Nura Petrov

"My studio in New Hope is overflowing with conceptual art works that prompt examination of the poetic aspects of mundane objects such as windows and ladders. My sculptures unite formal art values with the unpredictable, non-culturally prescribed beauty of natural objects such as sticks and stones. They invite the viewer to "become" the sculptor/artist by handling and rearranging unfixed, movable, sculpture segments. My objective is to create a provocative circumstance rather than a static product/commodity."
-Nura Petrov

Nura Petrov is a mixed media sculpture artist who resides in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Petrov's traditional sculptures included a variety of material, including clay, plaster, papier mache, and photography. Her most current conceptual work deals with time, memory, and history, using material such as sticks, stones, cloth, and paint. Many of her pieces deal with the tactile aspects of sculpture.

Petrov questions the nature of art, information, and knowledge. Some abstract drawings incorporate ideas about time and history, and relate to her interest in archaeology, such as layers of time, buried events, and remnants of past cultures.

Nura Petrov has traveled extensively in India, North America, and the Middle East, which has allowed her to study art and architecture in a cultural context. She has taught in Uganda, East Africa. Also, Petrov has completed many educational and public art projects locally and internationally. She has won traveling scholarships through the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and numerous honorable mentions and prizes at local juried shows.

Education and Training
Sculpture, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1958-1963
The Barnes Foundation, Merion, Pennsylvania, 1960-1963
B.F.A., The University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1963

Teachers and Influences
Studied with sculptor Harry Rosin and studied figure composition with Walter Hancock, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
Studied with Violetta de Mazia, Barnes Foundation and Stella Kramrisch, Curator Emeritus, at the Philadelphia Museum of Art
Jill Furst, University of Pennsylvania

Connection to Bucks County
Nura Petrov has been a Bucks County resident since 1950.

Major Solo Exhibitions
Chrysalis, Gallery, Buckingham, Pennsylvania, 1981
Double Exposure, The Book Gallery, 1984
Lyric Abstractions, The Nora Lewis Gallery, New Hope, Pennsylvania, 1985
Xerox Art, The Book Gallery, New Hope, Pennsylvania, 1986
Handle With Care, The Book Gallery, New Hope, Pennsylvania, 1987
Two Decades of Art, Rossi Gallery, Lambertville, New Jersey, 1987
Ragas, The Cafe, Lamberville, New Jersey, 1988
Hand in Hand Exhibition: Participatory Works, Lambertville, New Jersey, 1989.
Patterns of Light and Dark, Joy Kreves Gallery, 1989
Exhibition of Paintings and Sculpture, Bageron Gallery, Washington Crossing, Pennsylvania, 1989
Changing Climates: New Directions for the '90s, Joy Kreves Gallery, Frenchtown, New Jersey, 1990
On Paper: About Paper, Materia, Doylestown, Pennsylvania, 1991
Remote Sources/Arbitrary Systems, ABC Gallery, Lambertville, New Jersey, 1996

Major Group Exhibitions
Phillips' Mill Annual, New Hope, Pennsylvania, 1981
The Human Figure, Rodman House, Doylestown, Pennsylvania, 1982
Showcase

Teaching and Professional Appointments
Teacher, Kibuli Senior Secondary School, Kampala, Uganda, East Africa, 1965
Summer Arts Project, Kensington, London, England, 1969
Ford Foundation Visiting Artist Grant, Lima, Ohio, 1975
Mentor/Instructor, Goddard College, 1976
Canadore College of Applied Arts, North Bay, Canada, 1979
Cave Paintings and Mandala Workshops, Lambertville, New Jersey, 1989
Participatory Sculpture Project for the Mercer Museum and the Michener Art Museum Complex, Doylestown, Pennsylvania, 1991
Council Rock High School, Newtown, Pennsylvania, 1992
Prallsville Mill Summer Workshop, 1995, 1996

Major Awards
Cresson Traveling Scholarship, 1962
Schiedt Traveling Scholarship, 1963
William Clarke Mason Prize, 1962
Various honorable mentions and prizes at local juried shows, 1970-1996
New Century, New Hope, Pennsylvania, 1965
Ford Foundation Visiting Artist Grant, Lima, Ohio, 1975
Arts Bridge Inaugural, Lambertville, New Jersey, 1993