Today we’d like to introduce you to Alexis Gregg.
Alexis, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I’ve been teaching Art at Wesleyan College 11 years. Over the past three years I’ve also served as the Executive Director of the Wesleyan College Leadership Lab, a downtown art and events space. In this role I’ve helped to connect our campus to the greater community and produced exhibitions, workshops, lecture series, and conferences in collaboration with community partners. Recently, I worked closely with Macon Magazine to produce the inaugural Macon Fashion Week and last year I worked with Macon Black Tech and Microsoft to produce AI and the Art of Possibility. In addition to these roles I am co-owner of AnT Sculpture and Design with my husband, Tanner Coleman. Together we create large scale public art installations and specialize in works that are playable and interactive. We often use brick, architectural tile, and concrete as our mediums. We started working together after meeting at the University of Georgia in 2005 and our first true collaborative project was my MFA thesis in 2010. Since then we have traveled the world making public art installations and continue to collaborate in art and life.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I’ve had a winding journey and I am thankful to have a collaborative partner (Tanner) through most of my experiences. After graduate school we pieced together teaching opportunities and residencies that kept us on the move for about 6 years. At times we moved every three months and sometimes we stayed put for a year. It was an exciting time when we had few responsibilities (no kids) which allowed us to be very mobile and live simply. We had food stamps and used the local food pantry during one residency and are thankful for that temporary assistance while we were building our work and portfolio.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
We specialize in playable public art often using carved brick. The process is incredibly physically demanding and requires the collaboration of many stakeholders. The playability and interactivity of our work is quite unique. We want people to interact with our work, touch, feel, climb, sit, slide. The idea that our pieces can become a part of a community and something appreciated for generations is our goal. I am especially interested in monuments, memorials and creating collaborative ceramic murals with communities. We’ve had the privilege of creating public artworks all over the world that will outlast our lifetime, which is a special thing.
Any big plans?
I’d like to get back into ambitious public art projects now that our kids are a little older and I can put more time into art making. I also enjoy producing programming for my community that supports other artists and creatives through my work at Wesleyan College and the Leadership Lab. Macon is a unique place that embraces those who care for others and are willing to collaborate. I feel lucky to live in Macon and to work at a place like Wesleyan.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.antsculpture.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/okieinez
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alexis.gregg.436082
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexis-gregg-34b09a32/
Image Credits
Christopher Ian Smith
