About Me

Hi, I am Charlie, a ceramic artist from San Jose, California. I have been working with clay for 12 years, i have a summer camp to thank for my early exposure and i was hooked immediately. I am currently a  studio arts major at Santa Clara University. 

The art on display in this exhibition represents two distinct bodies of work that explore my idiosyncrasies through posture and facial expression. Each is sculpted in clay, which offers me the flexibility and freedom needed  to depict the figure. The first body looks at my relationship to religion. In the second I reflect on my relationship with technology. 

Throughout history Shrines have held things people worship.  Using the shrine motif, I strip away traditional religious or spiritual imagery and replace it with myself.  Through each bust I attempt to capture the feelings I find too sensitive to share, trapped in an environment I continuously fail to understand.

The second body of work elevates and questions my use of technology. The positioning and posture of each figure is dictated  by a device.  When listening to music I feel a strong sense of focus and comfort.  When scrolling social media I feel detached and disconnected. Urgent matters are often discussed over the phone causing me to feel a sense of uneasiness and become fidgety.