For information about Betsy Alwin's artwork contact:

http://www.betsyalwin.com/

betsyalwin1@gmail.com

"I consider the objects and events that fill our days as much sculpture material as clay or metal. As a maker, I think about how these elements can be manipulated and distilled not merely as representation, but as experience, sensation, and idea. The objects that are represented in my work fulfill this, in part, because they create a foundation for tactility and familiarity. Process and crafty in my work has been a way for me to examine material as a carrier of meaning. This has led me to ask, 'How can form, texture and material create affect? How might my work convey some of the existential concerns that have developed for me?'

My current body of work approaches these problems in a series of slip=cast objects and installations that use texture, cast ceramic slip forms and mixed media. I have developed a process of casting and hand carving ceramic lace. The use of lace pattern conveys strength through delicate form. Lace neither conceals nor reveals. The guipure lace that I use provides a structural balance between negative and positive space. When combine with porcelain, strong and delicate material, the airy forms are capable of supporting themselves and the weight of the other material. The dichotomy of strength and fragility presented by these ceramic forms is an important conceptual component of my work." (Betsy Alwin)