BETH LO
BIOGRAPHY
Ceramist and mixed media artist Beth Lo makes work about childhood, family, her Asian-American heritage and cultural marginality. Her vessels and sculptures have been exhibited internationally, and she has been the recipient of a United States Artist Fellowship, a National Endowment for the Arts Individual Artist Fellowship, Montana Arts Council Individual Artist Grant and an American Craft Museum Design Award. Her work has acquired by the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, the American Museum of Ceramic Art, the Mint Museum and the Schein-Joseph International Museum of Ceramic Art, Microsoft Corporation, and others. She is also a children’s book illustrator and professional bass player. She retired after 30 years of teaching ceramics at the University of Montana in 2016.
ARTIST STATEMENT
My work in ceramics and mixed media collage revolves primarily around issues of family and my Asian-American background. Cultural marginality and blending, tradition and Westernization, language and translation are key elements in my work. Since the birth of my son in 1987, I have been drawing inspiration from major events in my family’s history, the day-to-day challenges of parenting, and my own childhood memories of being raised in a minority culture in the United States. I use the image of the child to reference innocence, potential, vulnerability and the quality of play. I utilize traditional or popular Asian aesthetics, including calligraphy, origami, Socialist Realist artwork, Chinese food and restaurants, and historical ceramics, often set in contrast to Western counterparts.
Chinese American To Go
