Visions In Clay 2023
Ariel Bowman
Ariel Bowman was raised in Dallas, Texas where her parents are both artists. Growing up, she spent a lot of time outside with animals. The undeveloped woodlands that surrounded her childhood home inspired her to create art that focused on the natural world. As a sculptor, Ariel works in clay using a variety of mixed media techniques.
Clay is the most influential material that Ariel has worked with. She earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in ceramics from the Kansas City Art Institute in 2011, and a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Florida in 2018. She has studied abroad at the International Ceramics Studio in Hungary and was awarded the Regina K. Brown NCECA undergraduate and graduate fellowships. Ariel has been an artist in residence at the Armory Art Center and her work has been collected by the Belger Arts Center, the Florida Museum of Natural History, and the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts.
I make sculptures of prehistoric animals that represent the wonder to be found in natural history. I am intrigued by animals that evolved with distinct features, such as unfamiliar tusks, strange, elongated limbs, and unusual proportions. I use clay to bring these extinct creatures back to life, sculpting folds of flesh and filling their bellies with air. The goal of my work is to bridge the gap between art and science. In my work I use reflective nostalgia and imaginative realism to place extinct creatures in the context of human history.
The Timekeepers series presents these extinct creatures as decorative objects inspired by 18th century French mantle clocks. This period in history represents the age before the discovery of fossils that changed our perception of time and our relationship to nature. The clocks tick backwards presenting a challenge to the viewer’s expectations and understanding of time. Prehistoric animals are from deep time, the geologic time scale used to measure the age of the earth. These millions and billions of years are like hours and days to the minutes that have been human history. As the clocks tick infinitely backwards the mysterious animals of the past return, grow more powerful, and soon sit atop the remains of time itself.
Beats High Mountain Down
Ceramic, mixed media
19’’h x 20’’w x 9’’d
2019
$4825