KALFAYAN GALLERIES PRESENTS “SHAPED BY EARTH”

The exhibition “Shaped by Earth” at Kalfayan Galleries reflects upon the timeless importance of clay as a medium of artistic creation. Ceramics are ranked among the oldest forms of art, while ceramic artifacts, often known as “catnip for archaeologists”, provide valuable information on past civilizations.

As man explored the limitless creative potential of working with clay, ceramics evolved gradually into a form of expression that was no longer limited exclusively to utilitarian or religious objects. 

With time clay established itself as one of the most important tools of visual expression, with ancient and traditional ceramics being an inexhaustible source of inspiration. The debate ‘art vs craft’ which was recycled from time to time in Art Theory and which resurfaced in 2003 when Grayson Perry was awarded with the Turner Prize, today seems obsolete. Of particular interest is also the fact that at the opposite end of the catalytic influence of new Technologies and AI on contemporary art production, stands the revived interest about the handmaking creative processes and the dynamic shift of artists, among others, to the art of using clay as an expressive medium.