Alumni Spotlight: John Medwedeff
B.F.A. 1986 - Art, Communications and Fine Arts Minor; M.F.A. 1991- Art; College of Liberal Arts
By Caleb Hale
John Medwedeff has spent a lot of time looking at Salukis recently.
“We’ve had Salukis in the studio; we’ve watched a lot of videos of Salukis running. They’re pretty amazing animals,” he laughs, describing the experience. “And they’re an interesting animal to try to recreate.”
Medwedeff, a sculptor and metalsmith based in Murphysboro, Illinois, has been commissioned by the SIU Alumni Association to create the full-scale sculpture of three Salukis dogs that will become the centerpiece of the Saluki Alumni Plaza, a new privately funded university landmark, scheduled to open this Homecoming in honor of SIU’s 150th anniversary.
The three dogs represent past, present, and future students of SIU. The statues will sit within view of the iconic Pulliam Hall clock tower, lending the whole scene to an idyllic photo spot for visitors to campus.
It isn’t the first time Medwedeff has designed a piece of work for SIU, but he says this project is a departure from his usual aesthetic.
“It’s somewhat of an anomaly for me. I usually don’t do representational work,” Medwedeff, who has done sculptures for clients all over the world, notes. “Most of my works are large-scale, abstract pieces that are formed of forged steel or bronze. This struck me as an opportunity to do something really different. It’s interesting to shake it up just a little bit.”
What isn’t different is his intention in creating the piece.
“With any public art project, I see them as landmarks. They become, in a sense, part of the fabric of people’s lives,” Medwedeff says “The purpose of this piece is to generate some school spirit and be a place for people to remember an icon for SIU. It’s an interesting thing to do, to be a part of the university community like that.”
Medwedeff came to SIU from Tennessee, because at the time it was the only nearby school offering a fine art degree with specialization in metalsmithing. A metalsmith he’d apprenticed under at the Metal Museum in Memphis, Tennessee recommended he look into the school.
From there, southern Illinois grew on him. After graduating in 1986, he ended up opening a studio, Medwedeff Forge & Design, in Murphysboro, Illinois, in 1988. In many ways, he says the decision to stay has only benefited his career.
“I think, in fact, living in southern Illinois has, in a way, forced me to reach out into the world,” he says. “If I lived in a more metropolitan area where there were more opportunities close by, I might have had a more localized career. Being in southern Illinois, you tend to have to reach out.”
Some of Medwedeff’s recent public art commissions include works in the University of Kentucky Children’s Hospital in Lexington, Michigan State University in Lansing, and the University of North Carolina in Charlotte. He has also had numerous private commissions over the years for corporate and other clients, as well as exhibits in Washington, St. Louis, and Houston, Texas.
This Saluki sculpture, however, will hold a special place in his heart, he says. “I feel quite honored to have been asked to help create the Saluki Alumni Plaza; it’s pretty amazing.”
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Visit siualumni.com for more information about how you can contribute to the project.
The text of this article and some of its photos are also published in the Spring 2019 SIU Alumni Magazine
Alumni Spotlight celebrates our Saluki Alumni and their memories of their time at SIU Carbondale. We focus on a different Alumni each week, and publish the feature on Wednesday afternoons on our Facebook and Twitter pages.
If you’d like to be the focus of this weekly feature, or nominate someone to be featured, please email us at: alumni-socialmedia@alumni.siu.edu.
