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The Lancaster Museum of Art and History (MOAH) is pleased to announce Formation, an exhibition that explores clay’s inherent malleability and concern for the body, its politics, and experience. Formation highlights the work of nine artists: Kiel Johnson, Kevin Kowalski, Galia Linn, Elana Mann, Elyse Pignolet, Aili Schmeltz, Diane Silver, Camilla Taylor, and Sean Yang. The exhibition will be on view from Saturday, January 13, 2024, through Sunday, April 14, 2024.

Galia Linn’s Guardians and Vessels is a twenty-year survey of Linn’s work that centers her embrace of both strength and vulnerability in her art practice. The exhibition is comprised of sixty individual pieces from various bodies of work. Artist Aili Schmeltz’s Cairn 24 creates works that are informed by the environmental, philosophical, and architectural histories of the American West. Camilla Taylor’s The Knot explores the tension between the process of individualization and being a member of a collective. Diane Silver’s Stones Throw minimalist aesthetic tangibly showcases a woman’s reproductive reality, commenting on the state of female autonomy in the present day. Elana Mann’s Bellows and Quakes explores the power of collective voice and sound while Elyse Pignolet’s Hysterical explores ideas of post-colonial ethnicity, global exchange, and intersectionality through a feminist lens. Kevin Kowalski’s work takes cues from the natural world and visual landscapes while Kiel Johnson’s Notes on a Morning Walk is an autobiographical series documenting Johnson’s daily walks in the small, idyllic village he currently resides. Artist Sean Yang’s TOUCH THE TRUESELF WITHIN exploits the tension between reproduced and handcrafted objects through his sculptural ceramics and mixed media works, seeking to examine social control, collective unconsciousness, individual identity, and cultural transformation.

Formation Exhibition

Kiel Johnson

Notes on a Morning Walk

The idea of “work as play” is central to Kiel Johnson’s art practice bringing a sense of curiosity and exploration through his whimsical creations. His primary focus is on drawings and sculpture that speak to the travels and adventures of his everyday life. Johnson’s sculptures and drawings serve as a visual diary that captures his animated and vast stream of consciousness.

Kevin Kowalski

Sculptural Landscapes

Inspired by the natural word, artist Kevin Kowalski creates ceramic works that call to the visual landscapes around him. His travels and experience in clay provide the foundation for his creative process, allowing him to develop his skills in techniques such as mocha diffusion and many other decorative processes.

Galia Linn

Vessels and Guardians

Surrounded by archeological sites and spaces in war-torn Israel, Galia Linn gained inspiration from ancient and contemporary relics from past and present civilizations. She reacts to these relics and stories through her sculptures, paintings, and site-responsive installations.

Elana Mann

Bellows and Quakes

Through sculpture, sound, and community engagement, the artwork of artist Elana Mann explores the power of the collective voice and the politics of listening. Mann’s sculptures, resembling the horns and rattles prominent in musical instruments, serve to create, amplify, and embody sound.

Elyse Pignolet

Hysterical

Primarily working in ceramics, artist Elyse Pignolet has been inspired by and dealt with various themes including political and social issues, the dialectic between feminism and misogyny, and cultural stereotypes. Often projects reflect the urban environment from where she lives and works.

Aili Schmeltz

Cairn 24

Informed by the environmental, philosophical, and architectural histories of the American West, artist Aili Schmeltz creates sculptures and wall-hung works that combine painting, collage, embroidery, and ceramics. Her practice stems from a fascination of the desert landscape, research into feminist history, and an examination of the politics and utopian ideology associated to the development, destruction, and conservation of the West.

Diane Silver

Stones Throw

For Diane Silver, working with her hands is a transformative act taking inspiration from the natural world. Silver utilizes ceramic, wax, and textiles like hemp and thread to create organic forms that resemble those in nature. Silver allows for the material to speak for itself with a raw and organic feel.

Camilla Taylor

The Knot

Camilla Taylor’s monochromatic sculptures often cite figurative and architectural forms through references of the human body and home. Her work features a subtle and limited palette of blacks, greys, and graphite. For Taylor, certain colors feel too “loud,” opting for a color palette that feels more intimate and introspective.

Sean Yang

TOUCH THE TRUESELF WITHIN

Through sculptural ceramics and mixed- media works, artist Sean Yang’s practice exploits the tension between reproduction and handcrafted objects, using this dialogue to examine social control, collective unconsciousness, individual identity, and cultural transformation.