Yumpu_Catalogue_Peacemaking

She is a founder of Philadelphia Sculptors, the
Philadelphia - based organization of professional
sculptors, and has served as its president
since its inception in 1996. She founded the
Burlington County College Sculpture Garden in
Pemberton, NJ, and directed it for 20 years.
“Ongoing traumas and tragedies are taking
place throughout the world, causing people to
be uprooted, marginalized, expelled, starved
and otherwise treated in the most inhumane
ways.
Leslie Kaufman
Leslie Kaufman lives in Philadelphia and has
been active in the arts for over 40 years. She
has exhibited her sculpture in numerous local,
regional, and international shows including a
one-person show at Shippensburg University
(Shippensburg, PA) and a two-person show at
Highwire Gallery (Philadelphia). Other venues
where she has exhibited her work include
Budapest Gallery (Budapest, Hungary) and
Washington Square (Washington, DC), among
others.
Her work has ranged from carved stone and
wood to ceramic sculpture to mixed-media
constructions. She has participated in numerous
collaborative, alternative, and public art
projects, including the “Artfronts Partnership,”
the Main Line Art Center’s “Kites: Art Takes
Flight” and Philadelphia Sculptors’ “Cart Art,”
“Chairs in the Air,” and “A Case for Art.”
I created the Safe Haven series as a response
to this upheaval. I am interested in the
possibilities for escape and new life, even as I
acknowledge the complexities of transitioning
from one place to another. In this series of
sculptures, I chose to repurpose some objects
so that their new identities reflect the
process of bringing to light something that
wasn’t visible before.
Understanding those who are different from
us involves changing our focus from what is
different to what is similar. If we are allowed
the freedom to develop our lives in an
environment not bombarded by hostilities,
life and creativity can return to replace
emptiness and despair.”
Leslie Kaufman | April 2018
Safe Haven: Root
Wood, cardboard, plaster, fabric, mixed
33 x 48 x 33 cm | 2018
lesliekaufman.artspan.com