Altamira Fine Art sat down with Stephanie Revennaugh this week to discuss her life as an artist living and working in Livingston, Montana. By the end of our session, I can say with confidence that Revennaugh is the definition of a self-starter – a dreamer whose path is staged from an inner knowing that fuels generative art making. Stephanie’s sculpture is born from an intimate acquaintance with horses, from a lifetime of experience in close relationship and observation. This is evident in her work, as her gestures come to life in organic form.
At the age 32, after painting for a few years, Stephanie left her day job to pursue a six month art program in France, then returned to the U.S. in a full-fledged determination to becoming a working artist. With nothing holding her back, she devoted herself to her work. A three-day workshop would spark her passion for clay sculpting and set her on the path to Montana, where she developed into a masterful self-taught bronze sculptor.
Today, Stephanie’s process is a running machine. It begins with an intimate experience between her hands and the clay, where she dives into the making. Then, the casting process branches out into a massive operation involving foundries throughout the country. Then, the casting process begins and branches out into a massive operation. “I’m aware that going forward in my journey, although I have my own vision, I have to let go of being a lone wolf, because I do better when I bounce off of others. The best way for me to know myself is to be asked questions.” Revennaugh works closely with Ty Mack, who fabricates metal for both glass pieces and steel bases for bronze works, and Eric Peterson, who plays an integral role in the patina process. Each step of the process plays a part in bringing her vision into reality.
Revennaugh is vibrant with dreams and ideas, ever changing and expanding in new directions. Her newest interest has been working with glass casting, combining colored glass animal forms with steel elements. She says, “I took a step back to do a lot of inner work over the last few years - now I’m diving back in and the glass is a big part of that.” Her sculpting is organic and raw, creating a jagged effect in glass casting that differentiates the work from others in the medium. Her style in glass poses a contrast between the ethereal and the industrial.
“In my midlife, I see alignment and healing within myself. I am bringing my higher vision into grounded embodiment.”
Drawing from experiences around the world, Stephanie continues to evolve, creating ever more evocative work. At the end of our conversation, we asked her about a big dream project. “If resources were unlimited, what’s the big adventure?” She responded, “My unlimited dream is casting a full body of glass works in Prague and having 3 life-size works at the LA28 Olympics at Galway Down in Temecula, CA.” We are so excited to witness Stephanie’s next big moves as she continues to conquer sculpture in the Western Art world.
