Constance McBride draws her inspiration from nature, dreams, family and personal experiences.
Art critic Brian Sherwin commented on her sculptures, remarking, “McBride’s sculptures remind us of the connection we share with nature. One could suggest that said connection has been distorted by technological advances – but it still exists. We need to ‘listen’ now more than ever.“ Sherwin adds, ”McBride’s work allows viewers to reflect on that connection – her work invites viewers to think beyond human-made constructs.”
McBride was born and raised in Philadelphia, PA. She relocated to the southwest in 2002 and currently resides in Phoenix, Arizona. She is a member of eye lounge; a collective, artist-run, contemporary art space in the Roosevelt Row Arts District and has exhibited her work at R. Pela Contemporary Art Gallery, the Udinotti Museum of Figurative Art and the Las Cruces Museum of Art in New Mexico. Her work can be found in private collections around the country. McBride received a Bachelor of Arts from Arcadia University in Glenside, Pennsylvania and is a 2011 grant recipient of the Arizona Commission on the Arts.
FEATURED WORK
My focus has been aging and the human body and my work with this subject matter has been evolving for some time. I am not always happy with what I see in the mirror and I sometimes spend more time than I’d like trying to camouflage what I see as flaws in my appearance; perhaps behavior of the burden of growing up with a beautiful mother. The effects time has on our bodies and my evolving emotions concerning them are what drive the direction of my work.
The arrow of time cannot be disputed. Permanent change is a fundamental part of nature. My figures are created to punctuate the human drama. By investigating concrete representations and creating situations that the viewer will identify with, I hope to break the viewer’s passivity. By following my instincts and my own stories, I am attempting to reflect a sensation of serene contemplation combined with subtle details of odd yet strangely natural elements.
I work primarily with clay because I enjoy the tactility of it and the fact that it is the earth’s most primal element. It’s as old as humankind. I like that it will be around forever and I can manipulate it to illustrate my feelings while maintaining its nature. It is from the earth and it’s molded into a form with the hand. I work with slabs that I roll out by hand because I need to feel the connection between my hands and the clay throughout the building process. I’ve been working with pastels on and off since I was a child and re-discovered them again in 2009. The color effect is closer to natural dry pigments than that of any other process. They’ve been used by artists since the Renaissance and colored chalks have been used for thousands of years. According to some, it’s the most permanent of all the mediums in existence. By primarily working with these two mediums, I am reinforcing a direct connection to earth and the universe, to time and its passage and to our place in all of it.
CONSTANCE MCBRIDE’s C.V. (resume)
SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2014 – Timescapes – eye lounge, Phoenix, AZ
INVITATIONAL EXHIBITIONS
2014 – Five15 to the Fifth Group Exhibition – Five15 Arts, Phoenix, AZ – forthcoming in August
– Restory Three Person Exhibition – Step Gallery, Phoenix, AZ
2013 – Silver Blue Two Person Exhibition – R. Pela Contemporary Art, Phoenix, AZ
2009 – Emerging Artist Series Inaugural Exhibition – Center for Performing Arts at PVCC, Phoenix, AZ
SELECTED GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2014 (forthcoming in September) – Consumerism Part II – eye lounge Group Exhibition – Frontal Lobe Gallery, Phoenix, AZ
2013 – Consumerism – eye lounge Group Exhibition – Gallery Glendale at Westgate, Glendale, AZ
– Family Portraits, The Demography of Us – eye lounge, Phoenix, AZ
– eye lounge at the Gammage, Tempe, AZ
– A Community of Creativity – Center for Performing Arts at PVCC, Phoenix AZ
2010 – Resolutions & Articulations – Blink Gallery – Roosevelt Row Arts District, Phoenix, AZ
2009 – Mixed Media First Fridays-Urban Southwest, Phoenix, AZ
SELECTED JURIED EXHIBITIONS
2014 – Flourish: Artworks Inspired by Our Gardens – Vision Gallery, Chandler, AZ
2013 – Art Kudos International Competition (8/13 – 8/14)
– All Art Arizona 2013 – Art Intersection, Gilbert, AZ
– Nocturne – Herberger Theater Gallery, Phoenix, AZ
– Artlink Phoenix 15th Annual Juried Exhibition – AE England Gallery, Phoenix, AZ
– ALL AZ CLAY – Peoria City Hall Art Gallery, Peoria, AZ
2012 – Body of Work Exhibition, Arizona Artists Guild – Phoenix, AZ
– Still Here: Aging in America – Herberger Theater Gallery, Phoenix, AZ
– Exploring Arizona Talent – Udinotti Museum of Figurative Art, Paradise Valley, AZ
– Phoenix + at Modified Arts, Phoenix, AZ
2011 – From the Ground Up XXV Exhibition – Las Cruces Museum of Art, Las Cruces, NM
– ALL AZ CLAY – Chandler Center for the Arts, Chandler, AZ
2010 – Cave Creek Film & Arts Festival – Cave Creek, AZ
– Retro 2009-A Look Back Exhibition – SunDust Gallery, Mesa, AZ
2009 – All AZ CLAY at NCECA (National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts) – Phoenix, AZ
2008 – All AZ CLAY at Shemer Art Center and Museum, Phoenix, AZ
AWARDS
2013 – Emerging Artist Award, All AZ CLAY Exhibition
2012 – Best in Show, Arizona Artists Guild Body of Work Exhibition
2011 – Professional Development Grant Recipient, Arizona Commission on the Arts
2011 – Honorable Mention, Professional Artist Magazine Portrait Cover Contest (formerly Art Calendar Magazine)
2010 – Award of Excellence, Arizona Artists Guild Fall Exhibition
– First Prize-Award of Distinction, SunDust Gallery Retro 2009-A Look Back Exhibition
– Artists of Promise Winner: Entry included in nationwide League for Innovation publication
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS
– explore art: phoenix – 3rd Friday Review by Deborah Ross
– Artsy Shark – Featured Artist Article
– Allie Cooper – Multimedia Storyteller “The inevitable task of aging: a First Friday exhibit”
– YabYum Music and Arts – Nicole Royse Article
– KBAQ 89.5 FM Radio Station – Artlink Phoenix 15th Annual Exhibition, A.E. England Gallery
– Paperclay Art and Practice by Rosette Gault, detail image of Will There Ever Be Peace p. 83
– Superstition Review; ASU’s online literary magazine
– Professional Artist Magazine online; honorable mention award in Portrait Cover Contest
RELATED EXPERIENCE
2014 – Collaborative Artist, Off the Beaten Path. Working in collaboration with Arizona School for the Arts and Hazel & Violet Ink, created a design for new letterpress products with a theme of “Off the Beaten Path”, Phoenix, AZ
2013 – Artist. Working with Hugo Medina and Phoenix Center for the Arts, created one of several public murals for the annual Phoenix Festival of the Arts held in Hance Park, Phoenix, AZ
2012-Present – Arizona Artists Guild Sculptors’ Group Chair. Responsible for programming: booking local and regional guest artists/speakers, arranging periodic studio/venue site visits, hosting nine meetings a year, assisting guest artists with writing content for AAG website, writing content for monthly E-Blasts.
2011 – Juror, Sun City Clay Club Annual Member Exhibition, Sun City, AZ
2009-2012 – Newsletter Contributor and Editor, Arizona Clay Association. Researched and posted artist opportunities/events/workshops, wrote content, edited other contributors content, formatted images/text and distributed monthly publication to members using Constant Contact.
CHARITABLE DONATIONS
2014 – Social Photography, Bokeh Gallery at the monOrchid, Phoenix, AZ
2013 – Annual Silent Auction, Art Intersection, Gilbert, AZ
– Objects d’ Art Auction, Herberger Theater Center, Phoenix, AZ
– Best Buddies Indiana Ball, Silent Auction; Indianapolis, IN
2012 – Votives Project – Udinotti Museum of Figurative Art; Paradise Valley, AZ
– Best Buddies Indiana Black and White Ball, Silent Auction; Indianapolis, IN
– 6×6 Fundraiser Show-eye lounge, Phoenix, AZ
2011 – Best Buddies Indiana Mardi Gras Ball, Silent Auction; Indianapolis, IN
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
– Artist Member, eye lounge, Phoenix, AZ
– Board Member, Juried Artist Member, Sculptors’ Group Chair Arizona Artists Guild
– Artist Member, National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts
– Artist Member, Arizona Clay Association
EDUCATION
– Sculpture with Lisa Clague, Simon Kogan, Beth Cavener Stichter, Tip Toland
Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts, Helena, MT / Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN / Lisa Clague Workshops, Bakersville, NC / Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, OR / Scottsdale Artists’ School, Scottsdale, AZ
– Life Drawing & Painting with David Dunlop, Allen Garns, Bill Lundquist
BRIO Fine Arts, Scottsdale, AZ / Hudson River Valley Art Workshops, Greenville, NY / Scottsdale Artists’ School, Scottsdale, AZ
– Visual Art; Ceramics, Sculpture, Painting, Life Drawing – Paradise Valley Community College, Phoenix, AZ
– Foundation Courses – Philadelphia College of Art, Philadelphia, PA
– Visual Art; Drawing, Design, Painting – Community College of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA
– Bachelor of Arts – Arcadia University, Glenside, PA
Contact Constance at cmcb@constancemcbride.com or visit her website.
View the ceramic artists list.
