Edge: Brian Molanphy and Merrie Wright



Bryan Molanphy, Pousse, 2014

Merrie Wright, Dazzle Jays, 2013

   

Edge: Brian Molanphy and Merrie Wright

Curated by Chris Blackhurst

November 14 – December 19, 2014

Reception: November 14, 6:00 – 8:30 pm

 

Edge is an exhibition of ceramic work that transcends perception of what can typically be found in the traditional use of clay materials. The two artists represented in this exhibition take the ceramic medium away from center literally and conceptually. Through the use of camouflage, Merrie Wright’s urban wildlife challenges the viewer’s perception of time, space and reality, questioning the facades we create as we present ourselves in the world. Brian Molanphy’s, pousse series challenges not only the perception of line but also the materiality of the clay itself as he uses fire, starved of oxygen, to force a luscious, dark-skinned surface. Edge is an examination of what we may do to circumvent “normal.” – Chris Blackhurst

 

Brian Molanphy has exhibited in national venues such as the New Mexico Museum of Art & the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, exhibitions include venues in Canada, Korea, China, & several European countries. Molanphy is a recipient of a Fulbright grant to study at the National Manufactory of Sèvres, France and he was also a Fellow of the Camargo Foundation in Cassis and a Fellow of the Brown Foundation in Ménerbes, which led to several exhibitions in France. He is an elected member of the International Academy of Ceramics. Having taught at the Colorado College, the Pennsylvania State University, and the Alberta College of Art & Design, Molanphy moved from Marseille in the fall of 2011 to join the faculty of SMU's Meadows School of the Arts. In 2012 he was awarded a Meadows Fellowship and a University Research Council grant for research on marbled clay. In 2014 he was awarded another University Research Council grant to continue study in Provence while on research leave for the 2014-5 year.

 

Merrie Wright received her BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute, spent one year as a post-baccalaureate student at Southern Methodist University, and received her MFA from Louisiana State University. After teaching at several universities, Wright has settled into her studio in east Texas and is an Associate Professor and Chair for the Department of Art & Art History at the University of Texas at Tyler. Wright exhibits her works nationally, does workshops and lectures for universities, art centers, and galleries, and has curated a number of ceramic-based exhibitions.