The natural world, our connection to place, and the interconnected complex of all ecosystems inspires my work. While urbanization and technology disengage us from the natural world, my work aims to cultivate and foster environmental awareness. Through the amalgamation of art and science I seek to understand how we are affecting the climate to learn how we can alternatively create positive environmental impact. Observation and indepth research inform my work, discussing the urgency of climate change and the call to action.
April Surgent started working with glass in 1997, at open access hot shop studios in her hometown of Seattle, Washington. She went on to study at the Australian National University in Canberra, Australia, where she received a BFA (Hons) in 2004. In 2003, Surgent changed her focus from blown to engraved glass after studying under Czech master engraver, Jiri Harcuba. Surgent exhibits, teaches, and lectures internationally, and has received many accolades for her work, including the Neddy Fellowship through the Behnke Foundation, and a 2016 United States Artist Fellowship.
Interested in marine ecology, she uses experiences of working with conservation research scientists to inform her work aimed at cultivating public awareness about climate change and anthropogenic impact on the environment. In 2013, she worked at Palmer Station as a recipient of the National Science Foundation’s Antarctic Artists & Writers Program, and in 2016 as a volunteer field biologist for the Hawaiian Monk Seal Research Program. Most recently, Surgent worked from the Farallon Islands National Wildlife Refuge, 30 miles west of San Francisco, with Point Blue Conservation, and in Southwest Alaska with the US Geological Survey. Surgent lives and works on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state.