Shidoni would like to celebrate the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta with you!

Jeffrey "Jeff" Rutledge

Sculptor Jeffrey Rutledge began his formal training at Wright State, where he graduated magna cum laude with a BFA in sculpture in 1975. He earned his MFA in sculpture from the University of Cincinnati in 1986 and sought additional training at the Oxbow School of Art in Saugatuck, Michigan and the Hobart Welding School of Troy, Ohio.

Jeff founded a greeting card company, worked as a videographer, graphic artist, photographer, public relations specialist, and held various teaching positions. In San Francisco, he did fabrication for renowned sculptor Fletcher Benton. In 1991, he opened a gallery and studio in Dayton, which he recently closed to spend more time on his sculpture. Jeff's first major show was at the Dayton Art Institute in 1983 as part of a group, Manipulated Planes. A solo show followed in 1984 at the Gruen Gallery of Chicago as well as participation in the Chicago International Art Exposition at the Navy Pier and an invitational show at Kent State University's Gallery. Recently, Jeff has had an extensive exhibition of his outdoor sculpture at Centerville Landscaping and was invited to show his sculpture Spirole at the prestigious Biennale of International Contemporary Art in Florence, Italy. He shipped the 300-pound stainless steel work and was able to spend time in Florence during the exhibition.

Jeff's work, which is also in many private collections, may be seen in the corporate collections of the Governor of Ohio; the Estate of Helene Curtis, Chicago, IL; the Hobart Welding Company of Troy, Ohio; the National Cash Register Co. of Dayton; and the City of Dayton.

Daniel P Kronberg

He attended New York University on scholarship and studied in their industrial arts program, and in September of 1964, he began a four-year apprenticeship with the Danish Silversmith, Inc. in Providence, Rhode Island. He also enrolled in classes at the Rhode Island School of Design, studying jewelry design at night.

He worked long hours as an apprentice, perfecting his skills making models, molds, and waxes and discovered his passion for miniature work with great detail. He started his first business creating sculptures for dollhouses as well as making collectible miniatures, during his career as a model maker, he created thousands of originals for jewelry, specializing in incredibly realistic charms.

In national and international art shows, he has won First Place for Sculpture in Washington D.C., Florida, New Mexico and Georgia. Each year, his work can be seen at the Albuquerque Museum of Art in their national, juried, miniature show. He also exhibits every August at the juried Loveland Sculpture Invitational Show and Sale, the largest sculpture exhibition in the world, held in Loveland, Colorado. His commissioned work includes collaborative work with internationally renowned knife maker Owen Wood, designing and sculpting for a rose dagger and a stallion-handled sword cane, as well as a two-foot high bucking horse mascot for the New Mexico Military Institute in Roswell, New Mexico.

Charles Allmond

He finds inspiration in the natural world. Primarily a direct carver in stone and wood, the artist also produces limited editions of many of his works in bronze. His distinctive style ranges from realism to abstract. Born in 1931 in Wilmington, Delaware, he is a graduate of DuPont High School. He also holds degrees in agriculture and agronomy from the University of Delaware and in law from Temple University in Philadelphia.

Allmond served in the United States Coast Guard, and has worked as an agronomist, a seed analyst, field man for a food processing business, and manager of a crop dusting service. A lawyer for thirty years, he has been active in civic and cultural affairs and is author of several scholarly and popular articles on agriculture, history and law. He is retired from the practice of law and is a full time sculptor.

He was a past president of the Society of Animal Artists, an international organization of painters and sculptors who depict living creatures in their work. His sculptures have been exhibited widely in the United States as well as in Canada, Japan and Sweden, where the work has received critical acclaim. His work has been shown at more than 50 museums. He’s also represented in public, corporate and private collections, and has received regional and national honors. He has received one of the highest recognitions from the Salmagundi Club, the Phillip Isenberg Prize for both December, 2007 & January, 2008. The Salmagundi Club is the oldest arts club in the USA.

William Allen

Raised in South Bend, Indiana he began his studies in college in Biology. What began as a night class in welding, twenty years ago, however started a lifelong passion. Having a particular fondness for nature, animals have been the focus of his art, working more recently with the human figure.

The sculptures are welded steel constructions; He begins by forming an intricate wire structure reminiscent of a three-dimensional line drawing. Attaching sheet steel of various shapes and textures to this surface which develop a "skin" over the wire form. He exposes and enhances the surface texture and much of the interior space by keeping the structure open to the play of light. As the light changes, new forms and textures emerge, creating a constantly fresh, new piece. The sculptures are galvanized and copper coated for outdoor durability and patina.

He has been commissioned to create life-sized sculptures for the Brookfield Zoo, Detroit Zoo, Field Museum of Natural History and Busch Gardens. He currently studies regularly at the Art Students League in New York.