Artists In Residence Celebrates 15th Anniversary With Michael Sanzone Exclusives.

To celebrate the fifteenth year of our Artists in Residence Programme the Glenfiddich Distillery is pleased to announce a new range of handcrafted distillery exclusives by former resident Michael Sanzone.

Back in 2008, while in residence, Michael first started to use old cask ends in the production of works he entitled as Wood Constructions. Since then these works have gone on to be much sought after by art and whisky collectors alike.

This winter we invited Michael back to the distillery to create a series of new art works, which now for the first time are exclusively available for purchase through our gift shop*. These works are made entirely from salvaged Glenfiddich, Balvenie and Kininvie oak casks, some over fifty years old.

Wood is the artist’s chosen medium, specifically the natural occurrences that time has on the material and how it cannot be duplicated through artifice.  The passage of time is represented in his mosaic-like compositions, often described as sculptural paintings.  This work is inspired by the integral role of the oak in the whisky making process as well as the journey of the wood used to make the casks.  Michael became increasingly fascinated by the subsistence of each piece.  The barrels were built from American or Spanish oak, transported to Scotland, and then filled, tagged, coded, tended to, used, discarded, found and finally resurrected. 

These works convey the narrative of this journey, as well as act as a memento of a time and place. Available* in a limited edition of only fifteen works, each one is signed by the artist and comes with its own certificate of authenticity and measure approximately 30 cm by 30 cm.

* To make an enquiry about any of these artworks, please contact Andy.Fairgrieve@wgrant.com.

About the artist

Michael Sanzone (b. 1977, Connecticut, USA) participated in the Glenfiddich Artist in Residence programme in 2008 where his Cask Wood Constructions first originated.  Michael spent his childhood in the workshop of his father, an accomplished carpenter, where his attachment to his chosen medium developed.  Works in his Cask Series, are some of his most collected work, and are installed at the Glenfiddich Cafe, as well as the William Grant & Sons headquarters in New York and in the collections of the Gordon family, owners of William Grant & Sons, Ltd.  Michael’s work is in public and private collections worldwide, his Cask Series have been exhibited in New York, London, Scotland, Colorado, Florida and Connecticut.  Michael currently lives in New York and works in both New York and Connecticut.