Cylinders · Lauren Mabry

In Cylinders, Lauren Mabry applies layers of glazes to her ceramic pieces, giving them the flavor of an abstract expressionist painting.

In a statement about her work, she says that she hopes it allows viewers to experience color, form and matter as a synergistic whole in a new unexpected way. She sees an inherent sense of mystery in the ceramic medium. "To finish a work, it must always be removed from my hand, loaded into a closed kiln and heated to temperatures that melt the materials together, transforming the piece. I anticipate the outcome but it is always different from my expectations. That same sense of 'unknown element' remains in my completed work."

Mabry stated, "The surfaces of my ceramic cylinders are bold, deep, dynamic compositions. The act of painting my work with layered slips and glazes is an intuitive process, which I have developed over time through experimenting with materials and methods."

Mabry earned a bachelor of fine arts in ceramics from the Kansas City Art Institute in 2007 and is working on a master's degree in ceramics at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln.