VISUAL ARTS + MUSEUMS

18 Hands Gallery presents Lorna Meaden, New Works.  18 Hands Gallery has the honor of welcoming Lorna Meaden for a one person exhibition February 19-27, 2011 with an opening on Saturday, February 19th from 6-9PM. In addition, Ms. Meaden is conducting a two day workshop titled, “Throwing, Altering & Decorating Porcelain”.

Lorna grew up in the western suburb of Chicago, La Grange. After receiving a B.A. from Fort Lewis College, she worked as a studio potter for the next eight years, then received an MFA in ceramics from Ohio University. She has recently been a resident artist at the Archie Bray Foundation in Helena, Montana, and at Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Snowmass Village, Colorado. She is currently a studio potter in Durango, Colorado.

Artist Statement:
In response to the industrial revolution, the Arts and Crafts Movement fought to preserve the handmade. Society is now faced with the age of information. As participants in American society, we are constantly bombarded with images, information, and material objects, often unaware of their sources or relevance to our lives. Consumerist culture defines value through an equation dependent upon durability, disposability, and convenience. With the acceleration of the pace of life, and this equation of value, the mark of the human hand is reduced or eliminated. We seem to be moving away from objects that are made by humans for humans. The motivation for my work is my belief in the value and relevance of the handmade utilitarian object. Utility supports an authenticity dependant upon the direct communication of maker to user, through object. The handmade object serves as an illustration of the individual, the unique, and the useful.

I am drawn to work that is rich in ornamentation, with lavish use of materials- both scarce in a culture of mass production. Historical sources for my work include 18th century European manufactured porcelain and silver. The making of my work references the process of sewing with the use of darting, press molds made from textured fabric, upholstery, and attachments made from drawn patterns.