It's Not Always Pretty

At the Baltimore Clay works gallery there is a show now through November 15 that is called, "Looking at Ourselves."
















Juror Adrian Arleo may not be to blame, but there are some exceedingly grotesque pieces in the show. In fact this is quite a large show with many pieces in a the gallery's warren of rooms, and it appears that "ourselves" are frequently seen as less than beauteous.


















A baby going "yuck," a drunken smoker, a conversation with a foamy deposit issuing from one speaker's mouth, a bulldog/man mutant in party mode, these are the milder, kinder "selves" in comparison to some specimens that will not be pictured here.

There is a trend to outgross each other in the ceramic art world if this show is representative, and I believe it is. I have been seeing truly hideous pieces, joyously displayed in defiance of all aesthetes who have a fondness for beauty.

 

Which one is the rear end?

This one though, a man bathed in light from a stained glass window, his shadow falling red behind him is evocative rather than grotesque.

This is rather lovely also - hands holding gold leafed objects both living and inanimate. I have always been fond of earthworms, though I understand some people find them creepy.

And this one too, is on the prettier side, and is more the exception than the rule in this show.










I did not photograph the sculptures that repulsed me, but as usual, only ones that interested me, whether they were pretty or not. There's lot more to see - go see for yourself. Baltimore has a lot of great places to see art.*

My companions declared the show, "weird." When artists look at ourselves/themselves, that's bound to be the case, most of the time.

*My favorite: the Visionary Art Museum.