Join Liza Roberts as she talks about the Art of the State of North Carolina with Internationally renowned artist and sculptor of nature, Patrick Dougherty.

Patricks work can currently be seen at the Sandhills Horticutural Gardens and across the world. Liza Roberts is a journalist and founder of Walter Magazine. She lives in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Liza has recently published The Art of The State, an unparalleled book that features visual artists from across North Carolina, including Patrick.

The Art of The State is a beautiful and informative volume illustrates the vitality and importance of North Carolina's contemporary art scene, showcasing the creation, collection, and celebration of art in all its richness and diversity. Featuring profiles of individual artists, compelling interviews, and beautiful full-color photography, this book tells the story of the state's evolution through the lens of its art world and some of its most compelling figures. Liza Roberts introduces readers to painters, photographers, sculptors, and other artists who live and work in North Carolina and who contribute to its growing reputation in the visual arts. Roberts also provides fascinating historical context, such as the influence of Black Mountain College, the birth and growth of Penland School of Crafts, and short histories of North Carolina's art museums, including Charlotte's Mint Museum, Raleigh's North Carolina Museum of Art, Winston-Salem's Reynolda House, and those flourishing at universities. Artists featured include Stephen Hayes, Mel Chin, Cristina Cordova, Beverly McIver, and Scott Avett. The result is the most comprehensive, informative, and visually rich story of contemporary art in North Carolina.

Patrick Dougherty was born in Oklahoma but grew up in Southern Pines, where he roamed the woods as a child. In the early 1980’s his love of nature, his evolving knowledge of primitive building techniques, and his carpentry skills combined to create a unique artistic form—he began to build sculptures using tree saplings as his material.

In 1982, his first work, Maple Body Wrap, was included in the NC Biennial Artists’ Exhibition, sponsored by the NC Museum of Art. The next year, he held his first one-person show, Waitin’ It Out in Maple, at the Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art in Winston-Salem. These early single pieces were conventional, pedestal-mounted works, but his vision quickly evolved into monumental-scale environmental works. These required saplings by the truckload.

Over the last thirty years, he has completed over 300 temporary, sight-specific works. He has achieved international acclaim, and his art can be seen across the United States and worldwide—from Japan to Brussels. Locally, his work is featured at the Cape Fear Botanical Gardens in Fayetteville, the NC Museum of Life and Science in Durham, and the Sara P. Duke Gardens at Duke University.

Mr. Dougherty resides in Chapel Hill. He holds a BA in English from UNC Chapel Hill and an MA in Hospital and Health Administration from the University of Iowa. He also engaged in post-graduate work at the UNC Chapel Hill Art Department. He is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship and a grant from the Pollock-Krasner Foundation in New York.

He is the author of Stickwork, an artist’s monograph published by Princeton Architectural Press in 2009, and his work and career are featured in books published in France, Italy, and Germany. Over sixty periodical articles featuring his sculptures have appeared in American publications ranging from local newspapers to national-circulation magazines. The Sandhills Horticultural Society is delighted that he has agreed to add, on its grounds, an example of his impressive and unique environmental art. 

His work can be enjoyed on the website: www.stickwork.net