Biography

Andi Steele’s sculpture career began with a BFA in graphic design from the University of South Carolina (1994). The discovery of papermaking during her last year at USC led her to Penland School of Crafts, where she studied blacksmithing and papermaking. She lived and worked at Penland for six years, two as part of the Core Student Fellowship Program (98-99).

At Penland, Andi developed an appreciation for craftsmanship and making by hand; an understanding she applied to her MFA studies in sculpture at the University of Georgia (2004). At UGA, Andi shifted her focus from object making to installation work. Much of her work at Penland was figurative based and as she progressed through school, she began designing work where the viewer became the active figure.

This concept, combined with investigation of new materials, in particular monofilament, has evolved into her current series of work.The materials and processes have changed but Andi holds to the ideas that craftsmanship and touching the work are important. She designs, fabricates, and travels to install all of her work.

Andi exhibits her site-specific installations and large-scale sculptures nationally. She lives in Wilmington, North Carolina where she is an associate professor of sculpture at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

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