May 2011: Stephanie Brockway

Stephanie Brockway will be taking over the Feature Area & Window Area with her “Circus Puppet Theater” creations. The show is an evolution of many things. Starting with a single carved clown puppet, Stephanie decided she needed a whole circus troupe, and went from there.  She continued on the playful theme with an interactive puppet theater and puppets with movable parts. A love of vintage, “I use mainly old wood for the carvings, it seems to vibrate with a past life it speaks to me. If I listen carefully, it tells me what it wants to become.”  Knives and chisels cut away to revel the faces or forms.  She strives for cohesive pieces, finding just the right salvage material to combine with the hand carved pieces.  For a look she calls “Urban Folk Art”, less traditional blends with a modern twist. “Wood is subtractive and not very forgiving, therein lays the challenge that intrigues me.  It is a tactile balance to my first love: painting,” says Stephanie. She has created a big puppet theater built from salvaged wood. In the painted backdrop will be puppets, all carved and costumed. The window will feature a 58” tall hanging acrobat.