Critters and Characters

<< Back

DD/SSS - DEWEES DESIGN SAND SCULPTING STUDIO

Donnie DeWees has been an international professional sand sculptor for the last 35+ years. Seeing the ephemeral nature of sand sculpture as being the antithesis of architecture, he has helped propel the art form from its infancy in the early 1980’s on the beaches of Southern California to the world-wide status that it has obtained now. Sand sculpting has taken Donnie to Kamaishi, Japan and to twenty different U.S. states.

Donnie was one of the founding members of Archisand Professional Sand Sculptors with Greg LeBon starting in 1989 and has been an integral part of Archisand for the last 31 years. http://socalsandcastles.com/

“You borrow sand from the ocean for a short time, you make something wonderful from it, and then you return the sand to mother earth. It’s the most earth-friendly art form there is.”

-Donnie DeWees

“Soft Sculpture” as we call it, serves as a stark contrast to the relative discipline that we take in making sandcastles. There is a particular whimsy and freedom in these pieces that makes them special. The soft sculptures also allow us to convey the humor that is intrinsic to sand sculpture, and to sand sculptors, as well as giving us a unique medium with which to make statements about the world around us.

The soft sculptures also allow for a very unique exploration into the boundaries and limits of sand sculpture which has given birth to the more conceptual work that we have completed. In all, constantly trying to push the medium itself to new places.