Barbara Segal is a contemporary stone sculptor working in New York. In this episode of the podcast she talks about her training at the Ecole des Beaux Art, followed by training in Pietra Santa and Carrarra, and returning to New York.
In the 1980s Barbara started producing sculptures that referenced clothing from her mothers wardrobe, using inlaying and lamination to create the designs on the fabrics that inspired her.
Most currently she is working on a body of work that brings together Italian church architecture into the forms of handbags which have become contemporary objects of worship..
Her work questions the new icons for the current age that have become objects of devotion and worship, namely the Hermes Birkin bag. Many of her pieces appear like the handbag but fused with the energy and designs of the architecture of the renaissance, using stacked stone, and carved architectural detail. Where once, success meant donating to the church or having an alter named after the family, Barbara's work comments on consumerism and status symbols in the 21st century.
You can see images of her work on her instagram page @barbarasegal
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Website The Curator's Salon