John Van Alstine is an American sculptor living and working in Wells, NY in the Adirondack region of New York State, best known for stone and metal abstract sculptures exhibiting exceptional balance and poise. The works are often multi level with references to the figure, classical, nautical, celestial and western mythological themes. On the most basic level, his work is about the marriage of natural with the human made. Stone is used as an assemblage method the way a welder uses steel, rather than in the traditional manner of subtraction.

In contrast to the timelessness of stone, the found-object metal is very time-specific 20th century industrial. Structural characteristics in Van Alstine’s sculptures are employed to physically connect or suspend the stone elements. The strength of the metal allows “choreographing” and “floating”of the earthbound stone. During the span of his more than 35 year career his central theme has been the exploration of motion and balance through the natural forces of gravity and inertia.

John Van Alstine has been described as an abstract artist with a keen sense of composition, who evokes narratives from inanimate objects, and a sculptor who finds the balance and energy in the moment. Van Alstine works at the nexus of natural forces and the manmade, at the intersection between wild nature and technology.

His large welded-steel, cast-bronze, and carved-granite sculptures, as well as his charcoal and pastel drawings, celebrate raw dynamism and precarious balance. His rugged primary forms reflect aspects of Minimalism and process art, yet his sense of materiality and his use of found tools and objects reflect a strong poetic urge, as well as an interest in astronomy, physical science, geology, archaeology, and art history.