Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura Ann Sprague.
Laura Ann, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
Growing up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, I was able to enjoy playing in the snow outside. Escaping a very difficult family situation, I would gather the neighborhood kids together and we would build large items in the snow. This joy of creating never left me and I believe this led me to my love of sculpting. My Mother and Grandmother were painters and I learned much by seeing them use color and create images. I graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a B.S. degree in Art Education minoring in Jewelry and Metal Smithing. While the skills learned in jewelry making were invaluable, I LOVED making the big stuff-Smithing. I moved to Houston, Texas in 1980 and before teaching visual art in the public and private sector, I had a three-year position at an Architectural firm, creating large scale building models. Working thirty-hour shifts to make a deadline was difficult, but the work was so creative and rewarding!
I have the honor of being a wife, and mother to a son and daughter and I just became a ‘Nana” to two granddaughters-born one month apart! If I’m not in my studio creating, attending an exhibit or traveling, I’m usually hanging with my family or friends! In 2016, I completed my MFA in Sculpture from Houston Baptist University. I love collaborating with other artists and during graduate school, I gathered my colleges together and entered us into an auction for downtown Bryan, Tx-called “Monumental Metal”. I was able to use a plasma cutter in creating leaf forms from a 250 lb. metal Cylinder. Three women went to the junkyard and gathered large amounts of metal and happily our sculpture brought profit to downtown Bryan!
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
I am a multidisciplinary artist and enjoy working in many materials to convey thoughts and feelings. Art is the evidence of what’s in my soul. I am primarily a sculptor, using fiery torches and hot kilns with metal, clay and glass! In 2015, I participated in an Artist Residency in Germany and visited Buchenwald Concentration Camp. After viewing the memorial stones strewn across the bare camp for miles. My heart was twisted and stirred. I created a 15-foot ceramic installation comprised of emotive hands entitled “Arise’. An anonymous German woman viewed this installation and was so emotionally moved with hope, that she mailed me a set of antique postcards of hand images! In addition to sculpting, I paint; and like most artists, I do thumbnails sketches to flesh out my ideas, recently I’ve been working with alcohol inks on a plastic paper called-Yupo. I pioneered using compressed air to move the inks around.
As far as my inspiration goes, I consider myself a “Mystic” in my making of visual art. Wikipedia defines it as 1. “A person who claims to attain, or believes in the possibility of attaining, insight into mysteries transcending ordinary human knowledge, as by direct communication with the divine or immediate intuition in a state of spiritual ecstasy.” One of my creative heroes is Madeleine L’Engle. She states, “The artist is a servant who is willing to be a birth-giver.” I believe nature stirs our souls and so many of my ceramic textures are taken directly from tree bark.
Recently, I have had the honor of creating commissions for collectors and hope to partner with a gallery in the future.
What responsibility, if any, do you think artists have to use their art to help alleviate problems faced by others? Has your art been affected by issues you’ve concerned about?
Artists are the ones that give the world beauty, wonder and truth! Given the state of the world, I think we need much, much more of these things!
I also understand that art bridges emotional, political, socio-economic and cultural divides! Bringing that kind of unity to the world makes me quite proud to be an artist!
I have taught some adult art therapy workshops, and each person deeply benefited. Visual art is such a therapeutic tool for joy and fulfillment for the whole community!
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
Yes! I’m excited to be part of an exhibit on July 4th, 2019 in Salzwedel Germany with seven other Houston artists entitled- “Without Borders”. Of course, images from the exhibit will be up on my Instagram immediately after!
I just participated in an arts market with www.clayhouston.org and it was quite successful! I will continue to do more local markets.
I am producing work for a solo exhibit in 2020.
My work can be seen on my website and Instagram.
I will be opening an Etsy shop soon, to sell my ceramic jewelry and small alcohol ink paintings.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.laurasprague.com
- Email: laurasprague@icloud.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurasprague/
- Twitter: @spragoo1
Image Credit:
Juan Islas
Bohemian Photography
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