BIO - 2008
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Michael Ciccone’s prolific work is evident to anyone who regularly
drives by his home studio on Glasco Turnpike in Saugerties, NY. His
fans are always interested to see which new piece has found a place on
the front lawn, or sad to see which are missing after moving to an
exhibition or being sold. Starting in the summer of 2007, Ciccone
opened his studio to the public as a part of the Saugerties Artists
Tour, and has enjoyed being an active planning member of that group
ever since.
Ciccone settled back in the Hudson Valley, in Saugerties, NY, in 1998.
He received his BA in fine arts from Bard College in 1993, then spent
five years living in New York City. Working in a variety of challenging
spaces in Manhattan and Brooklyn, Ciccone’s work from 1993-98 was
inspired by his visits to the Hudson Valley, both in terms of material
and subject matter. His work has always included, and been inspired by,
found objects such as farming tools, railroad spikes, I-beams, and
scrap metals. While living in the city, his dreams of the country
expressed themselves in the form of abstract landscapes, “an
opportunity to step back for a moment from the chaos of the city,” as
he described it early in 1998.
After moving to the Hudson Valley from Manhattan in August of 1998,
Ciccone has had the opportunity to develop his body of work, first in
his shop in West Park, and now at his home studio in Saugerties, NY.
His work expands upon the landscapes, abstract pieces, and other found
object pieces from his time in New York City to include pieces that
further explore the gravity and instability of a particular moment in
time. This is achieved through both abstract work that evokes a more
physical response, and figurative work exploring a particular theme.
From 2004-2007 much of Ciccone’s time was taken up with the
construction of his home studio. Now that this larger shop space is
finished, it has allowed him to work in a larger scale, resulting in
the outdoor sculptures that have become so popular with local
passers-by.
Ciccone’s current work can be seen not only in his front yard, but also
at the year-round outdoor Unison Sculpture Garden in New Paltz, NY, at
Unison’s Sculpture Walk at the Water Street Market in New Paltz, NY,
and at Opus 40 in Saugerties, NY. Other current exhibitions are listed
on his website events page, at http://michaelciccone.com/events.html,
and the calendar section of the Saugerties Artists Tour website, http://saugertiesarttour.com/saugcalendar09.html.