Focus on: Jessica Calderwood – The Penland Sketchbook

The Penland Gallery and Visitors Center proudly presents the second Focus exhibition of the season, a new body of enameled jewelry, sculpture, and mixed-media paintings by Jessica Calderwood. Now on view in the Focus Gallery, the show runs through Sunday, June 16th.

"Entangled (Magnolia Grandiflora)," enamel on copper, ceramic decals, china paint, sterling silver, 10 x 10 x 2 inches — “Entangled (Magnolia Grandiflora),” enamel on copper, ceramic decals, china paint, sterling silver, 10 x 10 x 2 inches

“My most recent series combines flower/botanical forms with fragments of the human body in order to address the narrative of human life cycles: change, growth, metamorphosis, aging, loss. The choice to use flower and plant forms is multi-layered. Flowers have been used throughout history as symbols of the feminine. It can be found in mythology, literature, folklore and visual art. In addition, Western culture has an intricate system of flower symbolism that has been a way for humans to express and communicate complex emotions.

“Garden Variety”, brooch: enamel, copper, ceramic decals, china paint, sterling silver, glass beads, stainless steel

“I created these work to be intentionally humorous and ironic. These human/plant hybrids are large, voluptuous, headless, and sometimes armless. They are intended to portray a spectrum of concepts relating to gender and identity. The Flower People are at once, powerful and powerless, beautiful and absurd, inflated, and amputated.” – Jessica Calderwood

“Overgrown”, mixed-media collage: magazine paper, enamel, copper, ceramic decals, thread, adhesive, glass beads, gouache, graphite on paper, 18 x 12 inches

Jessica Calderwood is an image-maker and sculptor who works primarily in the mediums of metal and enamel, using a combination of traditional and industrial metalworking processes to make statements about contemporary life. Her works are imbued with personal stories and vibrant color. She received her BFA from the Cleveland Institute of Art and her MFA from Arizona State University, with an emphasis in metalworking. Her work has been exhibited throughout the U.S. and internationally. She has participated in artist residencies with the John Michael Kohler Arts/Industry Program and the Mesa Arts Center. Her work has also been published in Metalsmith Magazine, American Craft, NICHE, Ornament, the Lark 500 series, and The Art of Enameling. She has been an Assistant Professor of Art at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh since 2008. Most recently, Calderwood is a recipient of a Wisconsin Arts Board Fellowship.

“So Square”, mixed-media sculpture: ceramic, paint, enamel, copper, fiberglass, silk flowers, 4 x 2.5 x 2.5 feet

Click here to visit Jessica’s website, where you can see more of her work.
Click here to visit the Penland Gallery website.
Penland’s Focus Gallery is a space primarily dedicated to single-artist exhibitions. Focusing on individual artists over the course of the year, it presents a larger selection of their work to gallery visitors and patrons.
Click here for more information about the Focus Gallery.