While an art student in the 1970’s, Terrence Karpowicz was influenced by the theories and practices of Minimalism and Conceptualism which dominated contemporary art at the time.
In 1975, he was awarded a scholarship to the United Kingdom to serve as apprentice to the sole millwright for the government’s Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings. There, he learned the ancient techniques and craftsmanship of watermill and windmill construction and preservation. These experiences influenced Karpowicz’s aesthetic, rooted in craftsmanship while being informed by the sublime nature of minimal forms and the layering of history and ideas.
Terrence Karpowicz continues to practice the craft of wood-working and joinery and is especially drawn to the interactions of wind, water, sunlight, and gravity on natural materials. The ways in which disparate materials interact with each other define the artist’s life and his relationship with the world. Oak and granite nesting in congruent harmony, stainless steel orbs spinning within walnut ellipses, granite shards twisting against armatures of steel – these elements are held together through his commitment to materials, history and craftsmanship.
