Stephanie Imbierowicz

I am a 23 year old ceramicist from Bel Air, Maryland. I was introduced to ceramics in high school and immediately fell in love, not only with the medium but, the ceramic community as a whole. There’s something so beautiful to me about being able to create art straight from the earth. My work has been influenced by the surrealist, psychedelic and underground comix movements. While I focus my studies on ceramics, I also love to paint, sew, and experiment with all different types of mediums. 

My current work focuses on displaying color and comedic distortion, while also commenting on serious topics such as gender and sexuality. I create androgynous forms posed in different ways and created in different mediums to evoke different subconscious feelings in each viewer. Each piece has a story behind it if you’re willing to see it. Every form is unique and unowned. If you stare long enough into the eyes of my forms they seem to stare back with unfazed, content looks. My forms are often made from clay, wood, and soft sculptures.

            While experimenting with different mediums is one of my favorite aspects of art, my track is ceramics. I am a sculptural ceramicist who creates slab built structures that resemble aspects of the human form. I create tall structures that can appear unstable and misshapen but, tend to stand tall and stand sturdy like the resilient humans we can be. My forms can be found three dimensional or carved on a flat surface. I use a mix of underglazes and regular glazes to create bright vivid colors that flow with my work as a whole.

            In terms of painting, I have recently been experimenting with cutting forms into MDF board and painting them on both sides to be free standing three dimensional paintings. Eliminating the background of a painting opens up its environmental opportunities. When there is no set background, anywhere it is placed is its background. This brings in a new element of subconscious story telling. When placing a free standing object you must be weary of its neighbors. A form amongst forms creates new stories when it involves interaction. Each character is unique no matter the medium, and each character tells a story whether you can read it or not.