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    Volcanic Ash and Lush Tropics Inspire Brian Rochefort’s Unearthly Ceramics

    “Beni River” (2024), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 24 x 22 x 21 inches. All images © Brian Rochefort, courtesy of the artist and Sean Kelly, New York/Los Angeles, shared with permission

    Volcanic Ash and Lush Tropics Inspire Brian Rochefort’s Unearthly Ceramics

    September 10, 2024

    Art Craft

    Grace Ebert

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    When Brian Rochefort travels, he’s inclined to visit remote parts of the planet. The depths of the Amazon, the volcanic island cluster of the Galápagos, and the immensely diverse ecosystem of Tanzania’s Ngorongoro Crater have all drawn him in and once back in his Los Angeles studio, inspired the artist’s lushly textured sculptures.

    Rochefort (previously) is known for his gloopy, chunky vessels that appear to ooze and gurgle with vivid color. A new body of work debuting at Sean Kelly, Los Angeles this month continues the artist’s interest in how abstract forms can translate the myriad textures and compositions of the natural world.

    Detail of “Wet Season” (2024), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 24 x 22 x 21 inches

    Staring at the Moon presents Rochefort’s visions of barrier reefs, tropical forests, and volcanic matter into fantastic works. Cloaked in crackled, drippy, and rough chunks of color, each piece emerges through multiple applications of texture followed by as many firings, and sometimes, the glazes remain thicker than the ceramic base.

    “One of the things I try to do is remove the hand. There are no brushstrokes. There are no fingerprints,” he said in a short film about the series. “It’s as if the piece came from outer space… or the depths of the ocean.”

    Staring at the Moon runs from September 14 to November 2. Explore an archive of Rochefort’s work on Instagram.

    “Wet Season” (2024), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 24 x 22 x 21 inches

    “The Whale” (2024), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 24 x 22 x 21 inches

    “Goddess” (2024), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 24 x 22 x 21 inches

    “Summer” (2024), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 24 x 22 x 21 inches

    Detail of “Goddess” (2024), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 24 x 22 x 21 inches

    “Belizian Swim” (2024), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 24 x 22 x 21 inches

    “Spray Ash” (2024), ceramic, glaze, glass fragments, 24 x 22 x 21 inches

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    Debra Broz Merges Humor and Kitsch in a Nod to Our ‘Strange World’

    Left: “Collie Pheasant” (2023). Right: “St. Bernard Pheasant” (2023). Both mixed media on secondhand ceramics, 10.5 x 8 x 3.5 inches. All images © Debra Broz, courtesy of Track 16 Gallery, shared with permission

    Debra Broz Merges Humor and Kitsch in a Nod to Our ‘Strange World’

    September 10, 2024

    Art Craft

    Kate Mothes

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    Vintage, mass-produced porcelain knick-knacks take on new life in Debra Broz’s intricate and uncanny hybrids (previously). Collies and St. Bernards with the bodies of pheasants meet rabbits with curiously long appendages and woodland creatures with human arms.

    In her solo exhibition Strange World at Track 16, Broz continues to explore the subversive and absurd through the leitmotif of midcentury kitsch. Whether merging two small sculptures or creating elaborate amalgamations, the artist finds the humor—and just a tinge of unease—in busyness, cuteness, and perplexity.

    “Weight of the World” (2024), mixed media on secondhand ceramics, 34 x 18 x 18 inches

    Strange World, which incorporates dozens of sculptures and glazed platters, revolves around three maximalist assemblages made of hundreds of individual figurines Broz collected during the past decade. Clusters of adorable animals like big-eyed bunnies, ducks, and cows emerge from bases as if blossoming with energy.

    In a statement for the show, Track 16 describes the pieces as “darkly optimistic, synthesizing the confusion of limitless information.” Chaotic and idiosyncratically beautiful, Broz’s pieces tap into our contemporary social reality, balancing tension and overwhelm with moments of levity and clarity.

    Strange World continues through October 12 in Los Angeles. Find more on Broz’s website and Instagram.

    Detail of “Weight of the World”

    “Slightly Human: Cat & Skunk” (2024), mixed media on secondhand ceramics, 4 x 5 x 3 inches

    “Slightly Human: Squirrels” (2024), mixed media on secondhand ceramics, 5.25 x 7.5 x 4 inches

    “Galaxy Brain” (2024), mixed media on secondhand ceramics, 25 x 22 x 18 inches

    Detail of “Galaxy Brain”

    “Slightly Human: Horse (The Champion)” (2024), mixed media on secondhand ceramics, 8.5 x 7 x 4 inches

    “White Rabbit No. 33” (2024), mixed media on secondhand ceramics, 6 x 4 x 2 inches

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