Artist Statement

I have always been interested in the relationship between natural phenomena and manufactured environments.

My background as an automotive restorer has informed my approach to sculpting. Industrial objects (scrap metal,raw steel and aluminum, fiberglass, car parts, paint, machines) have been the building blocks in my work for the past 40 years. I begin a sculpture by exploring the formal qualities in these objects. By working with materials whose original purpose was not for sculpture, I re-define their function and celebrate the beauty of their form. My process parallels that of nature: I erode surfaces, twist shapes, pour heavy paint and weld pieces together until something fresh and surprising emerges.

I fuse the narrative elements inherent in the different materials I use. I let the materials tell their own story, and use them in such a way as to tell mine. Each distinct material contributes to the form, weight and tension of the completed sculpture.

As a musician, I’ve learned that a performer responds to the unique energy of a particular time and place. By interacting with new materials and configurations each day, I incorporate spontaneity and improvisation into my creative process. Playing with material, form, color and shape allows me to combine unexpected variables. I approach sculpting like a jazz musician at an impromptu jam session -- after years of rehearsal, I jump in and let the work develop.


Artist Bio

Jim Felice is a painter and sculptor who explores the relationship between natural phenomena and manufactured environments. He has exhibited throughout Westchester and Fairfield Counties in solo and group exhibitions including: Scott & Bowne, (Kent Ct.), The Bartlett Arboretum, (Stamford Ct), The Time Warner Building (NYC),The Stamford Museum and Nature Center (Stamford, CT), Zoe & Floyd Gallery (Seymour, CT), The Sculpture Barn (New Fairfield, CT), Silvermine Guild Gallery, (New Canaan, Ct),Hiram Halle Memorial Library (Pound Ridge, NY), The Gallery at Onatru (South Salem, NY), Northern Westchester Center for the Arts (Mt. Kisco, NY), and Colby College (Waterville, ME).

Jim is the recipient of numerous awards including “Award of Excellence in Sculpture” at the Northern Westchester Center for the Arts (2000). He also won “Best in Sculpture” (1991), “2nd Prize in Sculpture” (1993) and “2nd Prize in Painting” (1994) all from juried exhibitions at the Stamford Art Association. He has been a member of the Silvermine Guild of Artists since 1999.

 Jim's craftsmanship and specialization in paint application has won him many restoration commissions by galleries, estates and collectors. He has restored sculpture by Alexander Calder, Anthony Caro, Roy Lichtenstein, Alexander Liberman, Henry Moore, Louise Nevelson, Claes Oldenburg and Joel Shapiro among others.