The Sculpture Center Fosters Ties Between Local and Visiting Artists

Callahan Foundation fall grant recipient The Sculpture Center aims to serve as an incubator for the creation of new work by early career sculptors in the region with their Cleveland Sculptors Network initiative.

Established with the mission to ease the disadvantages and challenges sculptors face in producing and showing three dimensional work, The Sculpture Center has served artists in the region for almost thirty years with solo and full gallery exhibitions, publications, and professional mentoring. The organization serves as an incubator for the creation of new work by emerging sculptors, and encourages the preservation of Ohio public outdoor sculpture.

“Early career sculptors have a particularly hard time getting recognized because of the complexity and, often, considerable expense of their practices which may range from making sculpture to installation to expanded media,” describes Ann Albano, Executive Director and Chief Curator of the Center. “Sculpture is also a much harder sell to collectors than 2-D art.”

In order to increase the reach and connectivity of sculptors of Northeast Ohio and in the greater region with each other and with visiting sculptors, the organization founded the Cleveland Sculptors Network (CSN). The initiative brings local and visiting artists together for public panels on relevant topics, reviews, and discussions with selected sculptors, providing critical feedback and group discourse on presented work to foster ties between the sculptors.

The initiative has already brought three talented sculptors to Northeast Ohio, who teamed with local artists for panels that explored and explicated themes like creating time-based art and the career implications of not being tied to one art form. Discussions that followed examined the difficulty of presenting work outside of the region and strategies for success in connecting with galleries and curators in larger urban areas.

“Ultimately, Cleveland Sculptors Network is to support sculptors of our region in their efforts to support themselves,” says Albano.

“The most important validation of the significance of The Sculptor Center’s efforts to help artists in our region is recognition of our worth by discriminating funders such as the Callahan Foundation and by national funders.”

The Callahan Foundation is proud to support The Sculpture Center and their Cleveland Sculptors Network initiative with a $20,000 grant. Learn more about The Sculpture Center and CSN.