Spotlight Interview with Daniel Borup, nationally recognized Sculptor from Idaho

Today we sat down with Daniel Borup, a Nationally Recognized Sculptor from Idaho. Daniel’s passion for art only grew when he went to college. This is where Daniel was introduced to figure sculpting.

He instantly fell in love with sculpting and hasn’t put down his sculpting tools since. Years of work and development has awarded Daniel with honors and awards as well as the honor of creating public art sculptures for various locations throughout the country.

At Workshop SLC we are big fans of his work and we’re so honored to announce that he will be teaching his first workshop here in May! 

Daniel — First, thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us today! We are so excited about the opportunity for our readers to get to know more about you and your process. 

To start, tell us about your earliest memory of doing something creative. What was it? What was it like? How did it motivate you to keep creating?

I come from a very artistic and creative family so really many of my earliest memories were of me doing something creative. My mother always loved to tell me that when I was a small child the first words out of my mouth in the mornings were “What should I draw today?” I remember in first grade my teacher let us draw a self portrait on our birthday. We would lay down on a large sheet of paper and she would trace us, then we could color it however we wanted. On most kids' birthdays the portrait would be done pretty quickly but on my birthday, I spent the entire day coloring in my portrait. My teacher didn’t know what to do with me so she just let me keep going all day long. One of the best birthday gifts ever.

One of my first sculpting memories was when I was a young boy in a Sunday school class. I had found a ball of gray modeling clay and during class I sculpted a nose and secretly stuck it to the trash can in the room. Later that week my mom came home after cleaning the church. She marched up to me with the clay nose in her hand and said “You did this didn’t you?” Yes! Yes I did… We kept the nose and till this day it is still stuck to the wall in my old bedroom at my parents house.

After reading your bio, it seems like there are a lot of artists in your family! What role did they play in influencing your career? Are they sculptors as well?

Yes, all of my siblings are talented artists but only a couple of us decided to do fine art as a career. I was always encouraged by my siblings and especially my parents to develop my artistic abilities. My mom was always good about providing me with any art supplies I needed and making sure I took as many art classes as I could. Although my siblings are all artists I’m the only one who really has done much sculpting. But really drawing skills are strongly related to sculpting so the transition feels natural

Who are some creatives outside of your family who inspired you throughout your career? Why did they inspire you?

One of my biggest inspirations is my high school pottery teacher Jerry Hendershot. It can often be easy for art teachers to spend their time teaching and forget to reserve time for creating. Mr. Hendershot however taught me by creating. He was always showing us new things he was creating, and learning, and experimenting with. Till this day he is still inspiring me by the things he creates, and that is what really made him such a great teacher and inspiration to me.

There are so many different art mediums to explore! Did you always have an interest in sculpture? What attracted you to the medium?

I have loved every art medium I have ever tried. I just love to create. Dabbled in sculpting in my high school pottery class but I wasn’t really introduced to sculpture until I went to college, and I fell in love with it. Specifically, fell in love with representational clay sculpting. As an artist it can be hard to settle on just one medium, I chose sculpture because it is the one medium that helps me feel a deep sense of purpose as I do it. When I am sculpting I always feel like I am doing exactly what I am supposed to be doing. However, I am a firm believer in experimentation and well roundedness. I spend a lot of my creative time drawing and painting and trying new things. I believe that this helps me in my sculpting.

What are some of the challenges of sculpture?

One of the biggest challenges of sculpture is getting your mind to think three dimensionally. Most art education focuses on two dimensional drawing and it can be hard for beginning sculptors to not create flat sculptures. Like making the face too flat for example.  This is one of the reasons why relief sculpting is such a good segue from drawing into sculpting. It is a way to begin to think about our two dimensional work three dimensionally. It really makes you think about which direction surfaces are facing, and what is overlapping what.

What are some of the rewards of sculpture?

One of the great things about sculpture is that you are making an actual object. Much of what artists do is to create an illusion of an object on a 2 dimensional surface. But with sculpture much of the illusion is gone, and the object is actually there. You can hold it and touch it and experience it in a way you can’t with 2 dimensional art.

How do you overcome creative blocks?

I’m not a super big believer in creative blocks. I am a believer in doing creative work even when you don’t have any great ideas. Creative blocks usually come in the form of statements like “I just don’t know what to draw!” or “I don’t have any ideas”. And we think we can’t make any marks until we have a great idea. The truth is that Ideas come when you are busy doing the work. If you think you have a creative block then pick up a pencil and start drawing. Grab a ball of clay and start sculpting. What do you draw or sculpt? It doesn’t matter! Draw whatever is in front of you, draw squiggles, make those squiggles into a monster. Squish the clay around and try to find a figure in it. The ideas will come as long as you are willing to do the work even when you don’t have any ideas. Artists who know this don’t ever feel like they have creative blocks. In fact they have the opposite problem. We end up with so many ideas that we will never have the time to do them all. It then becomes a matter of choosing the best ideas.

Where do you find your inspiration?

I find my inspiration from the people around me, oftentimes my family and students. I am inspired by beauty and as I focus on making more beauty in the world with my art the more beauty I can see. I always strive to create uplifting artwork that inspires others. There is already enough negativity in this world. I hope to counteract that with my art.

What are some of the most challenging subjects to sculpt? What are some of your favorite subjects?

To me the most challenging as well as my favorite subject is the human figure. I love to sculpt the human figure because I feel like I could spend my entire life learning and never come close to knowing all there is to know. It is a rewarding challenge that I don’t think I will ever get tired of.

What advice would you give our readers on how to get started in sculpture?

This is a question I get a lot. And depending on the context will often give different answers. Here are a few of them:

First, Get yourself some clay and try to sculpt something. Any clay will do. I have different clay preferences for my professional work but when you are getting started there is nothing wrong with just going to the dollar store and buying some cheap modeling clay, or making some homemade salt dough. The important thing is that you get started. You can use a wire hanger for an armature and a scrap of wood for a base. Just get started.

Second, Find someone to learn from. Taking my upcoming workshop is a great way. In the workshop I will help guide you to get started in sculpture and answer your questions, I am always happy to keep in touch with my students and sometimes they will contact me years later with questions. If you can’t make the workshop this time around there will always be more. I even offer a free sculpting basics course on BeCreativeCourses.com. In person workshops are by far the best but online resources are pretty good as well.

Third, is to draw. Drawing is the basis of all art. If you can learn to draw well, other art forms, including sculpture will come much quicker. Imagine sculpture being like doing a drawing from 360 different angels. Drawing teaches you how to see, and your eye is your most valuable tool as you sculpt.

I absolutely loved what you said in your artist statement, "I know a sculpture is done when it has a life of it’s own, when I can feel it’s presence sitting in my studio." Tell us more about what this means to you?

This is something I strive for in all of my sculptures. Sculpture really can take on a life of its own and I believe it is partly due to the artist giving of their life and putting it into the sculpture. It is possible to sculpt an accurate representation but have it still feel lifeless. To give a sculpture life is no small task. This is where the magic of art comes in. Although I don’t completely understand how it works I do know that it is possible to get better at doing it. The more I sculpt the more I can see when this life is starting to form and what I can do to nurture it in my work.

Who are some of your favorite artists/sculptors you feel create beautiful, emotional work?

There are so many really great sculptors it’s hard to pick, However one that comes to mind off the top of my head is Frederick Hart. He was an American sculptor with such beautiful and expressive figures. The first time I saw his work was when I visited the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C. in my early teens. The entire memorial is exquisite and a breathtaking experience, but I remember being in awe of the skillfully sculpted bronze soldiers. Later on I learned who the artist was and I love all of his work. His Creation Sculptures at Washington National Cathedral are absolutely beautiful.

You have some gorgeous work! What are some of your favorite pieces? Why are they your favorites?

Thank you! I honestly have a hard time choosing a favorite or even favorites. I just love to create. My standard answer to the  “What is your favorite sculpture?” question, is that my next sculpture I create will be my favorite. I love to have and see the finished sculptures but really it is the process of creating that keeps me doing it. Every work I create I am hoping to make it better than the last so I guess what I said is true. My next piece is my favorite.

What can we expect to see from you in the future?

I have a few public art pieces in the works right now. One for a Library in Eaton Colorado, one for a roundabout in Hillsborough County, Florida, and another of Laurel and Hardy for Harlem, Georgia. Hopefully you will see all those come to fruition in the next few years among others. I will also be creating smaller studio pieces. I have lots of ideas that I need to narrow down. I also have many online sculpting courses planned and are in production currently.

Are there any artists that you love that you would like to share with our readers?

Leroy Transfield is one of my favorite living sculptors and his studio is actually just down the highway in Orem, Utah. He is a perfect example of a sculptor who breathes life into everything he sculpts. Not only is he a great sculptor but also a great person.

Daniel will be teaching a workshop with us on May 21 and 22, click here to sign up!