Luke Heimbigner
Instagram: @pillararts
Website: https://pillararts.com
Bio: Luke Heimbigner makes sculptures of metal, concrete, found objects and other materials. The constructions are cast or fabricated using the forms of forgotten and discarded items to create something unseen. He was born in 1982 in Bozeman Montana. His grandfather may have hoped to make Luke an engineer by bringing Luke old lawnmower engines to take apart and rebuild; instead, it was Luke’s artistic imagination that was sparked by the functional beauty of those machines. In 2006 he graduated from The University of Montana with a BFA. Shortly
after he moved to Oakland California and began a career in the foundry world as a metal chaser at Artworks foundry in Berkeley. Luke was a captain on the foundry pouring crew and helped with mold making as well. At Artworks he met Steven De Staebler and worked closely with him creating some of his last bronze sculptures. In 2015 he left the foundry to pursue his personal work. In 2019 he became the metal/fabricator at Scientific Art Studio in Richmond creating engaging artistic creations. After they closed in 2024 Luke pursued independent work, then again joined Artworks Foundry as well as doing fabrication work for Workshop 29 in Alameda.
Statement: Collecting has always been a part of my life. This began with toys, baseball cards and music and evolved into the materials for my sculptures. The idea of reusing or repurposing an object that is overlooked or discarded interests me. The feeling of discovering something unseen ignites my creative process and propels my artwork. Therefore I scavenge, always on the lookout for materials, objects, or parts. Loosely based in architecture and the natural world, I try to mimic what I see, constructing invented objects and structures using the collection of materials found or fabricated.
