Show at John Michael Kohler Arts Center

John Michael Kohler Arts Center
JERRY BENNETT AND BEAN FINNERAN: PUSHING THE LIMITSJune 19-September 25
The clay sculptures of Jerry Bennett (PA) and Bean Finneran (CA) defy expectations within both historical and contemporary contexts. Their evocative sculptures challenge the very nature of clay as art, specifically how this relatively fragile material can be used to structure seemingly improbable forms. While Bennett manipulates clay into open and airy gridded “vessels,” Finneran stacks hundreds or even thousands of slender clay strands in configurations reminiscent of large forms in tidal marshes.
To create filaments of clay that are particularly malleable yet strong enough to build three-dimensional structures, Jerry Bennett plays with the composition of the clay body—using a mixture of clay, paper pulp, and water known as “porcelainous paper clay.” He plays with the dynamic between positive and negative space, creating vessel forms which appear simultaneously full and empty.