AMY HENSON

BIOGRAPHY

I earned my BFA in Studio Art: Ceramics from Southern Methodist University in 2007 and my MFA in Ceramics from University of North Texas in 2022. My Liquor Set was selected for a Juror’s Award at Clay Art Center’s 2023 group exhibition “Functional Fall: A Seat at The Table,” and I previously received an Honorable Mention for one of my berry bowls from Clay Arts Vegas in 2017. At the 2023 NCECA conference Allee Etheridge and I co-organized the successful concurrent exhibition "Obscene." I teach ceramics as an adjunct in the D/FW metroplex and am pursuing my next solo exhibition. I live with my husband, Aaron, daughter Rosalie, and 2 old house cats. When I'm not working in the studio I enjoy sketching, reading, cooking, and one of my other great passions, horseback riding on my gelding Fuse.

ARTIST STATEMENT

I explore issues of cultural marginalization translated into hand-built functional ceramics, mixed media works, and sculptural installation. Currently my concepts focus on maternal feminism, inspired by the challenges of my lived experience as a woman, artist, and mother, and marginalized native Texas flora and fauna. Animals which thrive on the waste of our society like raccoons and opossums inspire disgust but often yield surprising benefits. The intersection of marginalization with functional or tactile art reinforces my interest in ceramics, at times combined with other craft media and vintage objects. Humble red earthenware is an ideal foundation with corporeal formal references, softly textured by rhythmic pinch marks. I create work that sings, in a cacophony or a chorus, about the injustice of oppression and acts as a clarion call for hope and reconciliation.

www.amyhensonceramics.com
Instagram: @alazan_ceramics