If the grid repeats by Eva Conrad
The grid, particularly the imperfect one, shows up in countless iterations of Eva’s work (not one the same as the next). Perhaps the most universal of all patterns, it hints at the idea of decoration and mark-making in the most essential of ways. Also in the grid, like a chess board or tile floor, there are two teams existing on the same networked surface, portraying the concept of duality as a code.
In her marks and through sculpture, Eva brings forward a sense of naivete and wisdom, (that which we often come to envy in our past selves) allowing her to generate forms that are two-spirited in many ways. Like feeling the warm pavement on a summer night, or low base vibrations from a concert speaker, her large clay sculptures and vessels feel very grounded and connected with the body. This is a deep intention of Eva’s work--to reflect the scale and reach of her body and selfhood as the artist. She also believes that people in a community can be important mirrors for one another. In this way art encourages us to talk about the impact we have on each other, also, accountability. Accountability not as it is so often referred to as a synonym of punishment but as a reverberating process for people that trust each other to be influenced by each other and to accept the that you have been a source of help to others but also a source of harm.
Brave and curious, informal and introspective all describe the paintings and vessels in Eva Conrad’s upcoming show, titled, If the grid repeats. This partial riddle reflects the visual language of an artist working with one hand in painting the other in clay. A dual-sensibility runs across the glazed and assembled surfaces suggesting a simultaneous appreciation for the status of ceremonial objects put in direct relation to materials that are used, weathered, and worn. The playful interaction between vessels, paintings and site specific displays characterizes this exhibition of works made over a time period greatly influenced by the global pandemic.
“ I have discovered a lot of my truths through playing with color and form, and the mediums of clay and paint feel deeply attune to my body.” -Eva Conrad
Artist Bio
Eva Conrad (She/They) was born in Lancaster Pennsylvania and received her BFA at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. She currently lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where she produces ceramics and paintings out of her home studio. She has done residencies at the Union Project, Bunker Projects, and the Nth degree gallery. She teaches ceramics and multimedia sculpture to children and adults through the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts and Media, Assemble and Contemporary Craft. Eva works with repetitive patterns to create deceptive dimensions between sculptures, functional pots, and paintings. Her intuitive play with clay and paint pairs with the rigidity of these binary structured patterns to embrace the dimension of spaces between the linear understandings that society presents.
The grid, particularly the imperfect one, shows up in countless iterations of Eva’s work (not one the same as the next). Perhaps the most universal of all patterns, it hints at the idea of decoration and mark-making in the most essential of ways. Also in the grid, like a chess board or tile floor, there are two teams existing on the same networked surface, portraying the concept of duality as a code.
In her marks and through sculpture, Eva brings forward a sense of naivete and wisdom, (that which we often come to envy in our past selves) allowing her to generate forms that are two-spirited in many ways. Like feeling the warm pavement on a summer night, or low base vibrations from a concert speaker, her large clay sculptures and vessels feel very grounded and connected with the body. This is a deep intention of Eva’s work--to reflect the scale and reach of her body and selfhood as the artist. She also believes that people in a community can be important mirrors for one another. In this way art encourages us to talk about the impact we have on each other, also, accountability. Accountability not as it is so often referred to as a synonym of punishment but as a reverberating process for people that trust each other to be influenced by each other and to accept the that you have been a source of help to others but also a source of harm.
Brave and curious, informal and introspective all describe the paintings and vessels in Eva Conrad’s upcoming show, titled, If the grid repeats. This partial riddle reflects the visual language of an artist working with one hand in painting the other in clay. A dual-sensibility runs across the glazed and assembled surfaces suggesting a simultaneous appreciation for the status of ceremonial objects put in direct relation to materials that are used, weathered, and worn. The playful interaction between vessels, paintings and site specific displays characterizes this exhibition of works made over a time period greatly influenced by the global pandemic.
“ I have discovered a lot of my truths through playing with color and form, and the mediums of clay and paint feel deeply attune to my body.” -Eva Conrad
Artist Bio
Eva Conrad (She/They) was born in Lancaster Pennsylvania and received her BFA at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. She currently lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where she produces ceramics and paintings out of her home studio. She has done residencies at the Union Project, Bunker Projects, and the Nth degree gallery. She teaches ceramics and multimedia sculpture to children and adults through the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts and Media, Assemble and Contemporary Craft. Eva works with repetitive patterns to create deceptive dimensions between sculptures, functional pots, and paintings. Her intuitive play with clay and paint pairs with the rigidity of these binary structured patterns to embrace the dimension of spaces between the linear understandings that society presents.
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2022 Exhibitions
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2021 BUNKER PROJECTS
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ARCHIVES
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