Featured Artist John Gibbs

Mixed media artist and sculptor John Gibbs works with an unusual material—cardboard. Enjoy his amazingly creative portfolio and visit his website to see more.

 

 

Originally from the Detroit, Michigan area, I live and work in Greensboro, North Carolina by way of Chicago, Illinois and Lancaster, Pennsylvania. I studied sculpture and scientific illustration at the University of Michigan.

 

 

During my career in the arts, I worked at bronze foundries. At one, I served as artist-in-residence. I also was a welder and fabricator for public art sculptures. In the graphics industry, I was employed as a production artist and art director.

 

 

Along the way, I painted and showed my work in galleries. In 2007, I was a featured artist in New American Paintings magazine.

 

 

For the past few years, I’ve been a stay-at-home dad working mostly on painting commissions and personal paintings for sale. During the pandemic, I started making fun things out of cardboard boxes for my son. I made him pirate ships, space ships, and submarines. It gave me the idea of making sculptures with cardboard. I’ve always loved creating 3D artworks and it was a way for me to produce them in my home studio.

 

 

One of my first sculptures was a knight chess piece. I thought it was a great way to combine my interests in sculptures, animals, and chess. I started playing chess online during the pandemic. Then I created two knights, a white and black one in slightly different styles in preparation for an artist-in-residency at Greenhill Center for North Carolina Art.

 

 

During my residency, I began a polar bear relief sculpture. Working with recycled materials invites conversations about the environment and our impact on it. So the polar bear seemed like an obvious choice.

 

 

I’m currently producing a series of endangered and vulnerable species including a lion, an African Forest Elephant, and a Blue whale. Though creating with cardboard is not limited to endangered species, it makes a excellent medium for all kinds of work.

 

 

In creating the sculptures I use cardboard as an armature and build off of it. That makes for a mostly hollow and lightweight sculpture. The pieces are stuck together with a hot glue gun that creates a strong and flexible bond. One of the advantages of cardboard is its flexibility. I’ve occasionally dropped a piece while working on it without damage.

 

 

Once I’ve finished building the sculpture, it is sealed with acrylic paint. This creates a water and moisture resistant barrier to preserve the cardboard. Some pieces are spray painted to add color. My goal is to start creating larger commissioned works for indoor public and private spaces. The lightweight and strong construction of cardboard sculpture make it an excellent material for permanent or temporary display that sparks interest and conversation.

 

John Gibbs invites you to follow on Instagram, Threads and Bluesky.

 

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