PHILADELPHIA, PA.- The Clay Studio is presenting four exciting solo exhibitions this September – Internal Voice: Ahrong Kim, the reality of it is: Claudia Mastrobuono, holding forth: gwendolyn yoppolo, and Arnie Zimmerman: Springtime Vase Triptis. Each exhibition is on view at the Old City gallery from September 1 through October 1, 2017. To coincide with the opening of the new exhibitions, Clay Studio will host Artist Talks and Reception on Thursday, September 7, from 6:00 to 8:00 PM. During this free event (open to the public) guests are inviting to join exhibiting artists Kim, Mastrobuono, and Zimmerman for creative discussions and to celebrate the display of their work.

Internal Voice: Ahrong Kim
Clay Studio Resident Artist Ahrong Kim makes work based on psychological observations that represent internal voices. The intricate patterns, colors, and dreamscapes she incorporates in the work featured in her solo exhibition act as a visual diary of her everyday emotions.

“Humans are emotional creatures. Individuals feel a diverse range of emotions even during a short time or on a small occasion. Emotions are formed naturally through many experiences of individuals and there are an innumerable number of ways to express emotions. Of these, the artist’s task is to conduct analysis of these experiences from the perspective of emotion and to sensitively materialize them.

Through my works, I aim to express the topic of emotions outwardly by attempting to describe a various range of psychological states existing in our environment with visual formation of colors and figurative form.” – Ahrong Kim

Hailing from South Korea, Ahrong Kim now lives and works in Philadelphia, where she is currently a Resident Artist at The Clay Studio. Prior to beginning her residency, she received the Mima Weissmann Award at the Ceramics Program, Office for the Arts at Harvard in 2013. Kim received her BFA in Ceramics from Kon Kuk University in Korea in 2008 and her MFA from Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, Rhode Island in 2013.

the reality of it is: Claudia Mastrobuono
Claudia Mastrobuono is also a current Resident Artist at The Clay Studio. Each of her works depends on a conversation between her concept and the architecture of the chosen space. Through slip-cast ceramic forms and fiber, she often explores overarching themes of imminent failure by using balance, weight, and fragility, which create elements of suspense for the viewer. In the reality of it is, Mastrobuono departs from her usual minimalism with a riotous floral installation comprised of ceramic and fiber sculpture, exploring her repressed passion for exuberant ornament.

Claudia Mastrobuono received her MFA in ceramics from the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth in May 2012 and began working in Colorado shortly thereafter. Her work is heavily influenced by her background in traditional fiber processes such as weaving, knitting, and embroidery. Most recently, Mastrobuono taught ceramics and sculpture at the Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design in Denver, Colorado. She has been an artist-in-residence at Anderson Ranch Art Center, Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts, PlatteForum, and Redline Denver.

holding forth: gwendolyn yoppolo
gwendolyn yoppolo has studied ceramics, education, and sociology, all of which inform her work. Interested in the moment of appetite, yoppolo makes utensils and other objects to explore the human states of anticipation, satiation, and activation.

“My pieces of necessity engage the physical senses but also exercise the mental, emotional, interpersonal, and spiritual capacities that we use to understand our world. These experiences affect our senses of self and other; of immanence; of mental and emotional processing; of transformation; or of time, among others. Feeding vessels, for example, hold forth ideas about self and other: these vessels hold forth the space of generosity, empathy, and vulnerability that exist in the moment of two people feeding each other. Thus, the heart of this work lies in its quiet receptivity, wherein it holds our changing perceptions of our world.” – gwendolyn yoppolo

gwendolyn yoppolo earned an MFA in Ceramics from Penn State University, an MA in Education from Columbia University, and a BA in Sociology from Haverford College. Her writing can be found in Studio Potter, Pottery Making Illustrated, and Passion and Pedagogy. She is currently serving as Assistant Professor of Ceramics at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania.

Arnie Zimmerman: Springtime Vase Triptis
In the Bonovitz Space, guests will find a massive vase installation by Arnie Zimmerman, which will consist of over 50 large slip-cast vases he created during an artist residency at Neue Porzellanfabrick in Triptis, Germany. There, Zimmerman relished the opportunity to work in a factory setting, which gave him the unique opportunity to interact with the workers and benefit from their experience.

Arnie Zimmerman studied at Kansas City Art Institute and at Alfred College of Ceramic Art in New York. He is currently a full-time sculptor working with ceramic materials in Hudson, New York. Exhibitions, symposia, and artist residencies have taken him to numerous places within the United States as well as Europe and Asia. The scale of his work has varied over the years from extensive, room-filling installations to small figurines or teapots with portraits.