Viola Frey was quoted in 1970 when asked about working in clay; “I have made a record of what has been and what is. I have attempted to make a permanent whole of the transitory fragments I have seen around me. Clay has the quality of right now! It is able to seize this very moment under hand and eye.”
I recently responded to a call for art “Homage” Exhibit at the Rivers Edge Gallery in Wyandotte. I immediately thought of Viola Frey. Although viewing my past work you might wonder where her influence lies. I’ve long been attracted to her figurative work. Her work is bold in both size and use of color. My work is typically never more than 15 inches in any direction and usually relies on safe colors combined with found objects. Yet it is in these quotes that I feel a kinship. She goes on to say “For the viewer to experience a clay form in space, to see it or hold it,… is to evoke a primary physical and mental response that has not changed or weakened in 5000 years.”
This is why I work in clay. I’m seduced by its tangible qualities. Process and product are equally irresistible to me.
Below are my 3 pieces in homage to Viola Frey.
The exhibit open February 17th and runs until March 17th.
Barbara Melnik Carson 