Weekly Gallery Tour: Joël Urruty
Joël Urruty is one of the featured artists in our exhibition Branching Out: Works in Wood from NC.
About Joël
Currently living in Hickory, Joël was born in San Francisco, CA in 1968, the son of Basque immigrants. He earned a Bachelor of Science in industrial technology at San Francisco State University. He apprenticed as a furniture maker under David J. Marks, Master Craftsman, and later went on to earn a Masters of Fine Art in Woodworking and Furniture Design from the School of American Crafts at Rochester Institute of Technology.
"I strive to create elegant sculptures that capture the true essence of the subject matter. Form, line, and surface are used as the visual language. The figure is abstracted to a minimalist form, void of any superfluous information. The primary material, wood, is often masked by paint to allow the form to take precedence over the material. Monochromatic colors, such as black or white are often used on the sculptures, allowing light and shadow to play off subtle shifting facets."
- Joël Urruty
Featured Works and the Wood that Makes Them
Branching Out features so many different types of wood, each with very unique features. Wellness is one of Joël's featured works and is made out of basswood. This wood is found in Eastern North America and its subtle rings show its history of growth. The color appears almost uniform throughout the grain of the wood. This wood is easy to work with, as it is very light and soft, making it suitable to carve by hand.
The second work of Joël's in the exhibition, Reverie, is made out of mahogany. This wood is grown on plantations across Southern Mexico and South America. The color varies from a pale pinkish-brown to a dark reddish-brown, and it often darkens with age. It has a medium texture with reliable durability that is dependent on growing conditions. Mahogany is also termite resistant!
You can see more of Joël's work at www.JoelUrruty.com
