Tender Vessels: 2019 Fellowship Show

Tender Vessels presents work from Studio Gallery’s Fellowship Artists J. S. Herbert and Nicole Ida Fossi. These pieces encompass the strengths and vulnerabilities of the individual; whether rendered as human through paint or more abstractly through clay.

Fossi’s oil paintings on canvas depict various emotional states through the physicality of the body. She focuses on the banality, tension, pain, and joy of inhabiting a body as well as the conflict between how one sees oneself and how one is seen by others. She also shows recent portrait paintings and drawings focusing on moments of reflection and intimacy.

Ceramic vessels and sculptures by J. S. Herbert symbolize the individuality in human beings. Even when some vessels look similar, each one is uniquely and individually made with its own personality and purpose. The vessels also represent the juxtaposition of fragility and strength in individuals by showing resilience to high temperatures in the process of firing, but at the same time being at the verge of shattering into pieces with just a small push.