Monroe Isenberg
January 5-28, 2018
Lighthouse
Every so often, I happen upon a fleeting poetic moment. A moment that is clear yet inexplicable. In this moment, I experience a contemplative state, which drives my will to create. I intuit questions and answers to problems that arise through the act of making. My work reflects this ontology and investigates natural and man-made states of being.
Materials have their own essence and history, which I use to bring form to the poetic moment that inspired me. I seek to create places for contemplation, questioning, and if only for an instant, a state of immersion. My practice involves repetition, large-scale constructions, and technology to create minimal and abstract forms, installations, and experiences that reframe space and invite investigation.
Monroe Isenberg is originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He completed his undergraduate studies, Cum Laude and with honors, in Sculpture and Psychology at Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon (2013). There, he experimented with wood and metal working and developed an abstract, minimalist aesthetic. After working as an artist and fabricator in Portland, he moved to Washington, D.C to pursue an MFA. Currently, he teaches and works as a graduate assistant at the University of Maryland in College Park, MD. Monroe is the recipient of multiple awards, grants, and residencies including the prestigious International Outstanding Student Achievement Award recognized by International Sculpture Center, Ann Bartsch Dunne Scholarship 1st place Award in sculpture, the Dean’s Fellowship at the University of Maryland, and the Tom Rooney Prize awarded by the Washington Sculptors Group. Created from wood and steel, his sculptures and installations engage balance and tension and examine the relationship between industry, culture, and the poetics of nature. Monroe’s work is held in multiple private collections and has exhibited across the United States. His work can currently be seen publicly at Franconia Sculpture Park in Minnesota.
