Yana Goldfine: FIRE AND FORM

Artist Reception | Saturday, June 4, 2022 | 3-5 pm

Jack Fischer Gallery is pleased to present the work of Yana Goldfine. This will be the first exhibition for Goldfine’s work in our gallery. This exhibition runs concurrently with Robert Szot’s LOUD LOVE show.

Do not be fooled by what appears to be simple pottery or ceramic work. These are sculptures and paintings at the same time. The medium may be clay but that is where all allusions to ceramic work ends. I am beguiled by what appears to be a simple receptacle but this is merely an illusion, since I believe we are also looking at a sculptural painting. The pieces seem to hold an atmosphere of certainty both within and without.  A sense of self and uniqueness is given to them by a gorgeous awkwardness made that much bolder by Goldfine’s choice of colors. They hold their ground and space in a way that gives them a gravitas not usually found in what at first appears to be a vase.  All the while we are privy to an eloquence and intelligence of materials, yet a primitive and instinctual force driving towards elegant solutions.

Goldfine says of her work:  “Clay is an extraordinary medium to work in; its ability to hold a shape often at impossible angles, to receive pressure and weight without collapsing and continue to retain its form. Building layers of clay, each layer a thought, a worry, a wish, a prayer and also an armor. And yet what has emerged for me is an investigation of surface, texture and color, movement upon movement.

"Each of these pieces has been fired multiple times, some as many as six firings with each firing resulting in a different conclusion. Throughout this cloistered time I have tried to keep two things in mind; all the things we have lost and some of the wonderful things we have gained. This work speaks to me about both.”

— Jack Fischer

jackfischergallery.com