Teresa Faris
medium: sculpture
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Contact information
Artist resides in: Madison, WI
Email Address: tffaris@yahoo.com
Artist statement
I see artwork as a tool that elevates everyday thought to an exploratory level. The objects that I make are intended to help the viewer to either recall a memory/feeling or begin a new dialogue.
My fascination with individualism/connectedness, impermanence and the human struggle of trying to measure and preserve time initiated vast research of antique time measurement devices, Victorian mourning jewelry, and obscure utilitarian and ritual objects. I call upon these images as well as personal memory in my work.
Working through the ideas of fragility, memory and connectedness has lead me to think about the link that we have to all living things and the complexities and absurdity of the ideas of superiority.
In reaction to this research, I have begun an ongoing series titled A Collaboration with a Bird. These pieces are constructed of metal and wood objects that have been carved by a bird.
Biography
MFA, University of Wisconsin, Madison; BFA, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Currently teaches at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Head of Metals Program (2003-present). Former teaching appointments: San Diego State University, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Recent exhibitions include: Elie Hirsch // Teresa F. Faris - Lea, Dora, Olga, Adama & a collaboration with a bird, Silke Gallery, Antwerp, Belgium (2008), Touching Warms The Art, Museum of Contemporary Craft, Portland, OR (2008), Metalsmiths and Mentors, Chazen Museum of Art, Madison, WI (2006), Wisconsin Teapots, West Bend Art Museum, West Bend, WI (2006). Resources: Steel, Rubber, Coal and Salt, Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland, OH (2005). CraftForms 2004, Wayne Art Center, Wayne, PA (2004).
Residencies: John Michael Kohler Arts Center, WI (1999).
Selected publications include: Clowes, Jody. Metalsmiths and Mentors. Chazen Museum of Art, University of Wisconsin-Madison. 2006 Making Metal Beads. Lark Books/Sterling Publishing Co. Inc. 2006, 500 Necklaces. Lark Books/Sterling Publishing Co. Inc. 2006. 500 Bracelets. Lark Books/Sterling Publishing Co. Inc. 2005.
Selected gallery representation: Taboo Studio, CA; Third Ward Jewelry, WI; Silke & the Gallery, Antwerp, Belgium.