Bobby Zokaites MRSS

I am a sculptor who engages my imagination through the creation of large-scale, colorful, interactive objects and spaces. My work is intended to stimulate audience interaction – it’s meant to be touched, climbed on and played with. Enthusiastic about the idea of ‘play’, I investigate themes of adventure and childhood, while utilizing fabrication and assembly methods inspired by industrial processes. This combination of play and industry creates distinctive works of art that activate the surrounding industrial environment and encourage audience participation. The audience is invited to see, hear, and play with the installations of physical and electronic sound-producing elements, which blur the lines between artist, performer, and viewer. The magic really happens when children start to show their parents how to interact with the space.

In recent years I’ve been able to produce artwork for public spaces across the United States. Each project helps me to strengthen my skill-set and expand the visual vocabulary that I draw from, to connect with my audience. Public projects are an opportunity to present my work in public spheres where more than just the arts and gallery-going community will experience it. These opportunities break the boundaries of typical exhibition settings, allowing the work to focus on engagement ultimately creating a dynamic relationship between the public, me, my work, and the site. 

My work stems from the challenge and spectacle of creating large scale sculptures, requiring the teamwork that is romanticized in frontier living. I have found that the physical qualities of the creation of art and participation in the art experience can help solidify a community. This realization comes from a romanticization of the past and the hope that the future will have a physical and human quality about it.