Izabell Fagan

She was born and raised in Fredericton, NB. After years of working in finance and regulatory for various companies, she has found contentment and joy in carving soapstone. Her studio is in Quispamsis, NB where she lives with her husband, Larry. She is a juried member of Craft NB/ Métiers d’Art NB since 2016.

Izabell enjoys sourcing and working with Canadian soapstone and serpentine, though she will experiment with Brazilian to add some tonal variation. The stone itself retains heat, and the polished texture is very alluring to touch, Izabell highlights this feature in creating thumb stones and pendants.

Larger sculptures are expertly finished with a combination of oils and wax to strengthen the stone and protect the polished façade. Soapstone is an incredibly fragile material to carve and must be treated with great care.

Izabell’s interpretive style invokes her perception of what is contained within each piece of stone. “I look at the stone and I see [the subject] inside.” Each stone is different and the natural variations and inclusions make each sculpture that much more unique.