Meet The Finalists

130 applications for “A New View” were submitted from all across the country and the world.
Curators Kimberly Camp and Judith Tannenbaum chose 20 finalists whose works represent a diverse cross-section of medium, experience, and background.
On November 1st and 2nd, the 20 talented finalists for “A New View-Camden" presented their ideas for public art projects that highlight Camden's challenges with illegal dumping and provide residents and visitors with A New View of the City Invincible.

See snippets of their presentations below!

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A New View - Camden
TOP TWENTY

Kathy Bruce

https://www.kathybruceartist.com/
Kathy Bruce concentrates mainly in outdoor sculptures which are site-specific. She uses a variety of natural materials and often uses those materials found on the sites of her installations. She explores the topics of archetypal and mythological forms often when it comes to her art. Bruce has been featured in many art publications (including Sculpture Magazine) and is additionally seasoned lecturer and professor.

Tom Marchetty

http://thefactoryworkers.com/
Tom Marchetty has worked with metalworking all his life in his family’s machine shop and studied the skill at University of the Arts in Philadelphia. Over the years, his shop began collecting the machinery of American factories that were forced to close due to increasing outsourced labor. In 2013 he opened The Factory Workers which would act as a versatile, community makerspace that houses reclaimed factory equipment and creates unique tables.  Tom Marchetty has worked with multiple companies and philanthropies to create public, community centered art in the Greater Philadelphia area. 

Aurora Robson
"For Now"

https://www.aurorarobson.com/
Aurora Robson has worked with multi-media to create artwork that captures transformation, evolution, and dreams.  Her work ranges from paintings, junk mail collages, reliefs, sculptures, to large scale public installations. She has had her work featured in multiple, prominent periodicals and has received internationally recognized grants.  Aurora Robson has also recently founded Project Vortex, a collective of international artists who have promised to work exclusively with plastic debris in order to promote environmentally conscious art.  

Amanda Schachter/SLO Architecture
"Camden Turntable"

https://www.sloarchitecture.com/
Amanda Schachter is an architect working out of the full-service design firm of SLO Architecture. Schachter received her B.A. from Columbia College in New York and M.Arch from Princeton University. SLO has won a number of awards in the past decade for their work. Schachter’s goal is to use architecture as a means to bring about social activism in local communities.

Benoit Maubrey
"Speaker Sculpture"

https://www.benoitmaubrey.com/
Benoit Maubrey graduated with his BA from Georgetown University and has worked since the 1970’s in Berlin and Baitz (Brandenburg.)  While he is most famously known for his ‘sound sculptures’ featuring the repurposing of recycled stereos Benoit Maubrey has also worked with dance, light, and video projections to create various performance art installations. He has been awarded numerous grants, residencies, and awards over the past 30 years in addition to confounding the non-profit art organization Kunstpflug e.V, Baitz.

Homer Jackson
"Master Your Voice"

http://www.philajazzproject.org
Homer Jackson graduated with his BFA from the Philadelphia College of the Arts and his MFA from Temple University Tyler School of Art.  He now works with sound, live performance, found objects, and other video elements to tell a narrative as an interdisciplinary artist.  For over 50 years, Homer Jackson has worked with communities to bring access to education and active creativity to the youth and at risk populations of the Philadelphia area.  

Terreform One
"Bio-Informatic Digester"

http://archinode.com/
“Terreform ONE is an architectural design group that integrates ecological and synthetic biological principles into the urban environment.”  Mitchell Joachim, Ph.D., Assoc. AIA is the Co-Founder of Terreform ONE and an Associate Professor of Practice at NYU. He earned a PhD at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MAUD Harvard University, and MArch Columbia University. Joachim has won many honors in the areas of modern planning, architecture, and design. His work has been exhibited globally. 

Erik J Montgomery
"Blight to Bright...Camden Is"

https://www.ejmfoundation.org/
Erick James is a South Jersey born artist. Originally studying many different forms of art he found his passion in photography. Working out of his studio James focuses on fine art photography, but also does special occasion photography (weddings, senior portraits, etc.). In 2011 he established The Erik James Montgomery Foundation. A non-profit organization with a focus on creating public works of photographic art throughout the world. Additionally, The Foundation has a special interest in instructing today’s at-risk youth to become the photographers of tomorrow. 

Cat Chiu
"Plastic Garden"

http://www.catchiuphillips.com
Cat Chui Phillips received her MFA from San Francisco Art Institute and has worked creating installations meant to be observed in the public eye.  Her works large use found and recycled materials that are bound together using different, contemporary handicraft methods. Cat Chui Phillips has exhibited her art in multiple international airports, museums, and cultural commissions. She has also worked as a public educator for over 15 years and has received multiple, international grants.   

Trish Metzner
"Scopes for Hope"

https://www.madeinmosaic.com/
Trish Metzner is a Philadelphia raised artist who has worked internationally as a tile designer and muralist.  She has done inspiring work boosting the artistic economy in rural parts of Mexico, received multiple grants, and continued to work conducting community engagement.  She has recently moved back to Philadelphia to found her own tile studio which functions as an artistic space and place of community.

Aleksandr Razin
"Teleportation" or "Contemporary Centaur"

http://www.razinart.com/
Rusian born artist, Aleksandr Razin, spent his entire life surrounded by art. As a child he spent many hours in his grandfather’s studio, a book illustrator. In 1982 he received his MFA from the Tashkent College of Fine Arts. Later, in 1995 Razin would emigrate to Long Island, NY and begin teaching at Bridgeview Art School. Since 2007, he has created more than ten site-specific installations in NYC, NJ and CT.  He says that “an initial image emerges spontaneously that usually comes from some unknown source and represents the conceptual framework for the piece.” Razin looks for ways that symbols can connect his art to the contemporary world and the human condition of the current century.

Don Kennell

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https://donkennell.com/
Working together with his partner and wife Lisa Adler, Don Kennell creates large public art that has been installed throughout the United States. Don and Lisa both received their graduate degrees from Rutgers, in Art and social sciences respectively. Now they continue these passions by creating and installing artwork that intersects art with society. For example, much of Kennell’s large sculptures are known for their interactive components.

Marguerite de Messière
"Inner Charge (Birds)"

http://www.demessieres.com/
  https://simbioba.com/projects
Marguerite de Messieres is a painter whose subjects consist mainly of landscapes and portraiture. She has a BA in Art from Wesleyan University and studied art conservation and museology at Studio Arts College International (SACI) in Florence, Italy. Additionally she studied the art of woodcarving at National Academy of Art in Sofia, Bulgaria. de Messieres is highly involved with the Hyattstown Mill Arts Project and Naydenov creates unique furniture and sculpture out of his studio in Boyds, Maryland.

O'Neil Scott
"On The Horizon"

https://www.oneilscottstudio.com/
O’Neil Scott was born in Jamaica, but now calls Pennsylvania home. He is a self taught painter who creates amazingly realistic portraits. Scott’s paintings usually make a political statement or feature a subject from a minority group. Scott’s portraits have been best in show or finalists in a number of competitions in recent years.

Tyler Fuqua
"Mechan 11"

http://www.tylerfuquacreations.com/
Established in 2007, Tyler FuQua Creations (TFC) builds amazing things out of their studio in the Portland Oregon area. Founder Tyler FuQua and his business partner Jason Hutchinson, along with their crew, create psychedelic sculptures, suits, stage sets, and much more. They have been featured in a number of popular museums, fairs, and music festivals across the country.

Matthew Geller
"Copper Cooper Crossing"

https://matthewgeller.com/
Matther Geller graduated from Connecticut College with a BA and University of Delaware with his MFA.  Over the course of his career he has changed the focus of his art from traditional sculpture to video work capturing his own public installations.  These installations, both permanent and temporary, always combine the outdoor environment and industrial infrastructure to create works that have been described as ‘urban earthworks’ and ‘industrial baroque settees.’  He published multiple books and has exhibited his work across the country.

Steve Seigel
"Debris"

https://www.stevensiegel.net/
Born in 1953, Steven Siegel is an American born artist who is well known for his sculptures made from recycled materials. Siegel graduated from Hampshire College and received his MFA from Pratt Institute. Then in 1983 he found the inspiration for much of his art in the rock formations in Scotland. Much of his sculptures copy the aesthetic of the rocks’ shapes and forms. A majority of Siegel’s sculptures make a statement on humans impact on nature. When Siegel looks at the amount of waste that humans create, he considers it to be a “new geology,” hence the naming of his first sculptures made from newspapers.

The Myth Makers: Donna Dodson & Andy Moerlein
"The Phoenix Festival"

https://www.themythmakers.org/
The Myth Makers, Donna Dodson and Andy Moerlein, are an established artist team from Boston Massachusetts. They have completed over 50 public art projects in the past 10 years, in 13 states, plus Peru, Switzerland, China and Taiwan. Working at the intersection of art, science and social activism, the artists use materials and tools with a low carbon footprint to create monumental public art with a message. The Myth Makers are known for presenting an art experience that intrigues the press, fosters political awareness and draws the curious public. 

Joshua Sarantitis
"Touching the Earth"

http://www.joshsarantitis.com/index.html
Joshua Sarantitis has been creating murals throughout the United States for over 20 years. His monumental artwork can be found in many major metropolitan areas, such as San Francisco, Chicago, and Philadelphia. These public installations make a statement on our communities everyday lives and the art surrounding them. Much of his projects incorporate hands on learning experiences for the local communities. Sarantitis hopes that his art can speak to a wide audience. Based in Arizona, Sarantitis focuses on promoting cross cultural experiences and preserves traditional adobe style buildings. His team has installed clay plaster works internationally and work domestically to educate the public about natural building and handicrafts.

Robert Goodman
"Tidal Prism"

https://www.seraphingallery.com/robert-goodman
Robert Goodman is a painter who has been active since the early 2000’s. He received a BFA in 2002 from the Cleveland Institute of Art and later in 2004 an MFA from the Tyler School of Art of Temple University. He would spend some of this time studying in Italy to perfect his craft. Goodman has had his paintings and murals been part of exhibitions nationwide. He currently has one on view at the Seraphin Gallery in Philadelphia, PA. Since 2012 Goodman has been Chair of the Fine Arts and Photography & Digital Arts department at Moore College of Art and Design.

See the Six Sites for "A New View"