Stephanie Kantor

Kansas City, Missouri, USA

Title: Neighborhood Flower Brick

Year of Creation: 2010

Glaze: Majolica, slip, luster and enamel

Clay Body: Earthenware

Dimensions: Height 4 inches, Width 9 inches

Artist's Statement: My artwork is a continuous investigation of color, pattern, texture, and how these layers relate and interact with one another. The line where texture and pattern meet becomes an active space that energizes the form and decoration, creating curiosity and tension. Where one relationship ends, another begins. Looking back at my original inspirations, I have become aware of my interest in translating what I see into what I make. I now focus on what immediately grabs my attention, investigating the complexities within that space. Often my work starts from a photograph, turns into an oil painting, and reaches its fullest potential through ceramics. Through each step of artistic translation, something is lost yet something new arises.

I find and develop my patterns through historical references and the urban environment. Studying pattern has allowed me to understand the repetition of visual images; becoming a rhythm for making objects out of clay. I use historical motifs as system for creating my own vocabulary of pattern developed through the urban environment. I have found an infatuation with decaying urban architecture. In these decrepit buildings, I find character, chaos and humor. As layers of paint and plaster fall, previous life and color reveal themselves. I emphasize what I like most about these places by enhancing the color and cuteness to an almost childlike naivety.