BIOGRAPHY
I am a ceramic artist creating life size relief walls with images of dancers in emotional poses. During the last six years I have been a full time artist with a studio/gallery in the Northrup King Building. My dedication has led to a wall commission for Hennepin County Medical Center, a one person show at the Owatonna Arts Center and two Artist Initiative Grants. For my 2016 Artist Initiative Grant, I manipulated, designed and glazed large clay vessels while observing a live model. By the end of the project I was hiring professional dancers as models, in place of traditional art models, for their ability to hold challenging and emotional poses. In 2018 the Artist Initiative Grant moved my work from vessels to large relief walls. I was able to create three life size walls. I found the scale and expressiveness of the dancers were appropriate for my direct approach. I now want to apply these skills to create a large piece for a specific location and tighten the relationship between my work and the dance world.
For 2020, I am proposing to create synergy between visual arts and dance by hosting an Art/Dance event at TU Dance Company in St. Paul. Synergy is defined as the “interaction or cooperation of two or more agents to produce a combined effect greater than the sum of their separate effects.” I have been combining live dancers with my clay work for the last 4 years, but I have not taken the viewer of my work into account. My vision is to have my work, which is inspired by the movement of dancers, be viewed on the walls of a dance center. Seeing my work in the context of its imputeus will resonate with the viewers. Designing the clay wall for a specific location will lead to a unique layout which will test my ceramic construction and installation skills.
I am striving to show the essence of people in action. When I work, I sculpt and draw a series of actions to show the gesture. The models show several gestures, usually as a fluid series. These poses require the model to move and stop in dynamic or challenging poses. Like every human action my ceramic process involves many layers. Observing the model new at each layer creates images that are raw, expressive and leave only the most essential gestures. My ceramic walls are designed to show the emotion and movement of the dancer. To see my work in tandem with performing dancers will magnify the impact on my viewers.