Biography
Bill FitzGibbons received his BFA in Sculpture and Art History from the University of Tennessee, and his MFA in Sculpture and Multi-Media from Washington University in St. Louis. Bill has received over thirty public art commissions in five countries. In 1979 he became the first curator at Laumeier Sculpture Park in St. Louis, Missouri. From 1985 until 1988 he was appointed as the Director of Sculpture at the Visual Art Center in Anchorage, Alaska. In 1988 he became the Department Head of Sculpture at the San Antonio Art Institute. In 1991 he was selected as a Fulbright Scholar for the Hungarian Art Academy in Budapest, Hungary. Bill has served on the adjunct faculty at Trinity University in San Antonio and has been the Executive Director of the Blue Star Contemporary Art Center since the summer of 2002. Currently Bill serves on the board of directors of the International Sculpture Center.
C.V.
PUBLIC ART COMMISSIONS / DESIGN TEAMS (SELECTED)
-
2006
Light Channels
, Site-specific public art project consisting of aluminum sculptures and hundreds of LED lights installed at the I-37 underpasses at Houston and Commerce Streets
, San Antonio, Texas
-
2005-2008
Woodlawn Avenue bus Stops
, Design Team with Pape-Dawson Engineers, streets and drainage project for the city of San Antonio
, San Antonio, Texas
-
2003-2005
Skywall
, 60’ long sculpture with LED lights located at the Bush Intercontinental Airport
, Houston, Texas
-
2001
Heritage Park Duck Pond Plaza
, Design Team with Groves and Associates, redesign of a neighborhood park with public art for the city of San Antonio
, San Antonio, Texas
-
2000
Millennium Plaza
, a site-specific sculpture for the University of Houston
, Victoria, Texas
-
1999
Day Star Archway
, a 40’ tall archway and walkway at the San Antonio International Airport
, San Antonio, Texas
-
1996
Rhode Island Lights
, exterior neon sculpture for the Rhode Island Convention Center
, Providence, Rhode Island
-
1996-1997
Design Team Participant
, San Antonio Airport Expansion Project — Parking Garage
, San Antonio, Texas
-
1995
The Epiphany of Five Rivers
, commissioned by the River Pierce Foundation, located on the banks of the Rio Grande
, San Ygnacio, Texas
-
1994
Olaf
, commissioned by the Hampshire Sculpture Trust to commemorate the millennium of the Viking visits
, Hampshire County, England
-
1992
Homage to Balder
, commissioned by the Millesgarden Museum and Sculpture Garden to celebrate Swedish mythology
, Stockholm, Sweden
-
1991
Literary Garden
, chosen for the Main Library (funding was not realized)
, Gainesville, Florida
-
1990
Lemon Creek Plaza
, Lemon Creek Correctional Facility, Juneau, Alaska, 1% commission
, State of Alaska
-
1988
North Star Plaza
, an environmental sculpture for the Fairbanks Youth Facility
, Fairbanks, Alaska
-
1988
Fifth Ave. Reflections
, an interior and exterior neon sculpture for the 5 th Ave. parking facility
, Anchorage, Alaska
-
1987
Solar Path
, an environmental sculpture for Spring Hill Elementary School, 1% commission
, Anchorage, Alaska
APPOINTMENTS, BOARDS, AND GRANTS
-
2006
International Sculpture Center
, Member of Board of Trustees
-
1999-2000
Blue Star Contemporary Art Center
, President, Board of Directors
, San Antonio, Texas
-
1996-2000
Adjunct Faculty
, Trinity University
, San Antonio, Texas
-
1995
Visiting Artist
, Rhode Island School of Design
, Providence, Rhode Island
-
1993
Fulbright Scholar
, Hungarian Academy of Art and Design
, Budapest, Hungary
-
1991
USIA
, Artist Fellowship
, Helsinki, Finland
-
1988
Associate Professor
, Head of Sculpture Department
, San Antonio Art Institute
, San Antonio, Texas
-
1985
Director of Sculpture
, Visual Arts Center of Alaska
, Anchorage, Alaska
EXHIBITIONS (SELECTED)
-
2007
Shattered Glass : New Perspectives
, Katonah Museum of Art
, Katonah, New York
-
2006
Eellight
, The Lab Gallery
, New York City, New York
-
2000
Earth and Fire
, an exhibition of ceramic sculpture
, San Antonio Museum of Art
, San Antonio, Texas
-
1996
Northern Lights
, Fruitmarket Gallery
, Edinburgh, Scotland
-
1993
Carrington-Gallagher Gallery
, San Antonio, Texas
-
1993
Jansen-Perez Gallery
, San Antonio, Texas
-
1993
Out of the Fire
, Laredo Arts Center
, Laredo, Texas
-
1991
Mystery of Mother Earth and Her Relationship to the Virgin of Guadalupe
, Blue Star Art Space
, San Antonio, Texas
-
1991
Hochsule fur Bildende Kunste
, Brunschweig, Germany
-
1991
Pyro-Sculpture for Finland
, Otso Gallery
, Helsinki, Finland
-
1988
Searching for the Balance
, Anchorage Museum of History and Art
, Anchorage, Alaska
-
1987
Alaska Sense
, Alaska State Museum
, Juneau, Alaska
-
1983
Light Motifs
, St. Louis Art Museum
, St. Louis, Missouri
-
1982
Pratt Manhattan Gallery
, New York City, New York
-
1981
City Museum
, Stoke-on-Trent, England
-
1980
Electrosculpture
, Midland Art Centre
, Birmingham, England
PUBLIC ART LECTURES
-
2007
'Art in the Public Realm'
, Mid South Sculpture Alliance
, Chattanooga, Tennessee
-
2005
Leading the Charge
, national annual conference
, Americans for the Arts
, Austin, Texas
-
1997
"Beyond Site-Specific Sculpture"
, panel chair (participants were Robert Hobbs, Chris Janney, Richard Hunt)
, Mid America College Association Conference
, Richmond, Virginia
-
1996
"Public Art in the United States"
, Trinity University
, San Antonio, Texas
-
1995
Rhode Island School of Design
, Providence, Rhode Island
-
1994
Winchester School of Art
, Winchester, England
-
1994
"The Artist as Urban Designer"
, Art Point
, Milton Keynes, England
-
1993
"Central European Public Sculpture Conference"
, Magyar Iparmuveszet
, Budapest, Hungary
-
1992
"Spirituality in Sculpture"
, panel
, International Sculpture Conference
, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
-
1991
Kornbrennerei Artist's Space
, Hanover, Germany
-
1991
Art Academy of Braunschweig
, Braunschweig, Germany
-
1991
Art Academy of Finland
, Helsinki, Finland
-
1991
"Public Art in a Multi-Cultural Society: On Common Ground"
, Santa Fe Arts Commission
, Santa Fe, New Mexico
-
1990
Virginia Commonwealth University
, Richmond, Virginia
-
1988
"Public Sculpture Dialogue"
, with sculptor Nancy Holt
, Mid South Sculpture Conference
, Little Rock, Arkansas
-
1988
Alaska and its Effect on Environmental Sculpture
, International Conference on Sculpture
, Dublin, Ireland
-
1986
"Art in Public Places — A Public Forum"
, Anchorage Museum of History and Art
, Anchorage, Alaska
-
1986
"Sky Art Sculpture Conference"
, The Center for Advanced Visual Studies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
, Cambridge, Massachusetts
-
1984
"Art in the Environment Conference"
, Edinburgh College of Art
, Edinburgh, Scotland
-
1983
"Public Art for the Eighties"
, St. Louis Art Museum
, St. Louis, Missouri
-
1983
"Environmental Sculpture Panel"
, Mid America Art Conference
, St. Louis, Missouri
-
1981
Sunderland Art School
, Sunderland, England
-
1981
"Public Art in the US"
, Richard Demarco Gallery
, Edinburgh, Scotland