Who the heck are we...

Darla and Justin casting a life-size sculpture, 2002

The Philadelphia Sculpture Gym is the idea of a husband and wife combo team, Justin Grant (husband) and Darla Jackson (wife). They also have a cute baby named Olivia. Darla and Justin are both sculptors who met at Moore College of Art & Design while Darla was a 3D Fine Arts major and Justin was the shop tech. They fell in love over Spring Break while making a waste mold on/casting Darla's first life-size figure (awww). Since their first collaboration went so well, they decided to go ahead and do a few more...many more molds, setting up a live/work studio space together, lots of casting, buying a house, setting up a new studio space, making 12 six foot high Victorian boots, getting married, making a cute baby named Olivia...and now the Philadelphia Sculpture Gym!

Darla with the giant boot (Footsteps Commission for Moore College), 2008

Darla makes mostly animal sculpture and installations. She teaches sculpture classes at the Fleisher Art Memorial and just finished up a year as a visiting professor at PAFA.

They were clawing… (Squirrel), (In progress) 2010

Surprise Party (Raccoon), 2009

You can't take it with you (Wealth), 2007

Justin and Olivia, 2011

Justin does a little bit of everything; sculpting, casting, welding, forging, woodworking, construction, packing art, shipping art, installing art, etc....kind of a jack of all trades. Currently he is co-manager of Crozier Fine Arts' Philadelphia branch.

Untitled, (In progress), 2009

Two Rattles and a teether that Justin made, 2009

Giant rolling wall he built for Rowan University Art Gallery (before it got its drywall...), 2010

Giant anvil for Mother Bethel AME Church, 2010

Olivia, our best work yet, 2011