Murray State's Digital Commons

Collection Title

Ashley Reagan Portfolio Art399

Author/Artist Name

Ashley ReaganFollow

Files

Academic Level at Time of Creation

Senior

Date of Creation

Spring 5-5-2020

Artist Statement

Nature is filled with delicate yet very resilient organisms capable of withstanding immense adversity. I utilize imagery of particular plants that flourish after natural disasters such as wildfires, floods, drought, etc., as a means of representing themes of growth and progress of the self within an environment that is inherently detrimental. Through the adornment of handbuilt ceramic boxes with imagery of these plants I am to allude to the notion that one is able to grow through even the most devastating of circumstance. I allow this metaphor to speak to not only my own personal narrative of struggle, but also the narratives of others who have faced hardship. The use of organisms that are only found growing after disaster cements the idea that the struggles people have to face are what create the people they are. Flowing organic forms, soft line, clean imagery, and semi-muted color show up often in my work through well-touched, soft edges and watercolor-esque underglaze paintings. I plan to tie together both my metals and ceramics work through the related imagery as well as using the ceramic boxes as displays for each metals piece.

The tactile nature of ceramics and the wearable implications of metalsmithing are things I am very interested in. How a piece is touched and observed by the viewer informs many of the decisions I make. My personal concept of a wearable is that it is to be worn and fidgeted with as an idle movement or way of quelling anxiety. I often create work that is mobile or shifting, has hanging pieces, or contains something to be opened and closed; including hidden elements. The sense of tactility is also related herein to the boxes I create. The idea of them opening and closing either by the viewer or creator is important. I often work in copper, using earthen tones and imagery when making colored enamel pieces to maintain a softer muted palette. My use of an earthen palette also prevails in my ceramics. I work in a red, terra cotta clay body which allows the colors after firing to retain an organic quality. Retaining this type of color palate is important within both my metals and ceramics work because it maintains the focus on the natural and despite the implications of the imagery used, it still allows the viewer to approach the subject more gently.

I find myself very inspired by artists such as Jennifer Kaplan, Joan Bruneau, Jessica Calderwood, and Victoria Walker. Calderwood’s work influences mine through her use of botanical imagery to portray concepts as well as her limited paletes. Jennifer Kaplan’s work lends itself to mine especially in her use of greenery as a pattern and wrapping decoration which is something I plan to explore in future ceramic work. Finally, I find Victoria Walker to be a large influence because her kinetic wearables are relative to similar kinetic attributes I hope to further pursue in my metals work.

Advisor/Mentor

Jeanne Beaver; John Utgaard; Mike Martin

Description

This show contains eight metals pieces and six ceramic pieces. The pieces contained in the show are an encapsulation of progress from spring of 2018 to current date spring of 2020. Many of the works contain nature based images which can be seen in pieces "Olive Box" and "Hanging Plant Pendant." There are fourteen works in total and twenty one pictures in total with multiple views of some of the objects to show a reversed side or the dimension of an object. Materials used throughout include copper, sterling silver, enamel, stoneware, terra cotta, white terra cotta slip, stoneware slip underglazes, glaze, and overglaze decals.

Photo Credit

All photos aside from the photo of "Quarantainers" which is by John Utgaard are by Ashley Reagan

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

Recommended Citation

Reagan, Ashley, "Ashley Reagan Portfolio Art399" (2020). Professional Practices (ART 399). 96.
https://digitalcommons.murraystate.edu/art399/96