“The Quiddity of Clay” by Sara D’Alessandro

I really enjoy gallery talks when I am able to attend them. Since I work here it makes it convenient to go to the talks that are scheduled. Sara D’ Alessandro talked about what she liked about working with clay. She loves the plasticity of clay versus other media; e.g. marble, steel, wood, etc. Plasticity is the ability to retain a shape attained by pressure deformation (Wikipedia). She enjoys that clay can be molded and holds its shape. Sara likes putting layers of texture on clay to give the piece history. Clay has been around for thousands of years and she likes to record history in her sculptures.

Sara uses slab and coil techniques to create her pieces. She is influenced by nature and does not have any 90 degree angles in her work. She recently started forming sculptures out of solid pieces of clay that weigh over 1,000 pounds, then hollowing them out to fire. The terra cotta that she uses for her pieces are low fired and under glazed. Sara is not a fan of shiny glazes. Her pieces are meant to be viewed in an outdoor setting and a shiny glaze would not be ideal in sunlight. The terra cotta sculptures will last more than a lifetime outdoors as long as they do not sit in a pool of water, they are raised off the ground and water does not drip on them constantly.

If you missed the show it is still on view through Saturday, March 28!

Tanya Landin

Gallery and Workshop Assistant