In keeping with its mission to support nonprofit community initiatives, The Mark gallery at Tortoise Industries recently auctioned an original sculpture created by owner and artist Steven Shatkin to help raise funds for the Michael Hoefflin Foundation for Children’s Cancer.
The piece, “Wings for Michael Hoefflin,” raised $1,600 for the organization, which helps provide financial and emotional support to children with cancer and their families.
Shatkin hand-formed the large 60-by-45 piece using laminated aluminum sheets to extract every detail from the handmade wooden mold. It was then coated with a special mix of polyester heat-sensitive powder and cured in an industrial oven at 400 degrees for 35 minutes.
“The symbolism of wings in flight invokes a feeling of ascension as well as transcendence,” Shatkin said. “I created the piece to honor those whom we have lost, and also to convey eternal hope and healing to those who are still with us.”
Shatkin has served as the manager and creative director of Tortoise Industries Inc. since 1994.
With a strong sense of community and passion for giving, he opened The Mark at Tortoise, a fine art gallery dedicated to “aligning artist and community.”
He holds a degree in psychobiology and patents in chemistry, and his works are informed by firsthand knowledge of materials at both a tactile and molecular level.
For more, visit themark.gallery or email [email protected]. To learn more about the Michael Hoefflin Foundation, visit mhf.org.
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