ANDREW HAYES •   ASHEVILLE, NC

Andrew Hayes, born in Tucson, AZ studied sculpture at Northern Arizona University until he left school to work in the industrial welding trade. In the fall of 2014 Andrew moved to Penland School of Craft as an artist in residence where he explored the formal relationship between paper and steel. In early 2018 Andrew set up studio in Asheville, NC where he creates sculpture exhibited internationally. His work is included in a number of collections including Yale Art Museum, Metals Museum, Museum of Fine Art, Houston TX and, Black Mountain College.  

"I work with book paper and steel, two materials with very different meanings in the context of our daily lives. The book is an object of education, growth, and escape. Steel is trickier to see and often invisible: its forms make up so many primary structures in our constructed environment. Using book paper and steel, I explore these meanings and find a curious harmony between these materials and the flexibility, history, mass, and density both possess.

I cut pages from old discarded books, removing them from their binding and working with the unbound hunks of paper to explore and respond to the possible, new sculptural shapes the material might take. At some point I introduce metal to the process, giving structure and support to the softer sculptural form of the loose pages. Bringing steel — a material of industry and architecture — to the quiet, contemplative realm of the book excites me. Bracing book paper, steel becomes graceful, its subtle colors and surface amplified: I rediscover the material’s more poetic possibilities. There is flexibility, fluidity, and freedom for me here as an artist. Bound together, book paper and steel make something new and unified. The book takes another form, another mysterious life, off the shelf."

“My Dad was a welder in a copper mine, and worked with steel at home. As a child I distanced myself from the abrasive noise and heat he produced. During my undergraduate studies I was drawn to working with steel and eventually worked in the industry for two years. That period of time allowed me to refine skills and put my work ethic to the test. Working in steel, a material that has a sense of permanence and strength, my goal is to take these properties and manipulate the form and surface to achieve a soft quietness.”