con o sin cebollas / with or without onions: Christina Erives

Erives is a LA based Mexican American artist working primarily in ceramic, which explores the narratives around food and the concept of contemporary womanhood. She graduated from California State University, Northridge with a BFA and MA and an MFA from Penn State University. She was a Visiting Artist Instructor at the University of Montana from 2019 to May 2020. She has exhibited in the USA and Mexico, and was Emerging Artist and awarded Victor Spinski Award at the National Council On Education for The Ceramics Arts in 2017.

This exhibition is supported by an essay written by artist, writer, activist and regular contributor to ceramic magazine Studio Potter, Amanda Barr. Barr provided a reading of her works through her interviews with the artist and her own scholarship in Spanish and Ceramics. Here is an excerpt from her essay: “through her facsimiles of food and tableware, Erives – an internationally recognized artist – reflects upon a woman’s place in the world while both embraces and rejects it. Her food does not nourish or feed; it is ceramic, and thus permanent. These works are a reminder of the values that she leaves behind; portraits of heritage forever inscribed in clay but not all will continue to be practiced.” The titles and essay are in both English and Spanish to reflect and honor the artist’s bilingual background.