Beverly Semmes: Starcraft

Semmes, A Brooklyn-based artist, is known internationally for her unique multimedia installations. She works in contradictions, challenging the conventional definitions of craft and “women’s work” by creating completely non-functional pieces out of traditional materials such as clay and fabric. Treading the line between fantasy and reality, she evokes visions of fairy tales with her massively lush silk and velvet dresses, pieces that evolved from costumes the artist designed for her photographic and video pieces. Semmes’ ceramic and crystal pots defy the time-honored symmetry and beauty expected in pottery and glass. Although irregular and distorted, the crystal work poses a dazzling contrast to the lusciously colored, but misshapen, clay pots. Organized by the Hunter Museum of American Art, Chattanooga.