Richard Rhodes (born 1961) is a Seattle, Washington-based sculptor, stonemason, entrepreneur, and scholar of stonework worldwide. Life and career Born in California, Rhodes studied acting at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art in 1981. Through his study of medieval ritual and research, Rhodes apprenticed as a stonemason in Siena, Italy, after graduate school. Working with the operative branch of the Freemason's guild in Siena, Rhodes studied the Sacred Geometries and the Sacred Rules of Bondwork as passed down through the medieval guild of the Freemasons. He was the first non-Italian in over 700 years to work as an apprentice under the Freemasons. Rhodes credits his guild training as a major influence in his sculptural practice. Rhodes is the founder of several Seattle-based businesses including Rhodesworks Design Studio, Rhodes Masonry and Rhodes Architectural Stone. Sculpture practice In sculpture, Rhodes' work explores the line between art and architecture, using traditional stone construction with contemporary building techniques. His earlier, expressive and site specific work is self-described as "architectonic." His more current sculptural work is abstract and figurative, visible in his Sentinel Series (various) and Resolute Arch. His work is textural and often draws on the expressive hand finishes Rhodes' learned during his training and apprenticeship in Italy. Several of his commissions incorporate antique stone objects such as salvaged and worn pavements or stair blocks. Rhodes' largest public sculpture, the two thousand square-foot Untitled – Stone Wave (2004) at the center of Antoine Predock's Tacoma Art Museum, is made of antique granite salvaged from road pave stones in the Fujian region of China. The museum invites other artists to contribute to the space created by Untitled – Stone Wave, using it as a base or canvas. Participating artists include Dale Chihuly who provided the first artwork to be created in this series entitled Niijima Floats (2003) and SuttonBeresCuller created Ship in a Bottle] (2007) by lowering a sail boat into the courtyard. Untitled – Stone Wave (2004) has created a unique exhibition space at the Tacoma Art Museum that "may be the single most dramatic exhibition space in the Northwest." Pieces from the Sentinel Series, including Sentinel I and Embrace, were featured in the Sculpture by the Sea – Bondi and Sculpture by the Sea – Cottesloe in Sydney (2012) and Perth (2013) respectively. Of Embrace, Sentinel Series, Tom Flynn of The Sculpture Agency writes "Seattle-based sculptor and designer Richard Rhodes’ Embrace: