Artist Statement
Each year on Rosh Hashanah and Passover, my grandmother would serve big family meals on her fine china. The gilt rims signaled an occasion of reverence and celebration, but the dishes spent the rest of the year bundled up at the top of the kitchen closet. Unlike my grandma’s china, the vessels I make are intended to handle the rigors of daily use, and yet hold a similar power to elevate the act of eating or drinking, whether a large celebratory meal, a humble breakfast, or just a cup of tea. The pull between quotidian and revelatory is a driving force behind my investigations into form, material, and process.
Utility and function are important anchors for my work. Pottery brings intention and human connection to one of the most universal human activities: the act of nourishment. In this context, my works become props in the performance of community or ritual objects for the sacred rites of daily life. No two pieces of mine are ever the same. Even in making sets, I like to explore how a group of vessels can work together harmoniously but still maintain their individuality. This dynamic is a translation—or perhaps a reflection—of how we in the queer community use performative aesthetics to navigate the tension between distinctiveness and shared identity.
My approach to creating thrown forms, long rooted in architecture and the history of modern and utilitarian design, has recently begun to shift. Instead of generating forms in the abstract and applying surfaces to them, I now develop forms that highlight, disrupt, and otherwise engage surface designs. Sturdy, raw clay rims transform plates into portals that offer a glimpse of my worldview. And stacking bowls allows the creation of a single surface that spreads across multiple vessels. This approach to form and surface amplifies the tension between minimalism and maximalism—which are not a binary but juxtaposing them highlights the unique beauty in each.
Since 2022, I’ve been in working in red earthenware—embracing the rich rust quality of the clay as a basis for surface design. My clay body speaks of brick and the vernacular architecture of many of the places I’ve lived. In Queens, New York City, home until I started graduate school, the range in colors of brick, the layers of paint and murals, and the ghosts of decades-old signs create a muted palette that informs my layering of texture, slip, and underglaze. Soda firing brings these layers together and creates a weathered look and gives each pot an artifact-like quality.
For a few years, I’ve been exploring surfaces composed of geometric forms. My most recent work deploys imagery abstracted from photographs of interior and exterior architectural elements—brutalist ceilings, acoustic insulating tile, window casings, and more. These images are observational, refracting my view of the world to create surface motifs. I’m fascinated by the vanishing points and perspectives, which add depth to my compositions, and am excited to continue experimenting with variation in scale, as well as overlapping pattern and a greater focus on narrative.