Gallery Displays Hauntingly Surreal Sculptures
The figures of ceramic sculptor Curt LaCross reflect much more than simple appearances.
According to LaCross, his art is not an attempt to create idealized,
classically beautiful figures but, rather, a process of capturing in
clay the darkness in every person.
“I’m interested in making these kind of desperate people,” he explains.
“I want a connection between the art and the viewer that touches this
dark side that works in everyone.”
LaCross’
exhibit, titled “Conversations with Apparitions and Other Obstacles,”
continues in the Flora Kirsch Beck Gallery in the Clack Art Center at
Alma College through Thursday, March 13. Admission is free and open to
the public. Gallery hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays
and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays.
A reception and gallery talk take place at 6:30 p.m. March 13.
As per the artist’s statement, the figurative sculptures explore the
fine line between man as monstrosity and man as rational being. This
has led to the development of a body of work that demonstrates the
physical and psychoanalytical paradoxes in the human psyche.
LaCross likens his process of visually representing a sort of internal realism to that of a poet.
“Ultimately, I want my work to reveal reality or truth,” says
LaCross. “And like a poet who experiments with words and form, I
am constantly trying to find the specific materials and positions that
say exactly what I want to convey.”
LaCross received a bachelor of fine arts degree in two-dimensional and
three-dimensional art from Central Michigan University and a master of
fine arts degree from Michigan State University. His work has been
exhibited at the University of South Carolina, The Art Garage of South
Carolina, Art Miami, and National Council on Education for the Ceramic
Arts (NCECA) and Sculpture Objects and Functional Art (SOFA)
expositions in Chicago.
He also has work in the permanent collection of Mobile Museum of Art in
Mobile, Alabama, and the Porter Price Collection in Columbia, S.C.
Awards include Best of Show at the 2000 Midland Center for the Arts and
first place in The Horrible Art Exhibition located in Columbia, S.C.
LaCross lives in Alma and teaches middle school art in Holt.
Posted: Wed, February 27th, 2008 at 2:46PM
