The goal of our I HeART New Jersey series is to introduce our readers to local NJ artists. These Garden State makers hone their craft while working with items like clay, metal, paint, film, and more. This time around, we’re putting the spotlight on sand sculpting artists. In particular, all of these artists find inspiration from living in NJ.
Quick Click Guide: Click a sand sculpting artist to go straight to their profile.
| John Gowdy | Kathy Nichols | Matthew Deibert |
More From Best of NJ
John Gowdy
Retired Atlantic City firefighter John Gowdy spent his childhood summers playing on the Jersey beaches. But it wasn’t until he was a father that his career in sand sculpture began. Starting with carving sandcastles with shells and popsicle sticks to entertain his three young kids; he now leads a sand sculpting team — The Rowdy Gowdys — along with his wife Laura.
It didn’t take long for Gowdy’s work to catch the eye of large event oranizers; moving on to master level competitions, he was able to meet other pro sand sculptors and learn from them. Now, Gowdy works with sand almost every day and competes in around five master competitions per year. His company — Sand Sculptures by John Gowdy & Co. — creates grand displays for hotel lobbies, weddings, conventions and private parties. They also manage amateur and world class sand sculpting events that attract thousands of fans.
Gowdy believes his New Jersey roots put him on his current path. “If it wasn’t for growing up with sand in my shoes, I would never have considered a life in it,” he says. To see more of his work, click here to visit his website.
Kathy Nichols
Kathy Nichols has only been competitively sand sculpting since 2017; however, she cautions others thinking about trying their hand at it that “sand sculpting is highly addictive and will end any and all attempts to sit and read a book on the beach!”
Nichols has been spending her summers in Ocean City since birth; but she became a full-time resident of the beach town in 1984. So she’s been playing in the sand her whole life. Now, as an art teacher, she attends the yearly conference put on by Art Educators of NJ (AENJ). In 2014, the event included a presentation by none other than John Gowdy. As you might expect, Nichols found inspiration while attending his workshops.
Since entering her first competition in 2017, Nichols participates in as many as she can find; during normal times, this means about 7-10 per year.
Matthew Deibert
Matthew Deibert is a retired Atlantic City firefighter and professional sand sculptor. No, you’re not seeing double, this intro is nearly identical to John Gowdy. In fact, the two have trained together, worked together and, even teamed up in competitions.
Meanwhile, just as with Kathy Nichols, seeing Gowdy’s amazing sand sculptures inspired Deibert to start his own career in sand art over twenty years ago. Deibert, who has a degree in graphic design, was instantly hooked. It also helps that he was born and raised in Atlantic City, spending his summers playing in the sand.
His love of sand sculpting takes Deibert to events all over the world; it also earns him spots on TV shows like “Sand Blasters” and “Sand Wars” (a competition he won in 2013). To view Deibert’s impressive art, click here to visit his Instagram.
Click here for more stories from our I HeART New Jersey series.
Top (Hero) Photo: © John Gowdy
Other Photos (in Order):
John Gowdy / Website
Kathy Nichols
Matthew Deibert / Instagram