Visage: Ceramic Works by Nancy VanKanegan is on display July 23 through October 14 in the Popular Library exhibit cases and the Congress Corridor east display window on the ground floor of Harold Washington Library Center.
The exhibit features ceramic masks and jars with Jinn (genies) trapped inside, peering out at the viewer. The artist states, "Clay is the most mutable of media, creating shape from mud with water and pressure. In the human drama of reacting to social situations, fluctuating facial expressions can mask response to the world. Limiting parts of the visible face edits the input and output of information: a possible tool of survival, protection or connection. Facial expressions can be fleeting and capricious. The clay, when fired, vitrifies into an eternally solid form."
About the Artist
Raised in rural Illinois, Nancy VanKanegan's immersion in nature led her to fascination with the science and stories of the natural world. In art school she discovered how yoga can integrate the human body and spirit as creative aspects of nature. A lifetime teaching art and yoga to people of all ages and living in the diverse cultural landscape of Chicago has led her to a explore a deeper understanding of the connections between nature, story and dreams.
VanKanegan will give an Artist Talk at 2 p.m. Saturday, October 1 in the Chicago Authors Room on the 7th floor of Harold Washington Library Center.
