Therman Statom b. 1953
Born in Winter Haven, Florida in 1953, American studio glass artist Therman Statom grew up in Washington, DC, where he developed an early interest in art, influenced by his friendship with Cady Noland, the daughter of abstract painter Kenneth Noland. He began studying glass as an art medium at Pilchuck Glass School in Stanwood, Washington in 1971 and later pursued sculpture at the Rhode Island School of Design, earning a bachelor's degree there in 1974 and a master's degree from the Pratt Institute School of Art and Design in Brooklyn in 1978.
Statom is known for creating three-dimensional sculptures primarily using sheet glass. He cuts, paints, and assembles glass, often adding found objects to his works. Many of his sculptures are large-scale and he is noted for his site-specific installations that overwhelm viewers with their size. Statom's environmental works also incorporate sound and projected digital imagery. He has been commissioned for public art projects in Los Angeles, San Jose, Las Vegas, Scottsdale, New York City, and elsewhere.
Over the last twenty-five years, glass works by Statom have been exhibited domestically and abroad. Recent solo shows have taken place at the Lowe Museum of the University of Miami, the Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk, Virginia, and the Toledo Museum of Art in Ohio. In addition to earning accolades for his art, including a Distinguished Artist Award from the James Renwick Alliance in 2006 and an Outstanding Achievement Award from UrbanGlass in 2008, Statom was named a United States Artists Fellow in 2015. Glass examples by Statom are now held at the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Corning Museum of Glass in New York, and other notable institutions.
