Atria #1 Sculpture by Katelyn Odenheimer

Sculpture: Ceramic, Clay, 3D Sculpting, Pottery on Ceramic, Other.

The heart is both a vital organ and a forceful image, real and symbolic, literal and figurative. It is the center of vitality, houses the soul, and encompasses the innermost emotions. The multitude of anatomical hearts that make up Atria represent the anxiety and panic that consumes me. Conceptually, each form demonstrates the relationship between my physiological and psychological states: converting neurotic, obsessive thoughts, and the debilitating physical symptoms of anxiety attacks into a positive act of creating. I meticulously sculpt one porcelain form a day, allowing time for self-connection, a release of emotion, ritual, and a moment that is captured in time. Each form has life, a story that is burned and petrified by fire.

I am drawn to the process-based and meditative aspects of working in clay. Porcelain traditionally embodies perfection, but here through a tactile, responsive, and intuitive approach to making, the surface is marked by the process. Likewise, the glazed surfaces result from a highly unpredictable atmospheric firing. Each form is fired repeatedly until the surface variations genuinely reflect my mental state. I collaborate with the tools and materials that I use, allowing for accident, chance, and serendipity to take effect. By giving in to a process and allowing for it to dictate the results I can work to similarly relinquish control in my own life, thus releasing me from the pressures of living with a mental illness.

Chance and accident are inevitable in life. The forms ultimately become a representation of self. Synthesizing personal experiences through self-expression with fate and coincidental occurrences from the firing. There is a presence of the unpredictable. Much like how experiences and hardships leave imprints on a person. No two forms are identical just as no two humans experience anxiety the same way. When installed, the atrium of 200 porcelain hearts float gracefully in space, accompanied by deeply distressing sounds, inducing anxiety, anguish, and uncertainty. Atria is an immersive space for deep thinking, inquisition, and transformation.

(The work available for purchase is #1 of 200 from the Atria series)