Ashley Bennett-Stoddard is a sculptor, painter, and designer based in Seaside, California, where she currently works from her studio creating fine art, jewelry, and immersive creative experiences. With over 30 years as a working artist, Ashley has owned studios and galleries in Placerville and Carmel, California, and Eden, Utah, and her work has been shown in galleries across the United States and collected internationally.

Raised in a bronze foundry, Ashley grew up immersed in the language of form, metal, and process. As the daughter and niece of The Bennett Brothers, she inherited not only a deep respect for craftsmanship, but an intimate understanding of what it means to live a creative life. Over time, she forged her own artistic voice — one grounded in strength, movement, and feminine wisdom — drawing on decades of hands-on experience across sculpture, painting, metal, and mixed media.

Now entering a new chapter as an empty nester, Ashley is embracing a season of expansion and adventure, allowing her art to move more freely into the world. Her work — often embodied through her Tree Ladies and Freedom Dancers — explores growth, resilience, and the freedom that comes from rooting deeply while reaching outward. Whether creating alone in her studio, teaching workshops that center the creative process as a tool for healing and connection, or taking her work on the road through festivals and collaborative builds, Ashley is devoted to empowering others to trust their creative voice and truly enjoy the act of making.

At heart, Ashley loves teaching, playing, and adventuring — in her studio, in community, and wherever the creative journey leads next. Her work today is focused, alive, and intentional, shaped by decades of experience and guided by a clear desire to create art — and spaces — that invite people to move, grow, and create with courage.