A #2 pencil and a dream can take you anywhere  ~~ Joyce A. Myers

Sculpture artist Jennifer Maestre, born 1959 in Johannesburg, South Africa, is a Massachusetts-based artist, internationally known for her unique pencil sculptures.

Her sculptures were originally inspired by the form and function of the sea urchin.

The spines of the urchin, so dangerous yet beautiful, serve as an explicit warning against contact.

According to Maestre, there is true a fragility to the sometimes brutal aspect of the sculptures, vulnerability that is belied by the fearsome texture.

To make the pencil sculptures, Jennifer take hundreds of pencils, cut them into 1-inch sections, drills a hole in each section (to turn them into beads), sharpens them all and sews them together.

Jennifer Meastre’s fantastic art is a tribute to her eye for nature, its fragile state, and the magical way it protects itself.

Jennifer Maestre’s sculptures can be found at http://www.jennifermaestre.com/.