San Francisco Art Gallery - The McLoughlin Gallery

Doug Thielscher

(b. 1964 San Franciso, California)

Now lives and works in Berkeley

Artist’s Statement

I am a self-taught sculptor who began in 2002. I learned the traditional craft of stone carving by working among the artigiani in Pietrasanta, Italy.

Some of the oldest known works of representational art are carved out of stone. Stone sculpture was perfected through the ages by the Egyptians, the Greeks, the Romans, and the famed sculptors of the Italian Renaissance. How to work with this most ancient matter, and while honoring its noble tradition also express something powerful in a completely new and authentic way? This challenge is what pushes me.

I am driven to give life to stone, an impossibly static material, and to portray the eternal and ephemeral emotions that both bind us together and drive us apart. Using this timeless substance I strive to tell the enduring stories of human interaction and feelings: of conflict and anger, of desire and fear.

Most importantly, I want to capture the moment of greatest tension in each story. I find that by reducing the composition to only the most expressive gestures of a scene, I am able to better highlight the emotional intensity at that climactic point in time. Often the resulting sculpture includes fragments of the figure. Other times, it is something more abstract.

Regardless of the narrative that I am trying to convey, I find that people invariably bring their own story to my pieces. These personal and heartfelt reactions add unexpected richness and meaning to my work.

Education

University of California, Berkeley.  BA in Urban Development

Selected Exhibtions

2012    Eterno, The McLoughlin Gallery

2012   Juried Art Competition, South Arkansas Art Center

2011   No Fooling We Mean It!,  The McLoughlin Gallery

2011   SLAM Sculpture Show,  San Luis Obispo Museum of Art

Publications

D. Cheng. ArtLtd. May 2011.  Review

A. Weltner. New Times.  Sept. 2011.  Review

Award Notifications

2012 SECA Award Nominee

'Best of Show' Award LH Horton Jr. Gallery, Stockton, California