Steven Dark: Artist Statement Although I am well–versed in the conceptual aspects of sculptural clay I have always considered myself to be primarily a vessel maker. I am unashamedly interested in and influenced by the long and diverse history of ceramics and pottery making. Classical utilitarian vessels in clay have always intrigued and inspired me. The most recent phase of my work is primarily concerned with the aesthetics of the lower Appalachian folk jug potters and my own idiosyncratic narrative impulse. I use the classic forms of the whimsical face and chicken jugs as a springboard – I then modify them to express my own offbeat sense of humor and curiosity toward the medium and subject matter. No matter what the narrative, it is always my intention to convey a folksy style of personal revelation or reflection. Personally the most exciting aspect of being a ceramist is the exploration of process. As a young artist, I was instantly seduced by the power of the potters wheel and have been ever since. I tend to work on a series of 6 to 8 pieces at a time, throwing on the wheel the primary forms and decorative parts. When the clay is at just the right stage of dryness I begin the assembly process. To the hollow sculptural form I attach the finer details, cutting, pushing and pulling; adding slabs, coils, and pulled handles until the desired final product is achieved. Regarding the decorative details of the figures, I deliberately aim for a sharp contrast between the eyes and teeth of porcelain and the buff color of the stoneware. The hats and costumes instill a sense of individual personality to each figure. I explore a broad range of human emotions in my expressive search for quirky individuality. I aspire to build a psychological bridge between the viewer and myself by playing the provocateur. Steven Dark, 2010 Ceramic artist Steven Dark’s work is well known on the Gulf Coast for his always irreverent take on traditional vessel forms and a dark self-deprecating humor that expresses itself in his recent series of caricature heads. In his over twenty year career, Steven has largely disdained functional pottery in favor of object making that reveals a one of a kind aesthetic, wherein the object, whether it be a satiric self-portrait as an anthropomorphized chicken or a simple vessel is created out of an inner need to express himself in defiance of the demands of a market sometimes unable to appreciate the need for the funky and unusual. Dark uses a mostly limited palette and references to a folk art tradition to create works that have a presence sometimes humorous and sometimes somber, expressing the seemingly disappearing idea that art is made to satisfy the demands of the soul of the artist and not to please the vagaries of popular taste. Donan Klooz Curator of Exhibitions Mobile Museum of Art