Freedom to Create: Q & A with Wood Sculptor Marc Alan Freedman

One could say Marc Alan Freedman started off as an artist. Always drawn to the 3D medium and a variety of materials, Marc even attended college in Vermont where he majored in sculpture and minored in photography. After college, like most of us, Marc was expecting to get a job, wear a suit and pay the rent for his apartment.

In corporate attire, which also included a tie, Marc worked in sales at Lenox China and traveled around the country. Over the next twenty plus years Marc worked for a few other corporations in and around the tri-state areas.

"At some point after 9-11 I wanted to go back and capture that free spirit of my youth, which I never really experienced because I went to work [after college] for most of my life in this very straight job."

"The fear of dying is a kind of a way out things. But I said, 'now what if I go out there, and maybe a bus hits me.' You know something stupid like that. And what if I never did what I really wanted to do."

Six years ago Marc moved to Ithaca, New York and bought an 1890 farmhouse with a garage. Now on an acre of land nestled in the woods Marc had time to go back to being creative.

A year after getting settled Marc began to sculpt again, but this time he used pieces of wood in which he sculpted uniquely shaped bowls with striking finishes.

What drew you to wood as a medium?

"I guess because wood was so accessible everywhere in upstate New York. And we had some property and there were a lot of fallen trees. Plus, I was on a budget; I wasn't able to go buy fancy woods. So I just started to pick pieces up. Then I did a lot of research on dry wood. And began to work with found objects, wood."

"Then I made a bunch of [wood] bowls for a local craft fair and sold twenty pieces. I said—wow. I didn't have tools at the time, everything was done by hand, they were crazy shapes but people bought them."

Now armed with the encouragement and desire Marc continued to make bowls. He works out of a small 12 x 24 foot garage. But with built-in cubbyholes in a MacGyver-like space, Marc is able to do larger sculpture pieces using a variety of tools.  

What story are you telling and what is your inspiration?

"I've read websites where people talk about inspiration. You know — walks in the woods, and it all sounds like bull to me. Cut me a break can't you come up with something better than I like to meditate in the garden."

"And I haven't figured it out yet. The questions always bring me to a halt, put me on my knees. Its just life's experiences, its just the sum total of living—who knows. It hard to sum it up but I'm always trying new things. You just don't stand still."

Marc Alan Freedman is Wood Sculptor living in Ithaca, New York. You can see Marc's sculptures at the Tappan Z Gallery on 51 Main Street in Tarrytown and on his website http://www.marcalanfreedman.com/