TROY, Ala. (TROJANVISION) — Troy’s Department of Art and Design is welcoming a new resident artist in 2026.

Lauren Frances Evans is an artist who primarily works in sculpture and came to Troy’s Artist-in-Residence program while on sabbatical from Samford.

“I have been given an opportunity to focus on my creative work and really focus on my own creative practice and feeling like I’m at some sort of turning point in that work,” Evans said.

Evans’ work draws from her own maternal experience, which manifests in both physical and metaphorical ideas in her pieces.

“When I became a mother close to ten years ago, that gave me a real, physical lived-in body experience and lens through which I could explore those ideas,” Evans explained. “For a while, I’ve been kind of exploring this idea of entanglement and this connection or attachment with mother and child and exploring that through my own experiences.”

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Through using found objects and unique processes, Evans plans on creating many types of works during her residency.

“I’m starting flat, I’m starting 2D, but as a sculptor, I love to experience work in the round and enjoy making work in the round. I feel like I’m kind of working towards getting more dimensional.”

Evans will be in her residency until Feb. 27 and her work will be featured in the International Arts Center during the spring of 2027.

Four more artists are slated to visit Troy throughout the semester. For more information, click here. You can also view Evans’ past pieces here.