July 26 - September 7th

 

Radius Clayworks is honored to present a new series of ceramic sculptures by internationally renowned artist Adrian Arleo. Collectively and individually Arleo's hand-built figures serve as meditations on the inner lives of humans and animals, on vulnerability and interdependence, on the intimate and the universal. Cerebral and sumptuous, the work in the exhibition is not to be missed.

 

WARNING: Adding an artwork to your shopping cart does not, sadly, reserve it. Another visitor may have the same item in their cart and “scoop” it from you if they input their credit card first. If you really love a piece, we suggest you hurry to the check out to avoid disappointment. You can continue shopping after that purchase.

 

These works will be available for pick up or shipping the week after September 7th.

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ARTIST STATEMENT

 

Why is it that certain themes seem to embed themselves in us over the course of decades, or even longer? A concept that continues to be compelling for me is making visible an interior experience, or self, that is usually unseen or imperceptible. Over the years, I've played with different ways of carving the surface of sculptures to make areas "transparent." In earlier pieces, the open lattice suggested twigs or wood. In recent years, the carving has become more stylized. In this body of work, the open areas were initially inspired by, then riffed on, the Mogul architectural details and screens in the Alhambra and Alcazar palaces in Spain, both of which I had the good fortune to visit last year.

 

I'm curious about how an exterior "facade" can imply one type of being, while the internal one, when glimpsed through the screen, can reveal something entirely different or unexpected. So often, assumptions are made based on what is in plain view, failing to perceive the internal experience of another. Cultivating this sensitivity to see takes time, curiosity, and empathy. "Heart's Desire," for example, depicts a small dog with a rather pensive stance. On the inside, an embracing couple reclines in the cave of the belly. What is true for both, inside and out, is the essential innate desire for love, affection and acceptance.

 

Every piece has a story. And one of the things that continues to hold my interest is that the narrative is in flux, shifting depending on who is viewing it and when. In general terms, I'm looking to create an emotional and poetic power. Often there's a suggestion of vital interconnectedness between the human and non-human realms; the imagery arises from associations, concerns and obsessions that are at once intimate and universal. The work frequently references mythology and archetypes in addressing our vulnerability amid changing personal, environmental and political realities.

  

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BIO

 

Adrian Arleo studied Art and Anthropology at Pitzer College (B.A. 1983) and received her M.F.A. in ceramics from Rhode Island School of Design in 1986. She was an Artist in Residence at Oregon College of Art and Craft in 1986-87, at Sitka Center for Art and Ecology in 1987-88 and in 2012, was an invited artist for the Jordan Schnitzer Printmaking Residency, also at Sitka Center for Art and Ecology. Adrian’s work is exhibited nationally and internationally and is in numerous public and private collections. She received awards from the Virginia A. Groot Foundation in 1991 and 1992, and in 1995, was awarded a Montana Arts Council Individual Fellowship. Her work has been widely published in books, magazines, and on the internet. Adrian is a frequent workshop instructor across the US and abroad and enjoys teaching courses on figurative ceramic sculpture. She has spent the last three decades living outside Missoula, Montana, where she raised her family and currently resides with a menagerie of animals.