Jerilyn Virden

Rooted in the vernacular of the vessel, I work with earthenware to create utilitarian forms, sculptural vessels, and abstract sculptures. Though these bodies of work seem disparate, they are connected through a shared focus of form, balance, and presence. Drawing from unexpected sources, an ancient headrest or a goat trough, I pare down forms and exaggerate proportions, accentuating their sense of generosity and strength. Hollow forms create a sense of weight that feels both grounded and lifted. The utilitarian forms extend from my sculptural work, translating those ideas into daily use. Through a process of building, scraping, and excavating, each piece retains a visual record of its making. Layers of glaze soften these individual marks, bringing more clarity to the form. The surface becomes a way to manipulate scale, moving from intimacy to expansion in the way one understands a landscape by knowing both the small stone at one's feet and the bulk of the mountain far away.