Name: Midlands Clay Art Society – Annual Holiday Sale
Start: 2021-11-30T10:00:00-05:00
End: 2021-12-05T17:00:00-05:00

May 2021

Wed 19

May 19 @ 11:00 am - May 29 @ 5:00 pm

Figuratively Speaking: Interpretations of the Human Form / Lucy Bailey and K Wayne Thornley

Figuratively Speaking Interpretations of the Human Form Stormwater Studios Columbia, SC Lucy Bailey Ceramic Sculpture K Wayne Thornley Painting Thornley Statement My paintings for “Figuratively Speaking: Interpretations of the Human Form” continue my exploration of the human form as vessel. The abstracted forms suggest human form but serve more as abstract expressions of the human experience. Instead of the anatomically correct form, I choose to represent the body as the container, the shell that carries such things as memory, belief, or emotion. These figures on canvas began to emerge years ago in response to my feelings and frustration during my father’s Alzheimer’s experience. While that experience will always remain a part of my work, more recent events of our collective human experience including the fallout from systemic racism, the global pandemic, domestic terrorism and the widening gap between love and hate are finding their way into my creative process. Thornley Bio Thornley is an artist working in mixed media painting and assemblage and is a graduate of the University of South Carolina where he studied art, design, and marketing. His award-winning work has been shown in group and solo exhibitions throughout the Southeast and purchased for several private and corporate collections including The Greenwood Genetics Center and Wells Fargo. Recent juried exhibitions include the South Carolina Water Media Society Annual Exhibition (Signature Member) and the Greenville Artists Guild Annual Small Works Exhibition. Mixed media work by the artist has been selected for exhibition at ArtFields (2018 & 2019), an annual art competition and survey of Southeastern art held annually in Lake City, SC. His work was also featured in “Shelter,” a collection of artists’ responses to the Covid-19 Pandemic published by The Jasper Project. See more of his work on Instagram: instagram.com/kwaynethornley Bailey Statement My body of work continues a fascination with multiple textures and surface treatments in figurative ceramic sculpture while also diverging into new directions such as monochromatic pieces, metallic accents, and masks. For “Figuratively Speaking: Interpretations of the Human Form” I utilized cold finishes including graphite, powdered mica, polymer clay, and ground rust to achieve additional surface interest. Many pieces in this collection involve a reminder of impermanence, either via the surface treatment or a small skull image. Throughout my work I commonly use textured headpieces, hats, scarves, and collars as suggestions of each figure’s unique personality and social status. It is an invitation to view them all as characters in an imaginary narrative. Bailey Bio Lucy Bailey’s ceramic work always returns to the figure, though she has also created a series of embossed clay altar boxes to house thought-provoking assemblages of found objects, which also find their way into her busts at times. A School Psychologist and Licensed Professional Counselor by trade, Bailey is a self-taught artist, having taken advantage of several master classes and the generosity of the clay community. This year one of her sculptures was exhibited at ArtFields in Lake City, SC. Her work was awarded the Best in Show distinction in exhibitions by the Annual Artist’s Guild of Spartanburg (SC) Juried Show and the Arts Council of York County (SC) Annual Juried Competition. Bailey’s work has twice been selected for the 701 Center for Contemporary Art’s South Carolina Biennial show. Her work was published in Lark Books’ 500 Figures in Clay-2. Follow Lucy Bailey’s work on Instagram: instagram.com/lucybaileyclay Thornley

June 2021

Tue 8