
Waves. Emily Duke. 2020.
Emily Duke earned her MFA from The New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University (2016) and an undergraduate degree in Crafts from the College for Creative Studies (2009). Duke continually exhibits her work in group and solo shows in Detroit, Cleveland, Kansas City and Philadelphia. She has participated in residencies at Ox-Bow School of Art, Red Star Studios, Chulitna Lodge Research Institute and the Center for Holographic Arts. Duke was named an Emerging Artist of 2013 by Ceramics Monthly Magazine. While her studio endeavors are primarily rooted in the ceramic process, her completed work encompasses multi-material installations, hybridized ceramic objects and performative video.
Visit Emily Duke’s website.
My work takes the form of installations, discreet ceramic objects and performative video. Within my sculptures, assemblages of posed geometric forms, draped curtains and steel armatures build physical and metaphorical spaces that reference surreal, domestic landscapes. These thematic tableaus serve as a ground for experiencing the performative presence of sculptural objects. The subjects I employ in my work relate to my ongoing research into historical superstitions and our humanistic urge to build meaning around the objects we collect. I am in constant pursuit of linking the agency of objects with the human body as catalyst.