Cindy Chinn is a contemporary artist whose work ranges from microscopic graphite carvings to monumental sculpture, painting, ceramics, and mixed media. Based in rural Nebraska, she works from a 33,000-square-foot former school where radically different materials and processes can develop side by side. Her work is recognized for its extraordinary shifts in scale, close observation, technical precision, and an instinct for finding unexpected possibilities within familiar materials.
Chinn’s path to fine art has been anything but conventional. Her earlier career moved through animation, technology, fabrication, and large-scale entertainment production, including work as lead animator on The Lion King video game and production work for the Fremont Street Experience in Las Vegas. Those experiences fostered an ease with crossing disciplines, solving unfamiliar problems, and moving between the intensely detailed and the spectacular, qualities that continue to shape her work today.
Defined by curiosity, not by medium.
THE PRACTICE
Chinn often begins with the material itself and a simple question: what else can this become? Pencil graphite becomes architecture, landscape, and narrative. Bicycle tires become feathers, fur, and movement. Cutlery becomes the structure of a bird. Reclaimed steel, paper, ceramic, paint, and found objects are approached not as limitations, but as opportunities to discover new visual languages.
What connects these very different bodies of work is not a particular material or technique, but a consistent way of looking. Close observation, craftsmanship, transformation, humor, narrative, and shifts in scale recur throughout the practice. The material may change dramatically from one project to the next, but the underlying impulse remains the same.
BACKGROUND
That interdisciplinary approach developed long before Chinn established a full-time studio practice. Years spent moving between art, design, technology, construction, and production created a working method in which learning a new material or process is not a departure from the practice, but an essential part of it.
STUDIO
Today, Chinn works from a former school building in Chester, Nebraska. Its scale allows sculpture, painting, pencil carving, ceramics, fabrication, and experimental projects to coexist under one roof. More than a workspace, the building supports the freedom at the heart of her practice, allowing an idea to determine its material and scale rather than the other way around.
EXHIBITIONS & REPRESENTATION
Chinn’s work has been exhibited internationally, including presentations in Basel and Doha, Qatar, as well as exhibitions throughout the United States. Her work has attracted attention across disciplines because it resists easy categorization, moving between intimate, highly detailed objects and large-scale sculptural works while maintaining a distinct visual and conceptual continuity.
PRESS & MEDIA
Interviews, studio visits, high-resolution images, and additional press materials are available upon request.
Contact: Cindy@CindyChinn.com
International representation: Post-American Fine Arts
Over 30 YEARS OF MILESTONES:
Recent Highlights:
2026: Solo show at Gallery 92 West in Fremont, Nebraska
2026: Represented at Basel Social Club by Post American Fine Arts
2026: Accepted into the 2026 Mountain Plains Contemporary Art Biennial
2025: Solo show of select artwork at Joslyn Castle (October to December)
2025: Accepted into Gallery 1516’s Biennial Show (Falcon Sculpture)
2024: Hosted Australian Artist Jo Caminiti for a Cultural Exchange program to create a public sculpture
2024: Exhibited at the Tadweer Art Show in Doha, Qatar, hosted by the Souq Waqif Art Center
2020: Featured on “Good Day Sacramento” for my metal artwork, pencils, and wood carving.
2019: Featured in Disney’s “Art Workshop” series on social media, video receives over 2 million views on Instagram.
2019: Exhibited at the Scrap Metal Art Show hosted by the Souq Waqif Art Center in Doha, Qatar (Oct / Nov)
2019: Created many metal art pieces for Parc Animalier de Sainte Croix in France.
Complete List - 1994 to 2026 ↓
2026: Solo show at Gallery 92 West in Fremont, Nebraska
2026: Represented at Basel Social Club by Post American Fine Arts
2026: Accepted into the 2026 Mountain Plains Contemporary Art Biennial
2025: Solo show of select artwork at Joslyn Castle (October to December)
2025: Accepted into Gallery 1516's Biennial Show (Falcon Sculpture)
2025: Accepted into the Exhi-BIKE-tion show at Joslyn Castle
2025: Installed new programmable LED lights on the Majestic Theatre in Hebron
2025: Finalist in The Art of Animals 2025, International Juried Art Exhibition (Falcon Sculpture)
2025: Featured in The Fabricator Magazine, Jan 2025 - Vol 55, No 1
2024: Hosted Australian Artist Jo Caminiti for a Cultural Exchange program to create a public sculpture.
2024: Grand Prize Winner of International Metal My Way Contest (Peacock)
2024: Overall Runner-up of WINGS 2024, International Juried Art Exhibition (Raven) & Finalist (Peacock)
2024: Exhibiting at the "Tales of Poe" group show at the Joslyn Castle and Gardens
2024: Awarded "All-Nebraska Artist" at Nebraska State Fair for 7th time
2024: Exhibited at Meadowlark Gallery's "Black and White" show
2024: Exhibited at Gallery 9's "July Invitational" show
2024: Began work on a new series of art created from bicycle tires and parts (Re-Tired Artwork)
2024: Exhibited at the Tadweer Art Show in Doha Qatar, hosted by the Souq Waqif Art Center
2023: Completed a year-long project of a life-size scrap metal Peacock Sculpture
2022: Exhibited at BG Gallery (Santa Monica), “Out of the Box 3” exhibit.
2022: Completed life-sized Sandhill Crane Sculpture, featured in local papers.
2021: Featured on NET’s show “Nebraska Public Media News“
2021: Featured on NET’s show “Nebraska Stories“
2021: Accepted into a group show at Hilliard Gallery in Kansas City, “Things Called Art”
2021: Featured on NET / PBS Radio Show, “Friday Live” in March
2020: Featured on “Good Day Sacramento” for my metal artwork, pencils and wood carving.
2019: Featured in Disney’s “Art Workshop” series on social media, video receives over 2 million views on Instagram.
2019-20: Exhibited at Hilliard Gallery in Kansas City “Small Works” show (and longer).
2019: Exhibited at the Scrap Metal Art Show hosted by the Souq Waqif Art Center in Doha, Qatar (Oct / Nov)
2019: Selected to design Nebraska stripe for national project, Her Flag 2020
2019: Showed at Gallery 9‘s Silver Anniversary Alumni Show – July
2019: Showed at The Grove – A Gallery – Feb-May
2019: Created many metal art pieces for Parc Animalier de Sainte Croix in France.
2018: Featured on Top Woodcarving Blogs at Toolazine.com
2018: Featured on Blogging.com for Art Blogs
2018: Exhibit at ‘The Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures‘ – pencil carvings
2017: Featured in the Fall issue of “Sparks” magazine.
2017: Featured in the book “Creative Extremes“, published in October
2017: Featured in July issue of Home Review magazine
2017: Featured in Dollhouse Miniature Magazine (Mar/Apr issue)
2017: Featured in Nebraska Life Magazine (Jan/Feb issue)
2016: One woman show at the Minden Opera House Art Gallery – Nov / Dec.
2016: Featured on Spanish TV "Ja Tho Faras" for pencil carvings.
2016: Created a custom theatre chair for Bonham Theatre’s Chair-ity Auction
2016: Rated #72 on a list of the top 100 Art Blogs – feedspot.com
2016: Featured on dozens of websites such as This is Colossal who were all promoting my pencil carving of an Elephant Family.
2016: Exhibited at Art House LA (Los Angeles) – Miniature Show – February.
2016: Featured in Woodcarving Illustrated (Winter-Spring 2016 issue) – View article
2015: Featured on numerous websites such as Bored Panda as an image of my carved pencil went ‘viral’ online.
2015: Prairie Winds Gallery, Grand Island – Two Honorable Mentions, 16th Annual National Miniature Show
2014: Commissioned to create 8’x10′ mural for community movie theatre.
2014: Nebraska State Fair – Awarded title of “All Nebraska Artist – Best Fine Craft”
2014 Prairie Winds Gallery, Grand Island – Honorable Mention, 15th Annual National Miniature Show
2013: Commissioned to create 17′ x 50′ mural for Children’s Hospital of the Kings Daughters in Norfolk, VA
2013: Commissioned to create a 4′ x 8′ mural for the Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters in Las Vegas
2013: Lincoln Art Fair – Voted Top Nebraska Artist
2013: Nebraska State Fair – Awarded title of “All Nebraska Artist – Best Fine Art”
(3rd ever recipient)
2013: Only artist in the history of the Nebraska State Fair to win the best of show in all three categories (Best Fine Art, Best Fine Craft, Best 3D Art) – Photo
2013: Exhibited at Nebraska Governor’s Mansion
2007: Commissioned to create a 4’x4′ mural, a 4’x8′ mural as well as 25′ circular ceiling mural for a dentist’s office in Charlotte, NC
2004: Commissioned to create 5 large murals, 3D trees, and other work at the Summerlin Hospital in Las Vegas, NV
1997-2001: Developed and managed "Up in the Air Productions", which created light and sound shows for the Fremont Street Experience (the largest video display in the world at that time).
1994: Lead Animator on the Lion King Video Game for Westwood Studios.