Biography
Ned Schaper is a kinetic sculptor, poet and performance artist who shares his magical world of Beveldom with audiences through Surrealistic Pop Science Theater, the Museum Of Kinetic Art, the School of Intuition and Bevelvision Productions.
He has been inspiring audiences since 1983 when he launched the Sculptic Set Theater in Tucson. In New York City, he performed on and off the streets for 3 years. He had one-man shows at the Avenue B Gallery and the Todd Capp Gallery and was a regular at the Red Spot Theater.
Back in Tucson, Ned launched the General Belief System Technology Project under the designate Mat Bevel in 1987. His Surrealistic Pop Science Theater became well known to residents of Tucson through his studio performance as well as his Downtown Saturday pedestrian carnivals on Saturday nights in downtown Tucson.
The Mat Bevel Institute was established in 1992 with his sister Paula Schaper as a venue for the visionary arts, founded on the principles of Available Resource Technology (A.R.T.) and dedicated to building community through the spirit of ART. In 1996, the Institute established its high-profile presence in the Tucson Arts District when it relocated to the former Downtown Performance Center. As Artistic Director of the Mat Bevel Institute, Schaper performed his one-man Surrealistic Pop Science Theater, co-produced the international Zeitgeist Jazz at the Institute series, conducted Available Resource Technology workshops and oversaw the rental of the building as a community venue until 2014 when the 5,000 square foot historic warehouse was demolished.
Ned Schaper, kinetic sculptor, poet and performer
In 2012, City of Tucson commissioned Schaper to create a public art kinetic butterfly sculpture called “Iron Butterfly.” In 2014, Schaper’s work was featured at the Tucson Museum of Art in a 2-month solo exhibit entitled “Welcome to Beveldom: Mat Bevel’s Museum of Kinetic Art.”
With his sister Paula, he is taking the live theater, museum and school into a digital media arts format using animation, time-lapse photography and live action video. Bevelvision Productions will capture and broadcast the magic of Beveldom set in “the lost land of found objects” to global audiences. Mat Bevel philosophy with its world of kinetic art and 52 captivating characters in a narrative called “The Three Days of Beveldom.” Guests will appear in Beveldom who are experts in their field in a segment called “Outstanding in the Field.”
Schaper was named the first Artist-In-Residence for the Tucson Arts District in 1989. As an Artist-In-Residence for the Arizona Commission on the Arts from 1989 to 1991, Schaper traveled around the state of Arizona working with children to build found-object sculptures. Through this work, Ned’s hands-on workshops taught youth in Arizona resourcefulness and how to create art from the items that our society throws away. He also served as assistant artistic director of Orts Theater of Dance season, and in 1991 he was awarded an Artist Project grant through the Arizona Commission on the Arts for his solar-powered Pedestrian Carnival. In 2001, Schaper received the prestigious Arizona Arts Award. In 2017, Schaper received an Arizona Commission on the Arts research grant
Schaper was born and raised in Alliance, Ohio. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin, Madison with a degree in entomology.