American Expert with World-Renown Figurative Sculptor, Victor Issa
Q: Where were you born?
I was born in Damascus, Syria and grew up in Lebanon. Our family moved there when I was about 5 years old.
Q: How did you make it to America? What was the journey like?
Our family belonged to a particular Christian faith that was persecuted in most of the Middle East so we had to leave the area. We came to America as religious refugees in 1973. I was 17 years old.
Q: Did you speak English at the time?
Yes. It was a requirement in grade school and high school. I had just finished high school when we left.
Q: When you arrived here in America from Lebanon, I imagine the culture shock was surreal? Can you talk about what it is like to arrive in America spending your whole life in Lebanon at the young age of 17?
Honestly, the first year or two were like a surreal fog. I knew very little about America before coming here, and for some reason I didn’t spend time imagining what life would be like. The earliest impressions were about how big and spacious this country is, and how beautiful, well organized and well kept.
There were the odd memories about how houses were made of wood mostly here, and in Lebanon most buildings were made of stone or concrete blocks. As to culture shock, it wasn’t long before I actually felt more at home here than I did in the Middle East.
Q: Did you feel you won the lottery by coming to America or was it just a different lifestyle?
I had several American friends during my high school years, and they would talk about life there. But it didn’t seem real, until we began living here. Last September, our family just passed the 38th anniversary of our migration, and I am more grateful than ever to be here. The uniqueness of the opportunities is simply amazing in this country. It saddens me when I read or hear native-born Americans clamoring for the kinds of changes or fixes that have been tried and failed in other countries. So yes, this is truly an incredible place.
Q: When you arrived did you make friends quickly?
I made friends right away while attending college in Nebraska. My early years in America were very happy ones.
Q: How did you begin your journey to sculpting?
As a young kid in grade school, I was always scribbling in my notebooks and textbooks. Teachers, friends and family took notice and would comment. It never occurred to me that I could earn a living as an artist. I had never known anyone who did in the Middle East.
But I also had some musical abilities and I figured I could teach music, so I declared Music Education as my major and minored in Art Education.
During my junior year, my advisor pointed out that I spent more time in the art building than the music building, perhaps I should switch, which I did.
Sculpting started with a required class at the University of Nebraska, in Lincoln. Three years after graduating I started working on my first sculpture outside of class. My agent who was handling my two-dimensional work at the time came to pick up some of my paintings for a gallery event. She noticed the sculpture in progress and asked me about it, I explained that I’m trying my hand at sculpting. She looked at it and said: “You are a better sculptor than a painter.” My paintings were not bad, I do have a piece in the collection of Nebraska’s Governor’s mansion after all. That was the beginning of my sculpting career. We moved to Colorado to be near the foundry in 1988 where I went full time.
Q: What are the qualities that make a great sculptor?
I suppose greatness is subjective. But having offered workshops for ten years, I was able to distill some nuggets. I learned that art, and sculpting in particular, requires a passion that is not really acquired. You are either born with it, or you are not. In other words, a truly gifted person is one who is not able NOT to sculpt, It’s the equivalent to breathing.
The second point is this: If you have an interest in sculpting the figure, human or animal, then life has to be your source of information. I try to teach how to see rather than how to sculpt. Seeing truth requires much more intent and focus than casually referencing what we might consider to be familiar. That was a breakthrough for many of my pupils throughout the years.
Q: Why did you gravitate toward sculpting people?
I didn’t know when I started why I was interested in the human figure other than it was so classical and it was what I learned in college. But eventually I figured out that the human form is intrinsically beautiful, particularly the female form. I have a saying, “When God sculpted Adam out of clay, He took a step back and looked and said: “This is good. But I can do better.” Then, he created Eve.”
The female form is absolutely beautiful, graceful and amazing. I wanted the challenge of understanding the human form, which is considered the most difficult to sculpt. Interestingly, people can quickly recognize that a particular sculpture doesn’t look right, even though they may not know the specific errors.
Another reason I am drawn to the human form is that it has the capacity to tell stories with the full range of emotions and themes that have been around for thousands of years.
Q: Which sculptors most influenced your work?
From the old masters, Michelangelo, of course Rodin. Among contemporary sculptors George Lundeen became a friend and mentor to me in my early years, and I really appreciate his work and his friendship. Another sculptor whose work I enjoyed studying is Kent Ullberg, an animal sculptor, extremely accomplished with magnificent designs.
