Joe Chirchirillo has been creating sculpture since the early 1970’s. After attending college in New York and Arizona, he moved to the NY Metro area and settled in Jersey City, NJ. He was part of the first wave of artists moving to this outpost across the Hudson, building the budding art scene there. In the early 1980's he was involved with artists from lower Manhattan and Brooklyn who were putting on large shows in abandoned buildings and blighted urban lots. These artist-run shows, such as the “Monument Redefined” and the “Terminal Show”, were huge public events. Both received tremendous attention from viewers and critics alike. At this time his work was reviewed in Art Forum, Art in America, Vanity Fair and on, numerous occasions, in the New York Times. His work in these shows were the basis for his 1986 NEA fellowship.

In the 1990’s he began to experiment with kinetic sculpture. Looking for a way to examine the similarities and contrasts between the natural and mechanical world. He refers to these as his “Sculpture Systems” series with the aim of creating “nature machines” that mimic natural processes.

He moved to North Bennington 20 years ago. Life in Vermont has changed his work. Spending more time outside and being influenced constantly by the natural world prompted him to focus on creating large on outdoor sculpture. Most recently he is working on a series of welded steel pieces that relate to plant forms.

He has been curating The North Bennington Outdoor Sculpture Show for the last 11 years. The show hosts 40 large works throughout the Village from June till November.

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