Sam Finkelstein (b. 1992, New York) (they/them) lives and works in Rockland, ME. Sam bought their first hammer and chisel on the way up to visit a friend in Thomaston four years ago and has been here carving rocks ever since. This past summer Sam had the opportunity to attend the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, where they were engaged in conversations around regenerative models for community, witnessing vs. acting, the power of ceremony, and interdisciplinary methods of looking amongst other things. Sam’s budding interest in performance and public art is motivating new explorations in sculpting sound and circus.
"The forms I create are another lifecycle in the sequence of boulders birthed by mountains, and mountains birthed by the primordial magma flowing beneath the Earth’s crust. My use of industrial tools allows me to embody natural geologic processes of transformation at an expedited rate. Wind is channeled through compressed air, water and grit mimic the fluid abrasion that polishes river beds and stones on a shoreline. My work considers the weight of what we decide to memorialize and the illusion of permanence, while also embracing the humorous and futile activity of banging against a rock in search of answers."