Bench Artists

Steven J. Conard
A graduate of the Kansas City Art Institute with a Bachelor of Fine Arts, Steven has participated in art events and exhibitions in areas that include Boston, Chicago and Buffalo, NY. Steve is a Brown County resident and fine art painter of local rural scenes, homes, gardens and sacred places that evoke the long tradition and style of the Brown County School of Painting. Steven says, "I frequently paint figurative works and landscapes. My pieces are extensions of who I am. They reflect what I want around me." Steven's bench design is titled "Pete as Jacob Brown" and honors a friend and local character. Plywood cutouts of Pete with background landscaping will be painted with artist grade oil paints and bolted to the bench.

R.D. Cooper
Rachael's bench is titled "A Bird Without Roots Cannot Fly" and incorporates two images of nature that are common to Indiana, the cardinal and the dogwood tree. The bird and the tree suggest a co-dependent life symbolic of human relationships. Rachael states, "We as humans also have relationships with one another that directly reflect this co-dependent way of life, and many people sitting together on this bench will most likely have some sort of connection that has bound them in mutual dependence." A recent Purdue graduate with degrees in both painting and ceramics, Rachael accepts commissions for murals, logo design and custom artwork. While a student, Rachael won a coveted art scholarship that funded a trip to Rome, Florence and Venice.  She lives in Columbus, Indiana where she works and tutors art in her studio: http://www.thealwaysbluestudio.com.

Zachary Orcutt
A sculptor, painter and instructor, Zachary received an MFA from Bowling Green State University and a BFA from Syracuse University and has exhibited his work extensively across the United States. His bench is titled "2 Prop U Up" and features a rendition of airplane propellers as the seat and back of the bench. In Zachary's words, "Being an artist is a leap of faith-defying expectations, resisting convention, pushing boundaries and expanding the realm of what is possible. The ability to fly, as well as the dream of flight ... is a timeless metaphor for growth, transformation and transcendence." He currently lives in Rudolph, Ohio where he is actively showing his work and seeking employment as a full time professor of sculpture. Zachary recently received the Ohio Arts Council's Artistic Excellence Grant for 2007 and is an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Bowling Green State University.

Artist Shelley Frederick holds a Bachelor of Science in Art Therapy and has displayed her work at both national and local juried shows and art exhibits. Her recent work, "Hot, Hotter, Hottest" won Outstanding Watercolor Award in the 75th Hoosier Salon. Her painting, "The Reenactor," exhibited in Constitutional Hall in Washington, D.C. A native of Longview, Texas, Shelley now lives in Southern Brown County and teaches workshops and private lessons by appointment.  She accepts commissions of children and pets in watercolor and oils and of buildings and private homes in various media. Shelley's bench is titled "The History of our Artists and Settlers" and features Trompe L'oeil images in paint or stain. http://www.shelleyfrederick.com/.

Brian Sullivan
Brian's bench title is "Wet Paint - Do Not Touch!" and will be painted with multiple colors of high gloss industrial enamel paint in random splash/drip patterns. A resident of Champaign, Illinois, he was graduated from the University of Illinois with a Master of Fine Arts degree in sculpture and from the University of Wisconsin with a BFA in metals.  His art education includes international experiences in Paris, Venice, London, Warsaw, and the Caribbean islands. Brian has been exhibiting as a professional artist in juried events for over 25 years and has created all types of projects in different media. His work can be found in private and public collections in Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin and Tennessee. For more about Brian and his work visit: http://www.briansullivanart.com/.

Charlene Marsh
Charlene has lived and worked for nearly twenty years in beautiful Brown County, Indiana where she backpacks with her oil painting supplies to create paintings on location year round. Her bench is titled "Fall Along Sciscoe Creek, Brown County, Indiana." She has two Bachelor of Arts degrees from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana with majors in Fine Arts and English. Her artwork can be found in museums and corporate and private collections throughout the USA. Charlene has won grants from the National Endowment of the Arts, Arts Midwest, and the Indiana Arts Commission as well as numerous awards all across the country. She maintains a national show schedule at top ranked art festivals and an online gallery at: http://www.charlenemarsh.com/

Rachel Carson Gratz
Rachel enjoys working on art projects that are functional and can be incorporated into daily life. She has a degree in Fine Arts from Earlham College and enjoys working in a wide range of media. An example of her mosaic work can be seen in Peoples' Park in Bloomington, Indiana. Nature is a constant theme in Rachel's life and work. She lives with her husband and child on the Monroe/Brown County line with woods and fields surrounding them. Her bench design is titled "Working Mother" and is inspired by her time spent in Brown County State Park walking through the woods, observing and sketching wildlife. When Rachel heard about the Benches of Brown County Project she was driven to create a design that paid homage to an area of incredible beauty that has inspired and molded her life.

Nancy Keating
"Vinery Finery in Mosaic" is the title of Nancy Keating's bench design. A mosaic design of natural stone, slate, metallic veined molded glass, glass gems, glazed ceramic and porcelain, it is reminiscent of warm earthy hues on a late summer's day in Indiana. Nancy has a Bachelor of Arts in French and Spanish and has worked as an educator and merchandise director. Nancy's love of vibrant color and texture finally led her to art and her travels to Europe and the American Southwest fueled her passion for mosaics. Her favorite mosaic approach is collage/trencadis style, a series of color explosions influenced by the European modernist Antoni Gaudi. A resident of Carmel, Indiana, Nancy accepts architectural commissions and her work is currently available at juried art shows, select gift shops, design studios and on her web site: http://www.mosaicsgarden.com/.

Judy Riendeau
Owner of the Hungry Potter in Prospect, Kentucky Judy is best known for her wheel-thrown pottery with distinctive designs and colorful images. Her bench design will feature handmade stoneware tiles using beautiful speckled clay and pressed leaves and is titled "Falling Leaves." Judy apprenticed and subsequently taught at the Torpedo Factory in Alexandria, Virginia, and is inspired by the desire to create functional, decorative pieces to be enjoyed in everyday life. Her pottery can be found at area juried art shows and recently was represented in "Best of Kentucky Clay," a juried exhibition by the Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft. In Louisville's  2004 outdoor public art project called Gallopalooza, Judy's entry, "Silver Charm," placed in the top 10 of 200 horses and won a Merit Award.

Paul Neufelder
Paul started his career in painting at an early age, saying, "I guess I was about three when I stopped eating my older sister's crayons and started using them." He studied art at Wright State in Dayton, Ohio, and the California Institute of the Arts and has exhibited his work extensively. Paul considers that some of his most important work has been as a teacher. He was awarded the 2003 Indiana Youth Institute Youth Worker of the Year Award for his work with teaching art to high risk students. Just a few of his exhibits have included events at the Indianapolis Governor's Mansion, Greater Lafayette Museum of Fine Arts, and Cincinnati's Enjoy the Arts. A resident of Columbus, Indiana, Paul won the 2003 Mayor's Art Award. His bench, "Peace" will be painted with acrylics and will include a collage of words and quotes based around the theme of peace. Visit Paul at http://www.artneus.net/.

Sheila Jackson
Sheila owns Designing Woman, a decorative painting business in Indianapolis, and specializes in custom murals, hand-painted furniture and accessories and commissioned paintings. She has exhibited in numerous art shows, illustrated books and worked for the Children's Museum of Indianapolis as a graphic designer. Sheila's bench will be painted with exterior acrylic enamels and titled, "Brown County ... Where Nature and all its Glory Abounds". Experienced in outdoor public art projects, in 2005 she was one of twenty artists invited to paint dolphin sculptures in promotion of the new dolphin pavilion at the Indianapolis Zoo. Some of Sheila's murals can be seen at the Boonshoft Museum of Discovery in Dayton, Ohio, and at St. Vincent Children's and Women's Hospitals in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Charlie Spear
Owner of Spearhead Gallery and Studio in Peru, Indiana, Charlie's bench is called "Morning Rush on the Express-Line." He started his art career at the early age of six by entertaining his five siblings with clay sculptures and charcoal drawings. Charlie paints in acrylics and sculpts in steel and brass, making mobiles and stabile sculpture. He credits Alexander Calder, Paul Klee and Philip Guston, among others, for influencing his art. He leans to the cartoon style but wraps it in a painterly fashion of form, shadow and color values. He has been selected to be the April Artist of the Month on the Liquitex web site. Charlie says, "I do my best work when I am working fast and pushing hard at the subject idea that I am working on at the time. I love both texture and pattern held together with a strong influence of line in my work. The line is the stick-part of the architecture." Examples of Charlie's work can be seen at http://www.charliearts.com/.