From: Carmel, California
Website: www.sandguys.com
Bio: Rusty's professional sand sculpting career began in San Diego in 1997, where he
worked with an international sand team creating a world record setting sculpture, “TheLost City of Atlantis”. From that point on his creativity was unleashed and he has been invited to sculpt in over 15 different countries. Rusty is now the co-owner of Sand Guys, based in Carmel California, where they work for the “Silicon Valley elite”,
creating sand sculptures for the likes of Yahoo, Google and Facebook. Sand Guys also give workshops and lessons that develop team building, creativity, and most of all fun. After fourteen years Rusty still finds the most pleasure in traveling to new places, meeting new people and watching as they discover the extraordinary, in ordinary sand.
Rusty has been on Good Morning America and featured in national publications such as Sunset, Phoenix Home and Garden, and American Lifestyles Magazine. Rusty is currently the host of Travel Channels new hit show Sand Masters. Dig In & Make Art is his motto.... join in and travel with him on Sand Guys.com, Facebook and TravelChannel.com.
From: Ontario Canada
Titles: 3 time World Champion, 3 time Sand Castle Days Champion, 3 time North American Champion, 3 time Hampton Beach Champion, 3 time Sand Castle Days Champion, 2 time Texas Sand Fest Champion, American Champion, Quebec City Expo Champion and Wasaga Beach (Ontario) Champion.
Website: www.sandqube.com
Bio: Karen is a professional sand sculptor with 17 years experience. She began her sculpting career at age 14 in a pottery studio in Guelph, Ontario in 1983. In 1994, a professional sand sculptor hired her to help him on a small sand sculpture in a local mall. Karen was immediately addicted and spent the next 4 years learning the rudiments of sand sculpture while still working full time in restaurants.
In 1998 she entered her first international contest and by 2001 she was working full time as a free-lance sculptor. Her work takes her around the world, collaborating and competing with many fantastic sculptors and friends at Master competitions and exhibitions.
To date, Karen has competed in 85 Master sand sculpture contests and is a 3 time World Champion and 3 time North American Champion.
From: Castlefranco, Italy
Website: www.jgowdy.com
Bio: John is a retired Fire Fighter Captain from Atlantic City NJ. He has served 27 years in the fire service and 7 years as a beach lifeguard in AC. (34 years in public safety).
He now lives in Castlefranco, Italy near Venice with his new Italian bride Laura Cimador Gowdy. They were married this past July on the beach here in FMB.
" I really love FMB.... the beach, the sand, and all the new and old friends I have here. I feel at home on the white sandy beaches of FMB." "I am like a loggerhead turtle.... I keep coming back to FMB to dig in the sand"
John has won the American Championship 3 years in a row 05, 06, and 07. He is the current North American Solo Sand Sculpture Champion and competes around the world.
He has developed a new performance painting show called "Flying Colors" and has just returned from performing 20 painting shows in Singapore where he did 4 paintings as a tribute for Fire Fighter’s lost at The Twin Towers. It was well received by the people and the media of Singapore. He will be performing Flying Colors in FMB. Please check the schedule for times and locations.
John has done tributes for The White House Commission of Remembrance on the beaches of Normandy, France for lives lost during the D-Day invasion.
He carves both sand and marble. His most memorable marble sculpture to date is the Police and Firefighters Memorial located next to The City Hall of Atlantic City.
As you can tell, John has the utmost respect for Veterans past and present and all Public Safety Workers who protect our freedoms each and every day. It comes out in his artwork...
You can see some of his works in stone at www.jgowdy.com
From: Latvia, European Union
Bio:Is one of very few Scandinavian Master Sand, Ice and Snow Sculptors. Born during the Soviet Union, he began sculpting at the age of 9. After years of rigorous training in the arts, he achieved a Masters Degree in Sculpture at Art Academy of Latvia in 2006.
He discovered his passion for temporary art in 2004 and began to participate in International Sand Ice and Snow Festivals all over Europe. Since then he has taken part in over 70 International Sand and Ice Sculpting Contests and Festivals all over the World: Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Russia, Germany, Belgium, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, Spain, Portugal, China, Japan, USA and Canada. As Artistic and Technical leader he has worked at numerous Sand and Ice Sculpture Festivals in Latvia, Finland, Sweden, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Norway and the Netherlands.
He travels with Sand Sculptor Sue McGrew, his girlfriend as team "SANDISSUE" and they work on many sand, ice and snow projects throughout Europe and Asia. Most recently he won awards:
From: Cleveland, OH
Titles: 2008 World Champion, 12 time Medalist, 3 time Hampton Beach Champion, 12 time Medalist, 3 time Windemere Classic Champion, 13 time Medalist, 3 time Texas Sand Fest Champion, 9 time Medalist, 2 time Sand Castle Days Champion, World Masters Champion (Italy), Canadian Open Champion, Quick Sand Champion and Seaside Oregon Champion
Website: www.artcleveland.com
Bio: Carl Jara, is a lifetime Greater Cleveland resident, who has been traveling the world of sculpting sand for the last twenty years. At 38 years old more than half his life has been spent trying to capture that perfect blend of aesthetics and engineering. From humble beginnings with his friend and mentor Tom Morrison, to twelve solo World Championship medals, he has continually strived to bring new insight into the art. Rarely beginning with a plan, his work is conceived and created on the spot. This passion has expanded in the last five years through his career as an exhibits creator at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History and as a furniture maker in his own home woodshop. He sincerely hopes you enjoy what he has to share.
“What else can I say about sand sculpture, it is real. It is an impossible feat under impossible conditions, by people with impossible talents. Made for you, right before your eyes. It's not a magic trick, or a special effect, or 3-d computer graphics, there's no internal lattice, or special additives, or mirrors. It's just sand and water, and we're just doing what we do, what we love to do. We do it for you, so you can experience it with us, not us locked away in an ivory tower of unimaginable euphoria with majestic melodies softly cooing in the background, well, ok, maybe we are, but you're here, with us, sharing our passion, our gift, our drive. Like symphony or dance, or jazz, or theater, or dinner, you are here, now, with us, and we are giving to you something you cannot imagine, that we can't explain, and that you will never forget.
By the way....
Hi...
I'm Carl...
and I make stuff”...
From: Québec, Canada
Bio: Michel is a sculptor of the ephemeral.....he has been sculpting snow from a very early age.
He has participated in several projects such as snow carving in Sapporo, Cortina, Helsinki, and especially the prestigious Quebec Winter Carnival.
Michel works with his son Mark , also a Sculptor in their business known as “Michel Lepire Sculpture Inc.”.
Their mediums are: ice and snow, fruits, vegetables and sand.
Winner of several medals in competitions such as: Harrison, Neptune Festival, South Padre Island, Hampton Beach.
He was proclaimed World Champion in 2003 at the “World Championships” at Harrison Hot Springs, BC
Michel has participated in the American Sand Sculpting Competition on Fort Myers Beach since 1999 and has been the first and second place winner numerous times and has received the People’s Choice Award many times also.
He has participated in various projects of sand sculpture in Europe, Asia and America.
He has been organizer of the International Sand Sculpture competition of Quebec for 14 years and the originator and artistic director of the project “Sands of Time” at the Quebec Expo for the city’s 400th anniversary.
From: Port Aransas, TX
Titles: 2nd place 2010 World championship with "Team USA", World “Best Hand Stacked” Champion and World “Best Architecture” Champion, 1st place Navarre Sand Sculpting Festival
Website: www.spigeek.com
Bio: Fred has been sand sculpting for ten years. In addition to his successes at the World Championships, Fred has medaled in 32 of the 60 Master-level events in which he has competed and has earned 4 People’s Choice awards and Sculptors’ Choice awards, including People’s Choice at the Holiday Inn in 2008.
Fred has been competing in Master-level sand sculpture events since 2002. Seeing a Guinness World record sand sculpture attempt in progress on the beach in South Padre Island Texas gave him the bug, and sculpting sand quickly became a passion.
Fred lives on the island town of Port Aransas in Texas doing sand sculpting jobs and enjoys several competitions a year as an artistic release in the form of a multi-day retreat from his usual job of teaching engineers to write computer programs to analyze massive amounts of data.
From: South Padre Island, TX
Website: www.amazinwalter.com
Bio: Amazin’ Walter has been creating sand sculptures for 27 years - so long, he’s lost count of the awards he’s accumulated. He has appeared at nearly every major sand competition and is a frequent winner of People’s Choice awards. He competed with his daughter, Christy, on the Travel Channel’s Sand Blasters: The Extreme Sand Sculpting Championship in 2008. They won 2nd Place at the Texas Sand Fest (Port Aransas) in April 2011. Walter just returned from Virginia Beach in early Oct. 2011 where he won 3rd place for the second year in a row at the North American Sand Sculpting Championships!
Possibly the oldest sand sculptor in captivity, Amazin’ Walter has made a reputation for himself building castles and is best known for his arches. His competition and commercial work has carried him to the far reaches of the world, China, Japan, Belgium, Holland, Mexico, Canada, the Bahamas, Costa Rica, and many places in the U.S.
Website: http://www.suemcgrew.com
Bio: Sue is from the Seattle Area in Washington State and Japanese by decent. She graduated from the University of Southern California in Los Angeles in 2008 with a BFA in Theatre- Stage Management, and a minor in sculpture. However, her first taste of Sand Sculpting was in high school, after which she found herself hopelessly addicted to the ephemeral arts and immediately continued her sculpting career after college. She has won a number of competitions since that time and continues to grow as an artist of many mediums but particularly in sand, ice, and snow.
Her early introduction to sand makes her possibly one of the youngest professional sand sculptors, currently, of the world. She has appeared on Travel Channel’s new reality TV show “Sandblaster III-The Extreme Sand Sculpting Competition” in 2008 and is now a sculptor on Travel Channel’s new reality TV show “Sand Masters”, starting this year in June.
Her most recent awards in competition are First Place Solos at Revere Beach, MA 2011, Second Place at the Canadian Open in Parksville BC 2008 and First Place at the North American Sand Sculpting Championship in Virginia Beach 2008.
From: South Padre Island, TX
Website: www.sandyfeet.com
Bio: Lucinda has won a modest amount of international fame with her sandsculpting skills, competing at major events all around the world for the past 25 years. She has taught tens of thousands of people how to build a better sand castle in lessons, workshops and team building exercises and has written three books on the subject, the latest of which - “Sandcastles Made Simple” - has lingered at the top of Amazon.com’s “sculpture” category best sellers list for almost three years. She recently released the FREE “sandyfeet” app for iPhone and iPad -- look for it on iTunes.
Her current obsession is perfecting her top-secret recipe for creating sand sculptures that last for months and possibly a good bit longer, and is seeking a welcoming environment for a sandcastletrail.com. She recently opened what may well be the first and only sandcastle academy/sculpture garden/vacation rental... check out sandboxinn.com for more info on how you can develop a close and personal relationship with sandy feet’s sandbox during your next beach vacation.
From: The Netherlands
Bio: Helena studied at the Rietveld Art Academy in Amsterdam (the Netherlands) and graduated with a major in sculpting and installation art in 1998.
The thought of using sand as a medium came when she was invited to make a sculpture for an exhibition at a retirement home for elderly seamen, which was located in a small Dutch coastal village in June 2000.
Gradually, sand sculpting has become one of her main activities. Helena designs and carves sand sculptures both commercial and more art oriented in various locations all over the world. She has added ice and snow sculpting to her activities.
She has won many Sand Sculpting and Snow and Ice Championships. Most recently:
From: Singapore
Bio: Jooheng is an internationally acclaimed Sand Sculptor who has carved a name for himself with his imagination, original creativity and unique designs. Through sheer hard work and determination to succeed that no Singaporean has ever accomplished. He has come very far. His works have been described as powerful with dynamic movement and strong themes. He has received eight Champion Titles and awards from Asia to Europe and the US, this includes the first Asian to come in as the winner of the World Championship of Sand Sculptings Tournament of Champions and Japan World Sand Sculpting Championship with the highest prize money in Sand Sculpting of all time includes 8 First Place Winnings.
Recent accomplishments:
2011
From: Hampton Beach, NH
Website: www.GregGrady.com
Bio: The art of sand sculpting has taken over Greg’s life. He couldn’t be happier being able to do what he loves and love what he does. He is a veteran of the Marine Corp (Semper Fi) and a self-taught artist who has been playing in the sand since his summers on Cape Cod as a young child. He is following in his father’s footsteps as a professional sand sculptor, creating his own path. He creates sand sculptures at events locally and around the world.
For the past 10 years, he has been working on commercial sand sculpture projects for a wide range of clients, from everything to weddings and proposals, to fairs and festivals, flower show expos, International Sculpture Exhibits, to corporate team building workshops. One of the best parts of being a sand sculptor is thatnyou never know what you'll be doing next, the possibilities are limitless and the creations are beyond imaginable. He learned the art from his father and other professionals along with digging in the sand using the trial and error method.
For the past 4 years, he has competed at the “Masters” level in professional competitions across the country. In the winter months, when he is not traveling to the warmer weather for sand, he sculpts snow and wood and carves 3- dimensional pumpkin carvings. He enjoys all forms of creativity, but is always looking forward to where his next adventure will take him that starts with a pile of sand.
For creations, lessons, quotes, or questions- Professional Sculpture, LLC
www.GREGGRADY.com facebook.com/greg.grady82
From: The Netherlands
Bio: Wilfred started sculpting sand on the beach of Katwijk , the town where he was born. After reading a book by Pieter Wiersma, his work impressed Wilfred and he received great reactions from people passing by. He later joined the Sand Sculpture Festival in Scheveningen. There he met Gerry Kirk and they began working together. Through this network he was invited to participate in many festivals and competitions. He has been traveling around the world to give people beautiful Sculptures in Sand, Snow and Ice mediums. One day Wilfred hopes to organize his own festival.
From: The Netherlands
Bio: When Edith was a young girl she hated sand in between her toes, but now she cannot live without it. She started sculpting sand through her architecture education at the Technical University. She participated in the Sand Sculpture Festival in Scheveningen as a hobby, but it got out of control very fast. She has been traveling around the world to build sand, snow, and ice sculptures for 15 years.
From: Joilet, Illinois
Bio: Brian Turnbough has been a Sand Sculptor since 2000. He made his first sculpture with Ted Siebert of the Sand Sculpture Company while attending Eastern Illinois University and studying painting and drawing. Since that time Brian has worked with the Sand Sculpture Company and created hundreds of sculptures across the globe for festivals and events. His work has been displayed in newspapers and magazines worldwide and was featured in Maxim Magazine in 2006. His work and that of his team mates has also been featured on television in the US, China, Taiwan, New Zealand, Okinawa, Qatar, England, Belgium and Canada. He was a member of Team Sandemonium with Ted Siebert on the Travel Channel's "Sandblasters." Brian has competed in sand sculpture competitions as a team member of the Sandboxers and Team Totally in Sand. Last year the Sandboxers took Third Place in the Teams Division of the World Championships in Federal Way, Washington.
Brian shares a home in Joliet, Illinois, with his wife, Brooke and their two cats. Brian is also a professional mural artist for his company, Walls With Imagination. His murals are featured in homes and businesses across the Chicago area. In 2010, Brian was commissioned to paint a portrait for Hall of Fame ice hockey player, Bobby Hull. That painting is now on display at the United Center, home of the Chicago Blackhawks, in Chicago, Illinois. He splits his time between his love for color and his love for form by sculpting and painting as often as possible.
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