Steve Sinner
biography |
portfolio | artists listing
b. 1942, Omaha, Nebraska
SELECTED COLLECTIONS
Dubuque Museum of Art, Dubuque, IA
Figge Art Museum, Davenport, IA
Museum of Arts & Design, New York, NY
University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, MI
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2003-10 Turned Wood-Small Treasures, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2009 Restful Places: Cremations Urns and Memorial Objects, AAW Gallery of Wood Art,
St. Paul, MN
Rock Island Fine Arts Exhibition, Augustana College Art Gallery, Rock Island, IL
2004-09 Turned & Sculptured Wood, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2004-09 Selected Works, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2003-09 Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Exposition, New York, NY
2001-09 Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Exposition, Chicago, IL
2008 Collectors of Wood Art Forum, Scottsdale, AZ
RSVP, Museum of Nebraska Art, Kearney, NE
Eight Contemporary Wood Invitational, The American Art Company, Tacoma, WA
Woodturning Over The Edge, Pritchard Art Gallery, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID
2008 The Sphere, AAW Symposium, Richmond, VA; AAW Gallery of Wood Art, St. Paul, MN
2007 Rock Island Fine Arts Exhibition, Awards, Augustana College Art Gallery, Rock Island, IL
Japanese Bowls: A Western Perspective, AAW Symposium, Portland, OR; AAW Gallery
of Wood Art, St. Paul, MN
Steve Sinner & Friends, Morrissey Gallery, Galvin Fine Arts Center, St. Ambrose
University, Davenport, IA
2006 Our Turn Now: Artists Speak Out in Wood, Ohio Craft Museum, Columbus, OH
Against The Grain: Contemporary Turned Wood Urns, solo exhibition, Dubuque
Museum of Art, Dubuque, IA
2004-06 Nature Transformed: Wood Art from the Bohlen Collection, Touring
University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, MI
Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL
Museum of Arts & Design, New York, NY
2004 Beneath The Bark: 25 Years of Woodturning, Brigham Young University Museum of Art,
Provo, UT
2001-04 Annual Quad-State Juried Exhibition, Award 2001 & 2003, Art Center, Quincy, IL
2001-04 Featured Artist, Quad City International Airport Gallery, Moline, IL
2003 Put A Lid On It: Containing Human Experience, AAW Symposium, Brand Library Art
Galleries, Glendale, CA
Tri-State Tri-Annual Juried Invitational, Purchase Award, Dubuque Museum of Art,
Dubuque, IA
Featured Artist, Black Hawk College, Moline, IL
2002 Defining Craft I: Collecting for the New Millennium, Demonstrator, Figge Art Museum,
Davenport, IA
Ten Artists: Contemporary Craft in the Quad Cities, Figge Art Museum, Davenport, IA
2001-02 Nature Takes a Turn, International Juried Exhibition,
Minnesota Museum of American Art, St. Paul, MN
University of California, Davis, CA
University of New York, Purchase, NY
Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN
1999-02 Rock Island Fine Arts Exhibition, Awards, Augustana College Art Gallery, Rock Island, IL
2001 Against The Grain: Turned And Sculpted Wood, International Museum of Art & Science,
McAllen, TX
Collectors of Wood Art Forum, Minneapolis, MN
Biennial Bi-State Competitive Exhibition, First Place, Davenport, IA
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
2005 American Woodturner, fall, Cover, p. 36
2004 Nature Transformed: Wood Art from The Bohlen Collection, Hudson Hills Press
500 Wood Bowls, Lark Books
2003 Woodturning, January, p. 39
2002 American Woodturner, Winter, back cover
Woodturning Magazine (Great Britain), April, p. 65
American Woodturner, fall, p. 33
2001 Woodturning Magazine (Great Britain), February, p. 32
ARTIST'S STATEMENT
A passionate love for wood is the basis of my quest to create art from this fickle material. I seek to reveal this passion to the viewer. Wood surrenders its beauty reluctantly. It would prefer a natural demise, quiet and unassuming. Yet when treated with proper respect, wood will provide a spectacular show that most find astounding. Wood reflects a warmth and life not found in other materials. And no two pieces are ever the same.
Seeking new ways for wood to express beauty is a constant, and I frequently am uncertain if the expressions more properly belong to the wood or to me. Searching for the answer to that question has provided profound insights into my own psyche.
Using wood as a canvas for geometric and graphic images has become the crux of my most complex works. I enjoy solving the technical as well as artistic problems associated with the art. With this effort, I derive immense pleasure from sharing my passion with others. It would be difficult to choose the greater pleasure–creating or showing.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Mechanical arts and the beauty of wood have always fascinated Steve Sinner. In 1965, he obtained a degree in Industrial Education from Iowa State University. Following graduation, woodworking was among his hobbies. His passionate interest in woodturning as an art from was sparked in 1975 when he read Dale Nish's Creative Woodturning. Prior to resigning his "day job" in 1997 to become a full time artist, Sinner worked 32 years in industry and facilities management. His primary turning interest is
large vase forms, often embellished with innovative surface treatments. His work has received many awards including a special citation in a 2003 South Korean International competition, and appears in public and private collections across the country.
In addition to his woodworking career, Steve plays the bass clarinet in two concert bands and has been a volunteer firefighter for nearly 30 years.
SELECTED COLLECTIONS
Dubuque Museum of Art, Dubuque, IA
Figge Art Museum, Davenport, IA
Museum of Arts & Design, New York, NY
University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, MI
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS
2003-10 Turned Wood-Small Treasures, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2009 Restful Places: Cremations Urns and Memorial Objects, AAW Gallery of Wood Art,
St. Paul, MN
Rock Island Fine Arts Exhibition, Augustana College Art Gallery, Rock Island, IL
2004-09 Turned & Sculptured Wood, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2004-09 Selected Works, del Mano Gallery, Los Angeles, CA
2003-09 Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Exposition, New York, NY
2001-09 Sculpture Objects & Functional Art Exposition, Chicago, IL
2008 Collectors of Wood Art Forum, Scottsdale, AZ
RSVP, Museum of Nebraska Art, Kearney, NE
Eight Contemporary Wood Invitational, The American Art Company, Tacoma, WA
Woodturning Over The Edge, Pritchard Art Gallery, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID
2008 The Sphere, AAW Symposium, Richmond, VA; AAW Gallery of Wood Art, St. Paul, MN
2007 Rock Island Fine Arts Exhibition, Awards, Augustana College Art Gallery, Rock Island, IL
Japanese Bowls: A Western Perspective, AAW Symposium, Portland, OR; AAW Gallery
of Wood Art, St. Paul, MN
Steve Sinner & Friends, Morrissey Gallery, Galvin Fine Arts Center, St. Ambrose
University, Davenport, IA
2006 Our Turn Now: Artists Speak Out in Wood, Ohio Craft Museum, Columbus, OH
Against The Grain: Contemporary Turned Wood Urns, solo exhibition, Dubuque
Museum of Art, Dubuque, IA
2004-06 Nature Transformed: Wood Art from the Bohlen Collection, Touring
University of Michigan Museum of Art, Ann Arbor, MI
Mobile Museum of Art, Mobile, AL
Museum of Arts & Design, New York, NY
2004 Beneath The Bark: 25 Years of Woodturning, Brigham Young University Museum of Art,
Provo, UT
2001-04 Annual Quad-State Juried Exhibition, Award 2001 & 2003, Art Center, Quincy, IL
2001-04 Featured Artist, Quad City International Airport Gallery, Moline, IL
2003 Put A Lid On It: Containing Human Experience, AAW Symposium, Brand Library Art
Galleries, Glendale, CA
Tri-State Tri-Annual Juried Invitational, Purchase Award, Dubuque Museum of Art,
Dubuque, IA
Featured Artist, Black Hawk College, Moline, IL
2002 Defining Craft I: Collecting for the New Millennium, Demonstrator, Figge Art Museum,
Davenport, IA
Ten Artists: Contemporary Craft in the Quad Cities, Figge Art Museum, Davenport, IA
2001-02 Nature Takes a Turn, International Juried Exhibition,
Minnesota Museum of American Art, St. Paul, MN
University of California, Davis, CA
University of New York, Purchase, NY
Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN
1999-02 Rock Island Fine Arts Exhibition, Awards, Augustana College Art Gallery, Rock Island, IL
2001 Against The Grain: Turned And Sculpted Wood, International Museum of Art & Science,
McAllen, TX
Collectors of Wood Art Forum, Minneapolis, MN
Biennial Bi-State Competitive Exhibition, First Place, Davenport, IA
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
2005 American Woodturner, fall, Cover, p. 36
2004 Nature Transformed: Wood Art from The Bohlen Collection, Hudson Hills Press
500 Wood Bowls, Lark Books
2003 Woodturning, January, p. 39
2002 American Woodturner, Winter, back cover
Woodturning Magazine (Great Britain), April, p. 65
American Woodturner, fall, p. 33
2001 Woodturning Magazine (Great Britain), February, p. 32
ARTIST'S STATEMENT
A passionate love for wood is the basis of my quest to create art from this fickle material. I seek to reveal this passion to the viewer. Wood surrenders its beauty reluctantly. It would prefer a natural demise, quiet and unassuming. Yet when treated with proper respect, wood will provide a spectacular show that most find astounding. Wood reflects a warmth and life not found in other materials. And no two pieces are ever the same.
Seeking new ways for wood to express beauty is a constant, and I frequently am uncertain if the expressions more properly belong to the wood or to me. Searching for the answer to that question has provided profound insights into my own psyche.
Using wood as a canvas for geometric and graphic images has become the crux of my most complex works. I enjoy solving the technical as well as artistic problems associated with the art. With this effort, I derive immense pleasure from sharing my passion with others. It would be difficult to choose the greater pleasure–creating or showing.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Mechanical arts and the beauty of wood have always fascinated Steve Sinner. In 1965, he obtained a degree in Industrial Education from Iowa State University. Following graduation, woodworking was among his hobbies. His passionate interest in woodturning as an art from was sparked in 1975 when he read Dale Nish's Creative Woodturning. Prior to resigning his "day job" in 1997 to become a full time artist, Sinner worked 32 years in industry and facilities management. His primary turning interest is
large vase forms, often embellished with innovative surface treatments. His work has received many awards including a special citation in a 2003 South Korean International competition, and appears in public and private collections across the country.
In addition to his woodworking career, Steve plays the bass clarinet in two concert bands and has been a volunteer firefighter for nearly 30 years.