ONLINE INTERNATIONAL CERAMICS EXHBITION
3RD EDITION
Victoria Carballo
Remnants
(2020) Video
My work is driven by the exploration of pre-determined systems or rituals, often operating within the context of mental health issues and identity. In my work, clay acts as a metaphor for the self. The sculptures are portraits of my mental strain, exemplified by the physical characteristics of the materials and their interactions with each other. In these portraits, the physical strength of the material corresponds with my mental stability or lack thereof. At times, the materials can carry the meaning of gender, existing in situations of support, risk, or balance depending on their interaction.
In the videos titled Remnants, I utilize clay to document the ritual of pointless aggression. The mouth acts as a site for art-making—the result, odd clay objects that are mere traces of actions delivered upon them, studio detritus. The clay’s haptic nature makes it a poignant material to collect and record these moments of interaction and are rarely fired and kept impermanent, to speak to the transient nature of making by keeping the material in a stage of impermanence.