Weaving Women’s Words – Baltimore Stories-
The basis of the exhibit was an oral history project documenting the lives of thirty narrators and then using their accumulated stories to inspire the artwork of twelve contemporary Jewish artists. Along with designing the space and overseeing the construction, I produced a fifteen-minute video (click here) featuring the actual voices of the narrators synchronized with animated black and white images by photographer Joan Roth. This was a Castro/Arts Project.
African Gallery at the Barbados Museum
Seeking to increase awareness of the many diverse cultures of Africa and how trade of all kinds shaped Caribbean culture, the Barbados Museum underwent its first expansion in recent history. Primarily a children’s exhibit, The African Gallery exhibited the renowned applied art collection of Eric Robertson and studied the intricate relationship between the majority of Barbadian citizens and their ancestral roots. Along with designing the space and overseeing the construction I produced all of the maps and computer illustrations (click here) used in the exhibit.
El Rio – Smithsonian Institution
Produced by the Smithsonian Folklife Department, this five thousand square foot traveling exhibit showcased the cultures and people of the Rio Grand/Rio Bravo river basin. Based upon the Smithsonian Folklife Festival of the same name, this exhibit consisted of a series of vignettes that reflected the people and organizations that were exhibited on “The Mall” in Washington, D.C. Along with designing the space and overseeing the installation, I worked directly with the Smithsonian and a diligent team of interns to install the exhibit. This was a Castro/Arts Project.
The Berndt Group - Translucent Walls
This is a design-and-build project that I produced for the Berndt Group, an Internet technology company in Baltimore. The objective was to create dividers that would separate the public and private areas. I built a computer model of the office, where we tried out designs until we found one that satisfied all the parameters. The first and largest wall divided the main working space and enclosed the boardroom. The second provided a backdrop to the entrance and partitioned off the lounge area. An extensive material search; trying to balance translucency, privacy and sound control, lead to the use of corrugated polycarbonate. I then hand frosted the clear material to a soft matt finish. The trim is brushed aluminum that I lacquer coated.
Castro/Arts – Office Furniture
I designed-and-built the maple and acrylic furniture for our new office located at Tide Point in Baltimore. The laminated maple planks were cut from salvaged bowling ally lanes and the two-inch acrylic blocks were cut from what was an outdoor dolphin tank at SeaWorld. I refinished the maple in order to lighten up its appearance, and I textured the acrylic with an extremely course abrasive to maximize its light holding capability. In addition to the design and placement of the furniture, I produced all of the build-out drawings for the space. This was a Castro/Arts Project.
Struever Brothers Eccles & Rouse - Lobby Frames
This was a design-and-build project that I produced for Struever Brothers Eccles and Rouse, a development company headquartered in Baltimore. The objective of the project was to create a flexible system for displaying SBER’s current projects. I designed the system to meld a clean contemporary look with a very solid handmade feel. The client began as a construction company so I wanted the entire system to have a very heavy duty feel. The thirty frames are easily changed out as new projects develop and the hand textured aluminum plates remain a prominent design feature regardless of their content.
Clipper Mill Pool
This is a pool and community area that Alex Castro and I designed for the redevelopment of a historic mill located along the Jones Falls River in Baltimore. A large portion of the structure had been devastated by fire, but the original stonework that remained, had taken on the look and feel of a modern day ruin. Patterning our design after a Roman bathhouse, we designed a pool that passed through one of the existing stonewalls. The design also included a water feature that utilized the existing trestle structure and a whirlpool located within the millrace that was used to power the sawmill. I also produced an animated sunlight study (click here) to determine the feasibility of the location. This is a Castro/Arts Project and it is currently under construction.
Meritt Office Park
The images below are taken from a site revitalization plan that I produced for the Meritt Corporation. The objective was to create a park-like pedestrian thoroughfare that would act as a meeting place and refuge in the center of a bustling office community. The proposal was centered upon the revitalization of the flood abatement pond as a centerpiece for the office park. The principal design element was to be four curved bridges and a small circular island that would link together the four adjacent office buildings. A network of crushed stone paths and seating areas were also designated to promote a heightened sense of community throughout the office park. Unfortunately, this project coincided with the downturn in the Internet technology businesses that this office park was hoping to target.
Castro/Arts Deck
This fully suspended deck hangs outside our office located at Tide Point in Baltimore and is constructed from galvanized steel, iron wood decking and stainless steel aircraft cable. I designed the deck to be as minimal as possible when viewed from the lobby of our office while maintaining a clean yet solid-feeling structure. This was a Castro/Arts Project.
3D Computer Modeling, Rendering and Animation
Weather it is a complete digital environment built to sell an idea or a quick 3D sketch to help realize an idea; computer modeling is an indispensable tool. I have produced computer renderings, plans and presentations for many prominent architects and artists. Coming from a hands-on sculpture/fabrication background I offer a unique perspective in being able to shepard an idea form a sketch on a napkin to a working model in a complete 3D environment. And I can take that same idea form a final rendering for presentation, to construction drawings and all the way through to completion.
Convergence - Public Art Proposal
The computer renderings below were taken from a large-scale public art proposal that I created for Gwyns Falls/ Leakin Park. Standing forty eight feet at it’s highest point this bronze and steel spiral sculpture was designed to mark the entrance of the Gwyns Falls Trail and to act as a gateway into Baltimore along the East Coast Greenway. The nation's first long-distance, city-to-city, transportation corridor for cyclists and hikers. Situated at the convergence of two streams, the sculpture initially began as a way to use public art as a catalyst for renewal and promotion of this urban park. The proposal also included a public meeting area with curved benches and a series of six foot bronze wind chimes that would have provided an audible marker for the trail as it passed through the city.
Canopy Timepiece
This sculpture was part of a public art festival at Holt Park in Baltimore. I began this piece by linking together four large trees at opposite corners of a small clearing located a sort hike into the woods. Through a bit of experimentation I developed a network of cables, pulleys and springs that harnessed the gentle motion of the canopy above and used this force to set a fourteen-foot pendulum into motion. Below the point of the pendulum I placed several hundred pounds of sand so that the pendulum kept a perpetual record of its ever-changing motion through time.
Water Timepiece
This sculpture consisted of a large pyramid-shaped block of ice that took about eight hours to melt. Lit from below with several high intensity lamps, the ice rained down droplets glowing ever brighter until they disappeared into the fixture below. Harnessing the heat from the lamps within, the water droplets were vaporized and released into a column of steam. Although the actual mechanism was hidden from the viewer, the light was filtered through the boiling water, which added a flickering quality to the light and an audible hint to the reaction within.Archerctural Design and Fabrication • Sculpture
Video Production • Photography • Graphic Design
Exhibition Design and Construction • Mount Making
3D Computer Modeling • Rendering and Animation
Technical Illustration • CAD Drafting • Fabrication

SBER Construction
This is a short promotional video that I produced for the construction and development company, Struever Brothers Eccles and Rouse. Headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland SBER is one of the most important development companies on the east coast by investing in neighborhoods and working with community partners to build sustainable urban communities. This video was a project of Castro/Arts and created by Jason Paul Bennett.
Fenway Park Renovations
This video chronicles the recent renovations made to Fenway Park and the ongoing fight to keep a 90+ year-old ballpark alive. Janet Marie Smith, the architect behind Camden Yards, The Boston Red Socks and the development company, Struever Brothers Eccles and Rouse explain the sensitive touch required in renovation a venerable old institution such as Fenway Park. This video was a project of Castro/Arts and created by Jason Paul Bennett.
The Mack Lewis Gym
This video celebrates the work of the noted boxing trainer Mack Lewis who, for more than sixty-five years has been a role model for countless at-risk youth in East Baltimore. Training kids to be good citizens through the discipline of boxing and even training a few world champions wile he was at it. This video also documents how Struever Brothers Eccles and Rouse and many other community-minded businesses helped Mr. Mack realize his dream of a proper gym that could carry on his legacy for many generations to come. This video was a project of Castro/Arts and created by Jason Paul Bennett.
Weaving Women’s Words
This is a video that I created to accompany the exhibition Weaving Women’s Words – Baltimore Stories (click here) and it features the actual voices of the narrators synchronized with animated black and white images by photographer Joan Roth. The basis of the exhibit was an oral history project documenting the lives of twenty narrators and then using their accumulated stories to inspire the artwork of twelve contemporary Jewish artists. This was a Castro/Arts Project.
Partners In Health Fundraiser
This is a short video that I put together for a birthday party/fundraiser hosted by, and for Heather Anderson, Judy Slosser and Kay Gabbard. The content was all pulled from a phenomenal online blog created by Heather’s sister Lucy Langenkamp. She is working in Rwinkwavu, Rwanda on a one-year fellowship. All of the text and all of the photographs come directly from Lucy’s own experience. The event raised money for the organization Partners in Health, a worldwide organization whose mission is to provide first class health care to those who need it most. PIH strives to achieve two overarching goals: to bring the benefits of modern medical science to those most in need of them and to serve as an antidote to despair. In doing so, PIH draws on the resources of the world's leading medical and academic institutions, and on the lived experience of the world's poorest and sickest communities. Their staff of physicians, scholars, and activists tackles health crises deemed "unsolvable" and does whatever it takes to solve them. From access to clean water and decent housing to education and food PIH is an advocate for their patients and families.