With its proximity to the cultural hub of New York City and its quieter suburban and rural landscapes, Connecticut was fertile ground for artists and writers in the period of Modernist movements between 1913 and 1979. Many of these cultural figures are well known through biographical and critical studies. Creative Places seeks to show how place played a significant role in creative work, and how in turn the artists and writers influenced communities in Connecticut.
David Hayes
Sculpture
1931 – 2013
Nationally known abstract sculptor whose former home and studio abound with his sculptures. The David Hayes Foundation hopes to eventually open the property for the study of the artist’s work.
- Biography/Description of Work
Native of Hartford who grew up in Manchester. After studying at Notre Dame and Indiana Universities, particularly with sculptor David Smith, he served in the Navy in the mid-1950s. He spent some time in France on a Guggenheim Fellowship, during which he met Alexander Calder, and then settled in Coventry. Working in large-scale welded steel, Hayes, who lived and worked here for more than 40 years, found the rural environment conducive to creativity, and derived sources of imagery from the landscape and surroundings. In Connecticut, his work can be seen at Hartford Public Library, Goodwin College in East Hartford, University of Connecticut in Storrs, Housatonic Museum of Art in Bridgeport, Albertus Magnus, Manchester Community College, University of Hartford in West Hartford, UConn Health Center in Farmington, Westminster School in Simsbury and University of New Haven in West Haven. A sculpture garden on the grounds of the Governor’s Mansion in Hartford, which focuses entirely on Connecticut artists, has a Hayes sculpture.
- Sources view
- [ http://www.davidhayes.com/ ] [ http://www.davidhayes.com/oldsite/field_stroll_01.htm ]
- Associated Resource(s)