Sean Monaghan

When I stopped by Sean Monaghan's studio he was hard at work on his graduate thesis project for the sculpture department at San Jose state.  His thesis work breaks down his medium of choice into it's most basic elements, ingots of clear and colored glass juxtaposed with rough, almost primitive, sand cast metal urns.  In creating this series Sean has taken a step back from the commercial influences that out of necessity have influenced his earlier work, and is examining the fundamental nature of his craft.

  The duck and fanciful vehicle pictured here are examples of Sean's desire to experiment in other media.  The duck was created for a video performance piece in which a hidden camera inside its bill records a "duck's eye view" of a local community charity event.  The tentacled bicycle was constructed for the annual Burning Man festival held in the Black Rock Desert of Nevada.  Although it is difficult to see here, the red octopus is illuminated from within, and at night makes  an impressive display which resulted in Sean's contraption getting international press coverage.

To learn more about Sean's artwork, click on the link below to view our coverage of his work from Open Studios 1997.

http://www.wmgallery.com/cruz/monaghan.html