Artist's Statement
Fourteen years ago I stared a series called Healing
Curtains. These pieces were made of steel to hang in a
window or on a wall. This work was inspired by childhood
memories of growing up in a tiny apartment in Harlem with
police gates on every window. The menacing shadows from
crisscrossing bars branded my essence. My mother made
beautiful curtains to hide the bars. Using the interaction
of texture with compact arrangements of negative and
positive space, I compose my sculpture with units that
assembled together to create one structure. The intense
involvement with pattern in The Healing Curtains
series expanded into free-standing sculptures. Shadows
became an important element in my work. In the sculpture
entitled Awakening, I combined my love of pattern and
movement to create a feeling of softness. Transforming the
hard edge of steel into lyrical form is an exciting
challenge for me and perhaps a metaphorical symbol of my
life.
Bio
Claudia Widdiss was born in Harlem, NYC. With an early
interest in art that her family encouraged, she studied in
various community programs such as the Arts and Culture
Program sponsored by the Harlem Youth Act of New York City.
Graduating from the High School of Art and Design with a
major in Sculpture, Claudia received scholarships to the
National Academy of Fine Arts and The Art Students League of
New York. At the age of nineteen she received the Chaloner
Prize Foundation Grant to continue her studies in Europe.
Claudia apprenticed with English Sculptor Denise Mitchell in
Cornwall for one year, and continued her study for an
additional year, stone carving in Carrara, Italy. After her
study abroad, she lived in Georgia for ten years working
primarily in metal. In 1981, Claudia returned to New England
and studied at Rhode Island College, receiving a BFA in
Sculpture. In 1989 she was awarded an MFA in Sculpture from
Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. Since 1993,
Claudia Widdiss has taught sculpture at Eastern Connecticut
State University and continues to develop as an artist.
Web Site:
www.easternct.edu/depts/visarts/staff.htm
