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Greg Pontius was born in Seattle in 1945, and lived most of his young life in a small desert town in Eastern Washington, where he developed a love for drawing. His high school offered a very extensive four year wood and metal shop program that gave him a wonderful avenue for expression. Greg started college in Spokane, where the emphasis was Commercial Arts. After a successful year he moved on to a Fine Arts Program in Evert Washington. This was a school with no limits, allowing him to express freely in oil painting, metal and wood sculpture, and glass blowing.
Greg painted large oils through the 70's and having an apptitude for mechanics and a love of welding, produced metal sculptures. Moving to Hawaii in January of 1977 and realizing the wealth of locally grown hardwoods, he focussed his talents on wood sculptures. Greg collects his wood himself, believing, it is one of the most important parts of the project. He says, " I feel like a miner looking for a gem." He is widely known for his Sea Life Sculptures, whales of all kinds (mostly humpbacks), some as large as seven feet, many with calf or in arrangements with dolphins. He also creates jewelry boxes in the form of whales, eels or turtles, at first they appear to be pure sculpture, then, surprise, they open up with trays and even small drawers. In the past years Greg has made hundreds of small to large, unique, one of a kind boxes, from an almost endless variety of woods. Many of Greg's new pieces are inspired by the patron and he finds it exciting to work together to bring form to an idea.
Greg is very busy in his studio nestled in the jungle on the most northern end of the Big Island where he lives with his wife, son and three daughters. Greg loves life very much and believes that only after receiving God's love in his life, was he able to find success in his work. He is often heard to say, " I can't wait to get up and go to work in the morning."
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Awards:
Greg has won the People's Choice Award many times, as well as the Artist's Choice Award at the Big Island Wood Exhibition. His work is in many private collections, from the United States and Canada to Europe and Japan. Greg is comfortable in a variety of mediums; stone, wood, glasss, metal, plaster, plastic, etc. and new subjects are constantly emerging. There is a permanent bronze turtle sculpture at the Mauna Lani Bay Hotel, on the Kona Coast of Hawaii. |
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