochester Institute of Technology.
Urruty has taught in various institutions, such as Philadelphia University and University of the Arts. He has also taught courses at Penland School of Craft, Oregon College of Arts and Crafts and Peter's Valley Craft Education Center.
Joël is a full time artist creating abstract figurative sculptures and art furniture. His studio is located in Hickory, NC, where he works alone carving and creating unique one-of-a-kind sculptures. His work has been shown in Japan as well as various galleries and museums throughout the United States. His work has also been widely published in many magazines and books.
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
As an artist I strive to create elegant sculptures that capture the true essence of the subject matter. Form, line and surface are used as the visual language. The figure is abstracted to a minimalist form, void of any superfluous information. The primary material, wood, is often masked by paint to allow the form to take precedence over the material. Monochromatic colors, such as black or white, are often used on the sculptures allowing light and shadow to play off the subtle shifting facets of the sculptures.
This is what I do: Why I do it, I don’t really know. I do know that there is something deep inside that drives me to make these things. Things I don’t completely understand myself. But when a piece is finished and it feels right, I know I have done what it was I was supposed to do and move on to the next.
SELECTED COLLECTIONS
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA
Wood Turning Center, Philadelphia, PA
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2009 Los Angeles Art Show, represented by del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2008-09 Selected Works, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2008 Collectors of Wood Art Forum, Scottsdale, AZ
2007-08 Shy Boy, She Devil and Isis: The Art of Conceptual Craft, Selections from the Wornick
Collection, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA
2007 Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Exposition, New York, NY
2006 Selected Works, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
1998-06 Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Exposition, Chicago, IL
2005 Turned Wood - Small Treasures, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
Turned & Sculptured Wood, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2000-05 Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Exposition, New York, NY
2004 Cut it Out, Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, MA
The Language of Wood, WDO Gallery, Charlotte, NC
2002 Turned & Sculptured Wood, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
Two Man Show: Joël Urruty & John Goodheart, WDO Gallery, Charlotte, NC
2001 The World Competition of Arts & Crafts, Kanazawa, Japan
Furniture & Sculpture, Rolf Hoeg and Joël Urruty, Society of Arts and Crafts, Boston, MA
2000 Allentown Art Museum 27th Juried Show, Allentown Art Museum, Allentown, PA
Art of the State: Pennsylvania 2000, State Museum of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, PA
Time Out: Studio Furniture Invitational, Peter's Valley Craft Center, Layton, NJ
1998 Craft Forms, Wayne Art Center, Wayne, PA
Annual Juried Show, Abington Art Center, Jenkintown, PA
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
2007 Shy Boy, She Devil and Isis: The Art of Conceptual Craft, Selections from The Wornick
Collection. Kangas, Matthew; Muniz, Julie & Ward, Gerald. MFA Publications,
Boston, MA.
2003 Wood Art Today: Furniture, Vessels, Sculpture. Meilach, Dona. Schiffer Publications,
Westchester, PA.
2002 Scratching The Surface. Hosaluk, Michael. North Light Books, Cincinnati, OH.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Joël Urruty was born in San Francisco, CA in 1968, the son of French Basque immigrants. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Technology from San Francisco State University. He apprenticed as a furniture maker under David J. Marks, Master Craftsman, and later went on to earn a Masters of Fine Art degree in Furniture Design and Woodworking from the School of American Crafts at Rochester Institute of Technology.
Urruty has taught in various institutions, such as Philadelphia University and University of the Arts. He has also taught courses at Penland School of Craft, Oregon College of Arts and Crafts and Peter's Valley Craft Education Center.
Joël is a full time artist creating abstract figurative sculptures and art furniture. His studio is located in Hickory, NC, where he works alone carving and creating unique one-of-a-kind sculptures. His work has been shown in Japan as well as various galleries and museums throughout the United States. His work has also been widely published in many magazines and books.
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
As an artist I strive to create elegant sculptures that capture the true essence of the subject matter. Form, line and surface are used as the visual language. The figure is abstracted to a minimalist form, void of any superfluous information. The primary material, wood, is often masked by paint to allow the form to take precedence over the material. Monochromatic colors, such as black or white, are often used on the sculptures allowing light and shadow to play off the subtle shifting facets of the sculptures.
This is what I do: Why I do it, I don’t really know. I do know that there is something deep inside that drives me to make these things. Things I don’t completely understand myself. But when a piece is finished and it feels right, I know I have done what it was I was supposed to do and move on to the next.