Artist Statement
My work consists of enamels that walk a fine line between the beautiful and the bizarre. The process of enameling is an ancient art, historically used as a way to create archival images and color on functional objects. I have drawn much inspiration from 18th Century portrait miniatures, because of their technical mastery and lush imagery.
Sexuality, gender, human relationships and issues surrounding the body are subjects that often permeate my work. Some of my drawings and forms are very literal interpretations, while others are more abstracted and ambiguous. My drawings often reference images from the media and popular culture to convey my ideas.
My most recent pieces are subtle commentaries on the idea of consumption in popular culture. Consuming (meaning to destroy, use or eat up) is a primary activity in most people’s daily life. People popping pills, chewing on apples and marking their body surgery are just a few of the images I have used to convey my ideas.
-Jessica Calderwood
JESSICA CALDERWOOD
EDUCATION
2005 MFA, Metals Program, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ
2001 BFA, Enameling Program, Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland, OH
SELECT SOLO EXHIBITIONS
2006 Recent Work, Central Arizona College, Coolidge, AZ
Recent Work, Good Girl Art Gallery, Springfield, MO
2005 In the Flesh, MFA Thesis Exhibition, Harry Wood Gallery, Arizona State University, AZ
2001 BFA Thesis Exhibition, Reinberger Gallery, Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland, OH
SELECT GROUP EXHIBITIONS
2006 The Art of Enameling, Mobilia Gallery, Cambridge, MA
On Fire, Juried by Linda Darty, Gallery M.I.M., Baltimore, MD
Life Insight: The Human Experience, Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft, Curated by Gail Brown, Louisville, KY
8th International Juried Enamel Exhiibition, Northern California Enamel Guild Exhibition, Richmond Art Center, Richmond, CA
Signs of Life, Facere’ Art Gallery, Seattle, WA
METALisms, Center for Visual Arts, Metropolitan State College, Denver, CO
Best of Show Exhibition, Phoenix Center for the Arts, Phoenix, AZ
Materials: Hard &Soft, Center for the Visual Arts, Denton, TX
2005 In Print / In Person, Thomas Riley Gallery, Curated by Maria Philips and Gretchen Goss, Woodmere, OH
Draw the Line, Phoenix Center for the Arts, Phoenix, AZ
Metamorphosis, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Juried, Gatlinburg, TN
Beyond the Object, SPACES Gallery, Curated by Gretchen Goss, Cleveland, OH
Refined IV: Innovation, Stephen F. Austin State University, Nationally Juried, Nacogdoches, TX
XXX, Santa Fe Clay Gallery, Curated by Sandy Besser, Santa Fe, NM
2004 Educators / Educated: Jewelry and Metals in Ohio, Curated by Gail Brown, Traveling Exhibition, Riffe Gallery, Reinberger Gallery, OH
Bodies of Work (Two Person Show), MonOrchid Studios, Phoenix, AZ
Focus on Enamels, Aaron Faber Gallery, Curated by Patricia Faber, SOFA, New York, NY
Graduate Summer Show, Harry Wood Gallery, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ
Opposing Forces (Three Person Show), Louis Carlos Bernal Gallery, Tucson, AZ
Get Your Heart On, Good Girl Art Gallery, Springfield, MO
Desert Alchemy, Dolphin Papers Gallery, NCECA, Indianapolis, IN
2003 The Square, Studio Fusion, International Invitational, London, England
Graduate Summer Show, Harry Wood Gallery, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ
SOFA Chicago, Exhibition in Print: Metalsmith Magazine, Navy Pier, Chicago, IL
On the Edge, Evergreen State College, Nationally Juried Olympia, WA
Making It in Metal, California College of Arts and Crafts, Nationally Juried, San Francisco, CA
Big/Little, Craft and Cultural Arts Gallery, Nationally Juried, Oakland, CA
25th Contemporary Crafts Show, Nationally Juried, Mesa Art Center, Mesa, AZ
2002 Indoor Sculpture Exhibition, Nationally Juried, Steamboat Springs, CO
Northern Californian Enamel Guild Exhibition, Internationally Juried, Richmond Art Center, Richmond, CA
2001 Color and Reflection, Internationally Juried, The Enamelist Society, Gatlinburg, TN
The Student Independent Exhibition, Juried, Reinberger Gallery, Cleveland, OH
2000 Northern California Enamel Guild Exhibition, Nationally Juried, Velvet da Vinci Gallery, San Francisco, CA
2006 Guest Lecturer and Workshop presenter, The Crucible, Oakland, CA
Enamelist Society Exhibition Award
Guest Lecturer, Metropolitan State College, Denver, CO
2005 Professional Development Grant, Arizona Commission on the Arts Arizona Artist Guild Award
Nomination, Joan Mitchell Foundation, MFA Grant
2004 Peggy Lamb Tuition Scholarship, Arizona State University
Nathan Cummings Fellowship, Arizona State University
Visiting Artist, Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland, OH
Visiting Artist, Pima Community College, Tucson, AZ
2003 Mel Someroski Memorial Award, On The Edge, The Enamelist Society
Second Place, Juried Graduate Exhibition, Harry Wood Gallery, Tempe, AZ
2002 Herberger Tuition Scholarship, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ
2001 Student Award of Excellence, Color and Reflection, The Enamelist Society
Helen Greene Perry Traveling Scholarship, BFA Thesis Show, Cleveland, OH
Sue Wall Award in Painting, 54th Student Independent Exhibition, Cleveland, OH
2000 Kenneth Bates Scholarship, Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland, OH
1999 Kenneth Bates Scholarship, Cleveland Institute of Art, Cleveland, OH\
Mesa Arts Center, Metals Program, Mesa, AZ, 2005- 06
John Michael Kohler Art Center, Arts/Industry, Iron Foundry, Sheboygan, WI, 2002
Cleveland Institute of Art, Enameling Department, Cleveland, OH, 2001
Ferro Corporation, Color Division, Cleveland, OH, 1999
2006 American Craft, ‘Portfolios’ Article, February/March Issue
2006 Arizona Foothills Magazine, September Issue, page A22
2006 The Cultural Times – The Arts of Colorado and Beyond, March Issue
2004 The Art of Enameling, Lark Books
2004 Enamel: Technique and Experiments, Smiling Greyhound Press
2003 Metalsmith Magazine (Cover), Exhibition in Print, Fall Issue
John Michael Kohler Art Center, Sheboygan, WI
Kohler Company, Kohler, WI
Ceramic Research Center, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ
Central Arizona College, Coolidge, AZ