ARTIST'S STATEMENT

"I have been working on a series of sculptures using carved, assembled and often painted 'found' wood along with other 'found' materials and objects. Much of this work has grown out of my love of the outdoors, my interest in folk art, which I have admired, studied, and collected for years and, of course, my compulsion as an artist to express my experiences, observations, interests and convictions visually and usually with a sense of humor.

"This work is based loosely on the human figure and the condition of man. These pieces for me, and hopefully for the viewer, often constitute a rather humorous, yet serious, view and comment on this subject. 'Off Balance' is specifically about the human condition and entropy, stasis, balance or the lack of these attributes. The materials were provided by ice storms and collected mostly from walks taken on my property in southwestern Orange County, North Carolina."

Blue Greenberg, Art Critic for The Herald-Sun, writes, "Noe's images are delightful even as we become aware of his underlying message. He mixes borrowed folk art ideas of whittling and paint with sophisticated sculpting to show us his series of individual figures in their balancing acts. These are not circus performers but 'Everyman' and his daily fight for existence."

A native of Kentucky, Jerry Noe graduated from the University of Kentucky and after a two-year tour as an Infantry Officer, went on to receive an MFA from the Art Institute of Chicago. His work has been exhibited in over 12 solo shows and 100 group shows in New York, Chicago, Washington, D.C. and throughout the United States. It is included in collections in the U.S., Canada, British Columbia and Hong Kong. Noe has received two prestigious National Endowment for the Arts awards and many other major grants and awards. He has been featured in several books and numerous periodicals and has conducted workshops, commissioned projects and lectured extensively throughout the country. After many years as a Professor of Art at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Jerry Noe now devotes full time to his artwork.