Matteo Ricciardi

Matteo Ricciardi

Updated 12/12/2024

Writing for Student Juried Show: Sense of Place 

To make my life easier, I'm going to list and write about all the aspect of the piece. It all definitely needs to be rewritten to be more concise

    Bug on the Wall -

    Hand positions - 

    Defensive mimicry -   

Family Cradle 

(still brainstorming a title) 

    I'm hoping to have this project done and ready to submit for the juried show. The only things i need to do is fabricate the stand and hang the bronze.

Images of prints I could potentially submit: (Temporary pictures)

    These are just some prints I made over the semester that could potentially round out my submission for the student show.

Owl boy

    This originally started off as a digital piece for my life drawing class. We had to take a previous drawing and create a new art work using the life drawing as a reference. I used a drawing of a guy sitting in a chair looking away. I had the idea to make him look towards the viewer and to make it anatomically possible I gave him an owl head. Since owls can turn their heads 270 degrees. For the print class assignment we had to take an old artwork and either re-imagine it or add to it. So I decided to give him a proper background. I have other variations of this print on brown paper, with colored ink, and some with pressed colored paper.

    The original intention with him was to explore the idea of vulnerability. With him being properly naked with out clothes or feathers. While he is sitting facing the starry night sky he is instead looking over his shoulder. As if some walked in on him in this place of vulnerability. An alternate interpretation some others had was that he can't relax and enjoy the view in front of him, instead being pre occupied by what's behind him/ his past.

    For the prompt "sense of place" I have been brainstorming a few ways to tie him in. I want to express how this piece can be a representation of the vulnerability and comfort we have in our own homes. However as soon as any one visits our home we feel embarrassed of our comfortable life style. A weird comparison is how me and my roommates don't mind walking around our apartment in just our boxers and very sweatpants all day looking like slobs. Whenever my roommates have people come by the apartment i fell caught off guard. It honestly takes effort to interact with people in my own home. Since i was raised to do everything I'm my power to be a great server. Also I want to represent my self well. This piece is a show of those moments being caught of guard by unexpected company. 

(I think this is an interesting direction but I'm not entirely sold on it. It also needs a better title) 

    The other direction it can go is the being insecure in vulnerability with people. I feel more comfortable with being vulnerable than being 

Hermit's Volkswagen

    This piece is a screen print for the assignment where we had to take a small subject and make it big or vice versa. I decided to make a small hermit crab big, while to represent his size his "shell/home" would be something big. I chose to do an older Volkswagen beetle for a couple reasons. I wanted an object that would make the crab look large but not colossal. I wanted to be easy to imagine the crab at the size and a car made the most sense, since people already use cars as a measurement for size and interact with them everyday. When I decided to use a vehicle I immediately jumped to the Volkswagen Beetle since its one of my favorites. Old models of Beetles are very round and compliment the organic shape of the hermit crab. It also worked well since the trunks of beetles are located in the front of the car, so it gives a good place for the hermit crab to fit.

    I think this piece goes well with the prompt, due to hermit crabs living in shells left behind and created by other creatures. This piece is a great representation of the living situation of students. I dream of owning my home and having a permanent place to exist. I cant fully feeling comfortable in my apartment with knowing I can't live/exist here forever. This art work represents that feeling of not having a proper sense of home. The hermit crab needs a shell to protect his soft lower body from the outside world. Same goes for us, we need somewhere to exist and rest safely. For student though it's almost like living out of your car. Student have to live light knowing they may not be living in the same place the next year. Its un-wise to have more then your car can hold. The piece represents that idea by showing the crab living in the trunk of the beetle. Half of the storage space of the entire car being taken up by the crab itself. 

(I really like this piece a lot but I worry that it doesn't match my other work.  Also I need to be more concise about the idea, but I feel more strongly about it then the Owl boy print)

Updated 10/2/2024

Sketch of Newtons Head Cradle

(Added Writing) * Updated 9/7/2024

Ideas from the Summer: 

Idea #1: I'm Just Carapace with a Face

    This is an idea that is being expanded upon from last semester. I already started this piece to get a head start on projects for the semester. 

    The theme/design philosophy of this piece is to personify the feeling of being a wallflower at social events. Similar to a lot of other people, I grew up struggling to socially insert myself into groups and events. So I spent most of my time on the wall observing every one else. However it never felt like being a "wall flower" like some other romanticized stories. It felt more like being a bug just minding my own business watching every one else. I grew comfortable with my little spot on the wall. Like a spider making a home. Eventually I grew up and matured like every one else but these feeling can still appear and  every so often find my self back on the wall. So want this piece to physically manifests those feeling I had as a angsty teen, the ones that still bubble up more often then I would like. (Note I'm not totally committed to this theme, almost feels to corny. Still brainstorming other ideas)

Possibly have wings extended out, made from paper?

    Display: I imagined it would be fun to force a gallery to set him up on a corner. For him to be set up in a unconventional spot off in/around a corner. taking viewers by surprise. This can play into the insect theme as bugs are always hiding in the corners of your room and waiting to catch you off guard.

    

    Also I wanna explore ideas of posing his two free hands. Maybe extending a gift or holding something interesting.

    Also Also... If Ashley would let me, I would love to possibly make three of them in different poses on the wall... It may be too ambitious. 

 

Idea #2: To be or not to be, a Weevil

    The bug in the top left is an Acorn Weevil and I think it is one of the interesting and cutest things to exist on this planet. The body shape and imbedded head is oddly beautiful and interesting to look at. I don't have clear idea for a theme for this piece yet.

Idea #3: The Angler fish from Nemo's Nightmares 

    This piece takes direct inspiration from deep sea Angler fish. This pieces theme is tied to the insecurity and complicated feeling of making friends with imposter syndrome. 

Idea #4: Mind Blowing Idea

    This idea comes from just a few goofy sketches I made over the summer. I think this would make a great small sculpture. Almost the size of a baseball, like a fidget toy for a desk but it stares at you instead. 

    These are the original sketches, they just make me laugh uncontrollably.

Idea #5: KFC's Secret Ingredient

    This is another sketch I found in my sketchbook from the summer. I raised chickens growing up, maybe I can find a theme with that.

My previous sculptures:

 This sculpture is my favorite piece to date. Partially due to the bronze/wax process being my favorite form of working. The end product was just exactly what I had envisioned and seeing such an odd creature being brought to life in bronze is so endearing to me.

This piece is one of my favorites due to the odd direction I took to create a door knocker. Grabbing the tongue to use the knocker is a creative decision that I desire to replicate again. 

This light is my favorite thing I have fabricated. I haven't loved the fabrication process to much in previous projects. However this sculpture consistently call me back to it. I still carry an odd amount of pride in this piece, despite knowing how much more detailed orientated I wanted the piece to be. This light constantly feels like a first in a long line of projects i want to tackle in the future. 

Going Forward:

• Bronze - Cast Iron - Aluminum 
• Wax
• Steel
• Plaster (Specifically carving)
• Plastics

Cast Iron:

For the UW and San Diego Iron pours I wanna utilize the opportunities to pour as much metal as possible. I wanna gain as much experience at these events to push my career forward. I also wanna produce as many pieces as I can for each event.

Thematic Threads:

Monstrous caricatures of emotions - I want to keep up with the theme or illustrating complex emotions and phycological functions as monsters. Growing up I struggled to understand the more complex and unpleasant emotions and nuances of being an adult. So I want to personify these concepts into "creatures of the night" to help ground them more in reality and give it a tangible body. In this way I can associate these feeling to something physical, making it way less intangible. The creatures however must be twisted and contorted to still elude to their un-explainable nature. 

Industrial Gothic - The blending of the industrial look with the heavy detailed iconography of baroque and gothic architecture. This has been a direction I have pondered for a while. This thread comes from my love of historic European and brutalist architecture, with my interest in the industrial revolution and  machinery. This thematic thread is more of a blending of my preferred aesthetics, I'm still trying to create/find a good continues theme to back it up.

Recent Artists Inspiration:

Tomàs Barceló

Sculptor

Doug Stanat

Ceramic sculptor

Pascal Blanche:

3D/2D Rendering

Bri E: Sense of Place

   Sense Of Place Artist Statements

    My sculptures evoke a sense of place by asking about what it means to have a place in society. We are raised from a young age to fit into a designated spot in the social hierarchy. So many outside factors like gender, race, and sexuality affect our ability to be accepted by society. If someone doesn’t fit within their box or wants to find a different place, they are often shunned for going against the norm. My pieces talk about how it feels not knowing one’s place in society and what it is like to go against the norm.

    My first piece “On the Outside” has a vulnerable but strong feeling. It is inspired by a sea turtle shell where the internal skeleton of the shell is exposed to the viewer. A turtle’s shell is important for the creature’s protection so having the internal structure of the body exposed creates a sense of venerability. The skeleton is cast iron with a steel perimeter which are materials traditionally associated with strength. The spine of the shell is exposed in a way that openly presents itself to the viewer, rather than hides it. The juxtaposition between these themes relates to how people are expected to hide their vulnerability in society to fit in with everyone. However, I find that when someone wears their heart on their sleeve and isn't afraid to show their vulnerability and feelings, they are much stronger because they face societal expectations head-on. Not everyone wants to fit in the box society made for them so finding the strength to make their place within our harsh world is admirable.

    My dragonfly evokes a sense of place through the inability to find one's place in society because of factors outside of their control. Many people are discriminated against for reasons not of their own making, so I wanted to show what this helplessness feels like through the imagery of an animal. I chose a dragonfly to represent these feelings because they are rather small, unassuming creatures we tend to take for granted. The combination of paper and metal wings is meant to represent the uncontrollable factors that make the back wings too heavy to move. I created a sense of movement and attempted to fly by making two sets of three paper wings. The combination of multiple wings makes it look like the dragonfly is trying to take off, but nothing is happening without the help of the back wings. The dragonfly’s inability to fly relates to how rules and people's attitudes can alienate people despite someone's best efforts to find a place in society. Not everyone has our best interests at heart, so we must try our all to find a way to make a place for ourselves.

    My iron Jackelope is a memento to my home state of Wyoming. I have lived here for as long as I can remember, and it has become a significant part of who I am. I appreciate the quiet openness of the country that I may not have been able to experience if I had been raised somewhere else. This piece relates to the physical place of the West and how important it is to me. The jackelope is a legend of the west that originated in Wyoming which is why I chose it to represent my home. My jackalope sculpture is made of iron so I knew I wanted to make it shiny to show off the metal. The process of casting gives objects a sense of preciousness so coupling it with a purple represents the significance and how dear my home is to me.

    My ceramic sculpture, “Emergence,” talks about the sense of place through its oceanic imagery. The forms of the three matching sculptures are rather ambiguous, with no design focusing on only one ocean-inspired element. These pieces were made to evoke the sense of the ocean and its ability to sustain life. The base of the sculpture is made of bubble-like spheres that climb up the sides of the piece. The main form of the pieces is inspired by the movement of waves as well as carvings on the inside that are similar to the surfaces of table coral. The way the two halves of the wave-like forms are connected makes them look like clam shells. I wanted to have this somewhat representational imagery with an abstract nature to truly represent the oceans and their vast unknown expanse. Nature is an important part of my style, and I find the ocean to be one of the most beautiful and impressive places on the planet. This is why I tried to focus on evoking the feelings of the ocean and what this place means to me.

    My piece, “Family Tree,” talks about one’s place in the family unit. Family is very important to me, especially on my dad’s side. We have a very tight bond with my dad’s side of the family because everyone lives relatively close to one another, so it makes visiting each other easier and happens more often. I used watercolor paper to make leaves to represent each member of my extended family on my dad’s side and made paper owls to represent myself, and my immediate family. We are all connected through family so hopefully if we have no one else we have our place with each other. One of the birds is flying away to represent the process of growing up and making a place for yourself. Eventually, we all must leave our families but our place within them will usually remain.

    My last piece, “Home” is another piece about family and my home in Wyoming. I use imagery from both my Native American heritage as well as scenery from my home near Heart Mountain in northern Wyoming to represent how special one’s family and home can be. The form of the Moccasin and Indian paintbrush flowers ties back to Wyoming as well as the Western plains where my ancestors would reside. The images of Tipis and the landscape of Heart Mountain connect the physical homes of my ancestors to my home growing up. The representation of these places highlights their importance to me and where I reside within them. 

Bri Bonefield

11 December 2024

For my artist statement I tried to provide a general overview of my work, especially since I consider it the start of a series.

Artist Statement - Sense of place

In our lives we meet and interact with many people. Some are family, others are friends, some become more like partners while others are just acquaintances. We share moments with people, creating memories and relationships. These moments and relationships are precious to us. They help us develop and become better versions of ourselves. They give us a sense of belonging and purpose in life. Even a sense of place, a place of belonging and comfort. A place to retreat and feel heard. A place does not have to be a physical location. A sense of place can be with a loved one, a close friend, or anyone who feels safe. In my work, I use birds as a source of inspiration, because of how well they communicate and take care of one another. This is especially true for corvids, or the crow family, such as crows, blue jays, magpies, and many more. They are said to be the most intelligent family of birds. Corvids have been observed taking care of and communicating with one another in similar ways to humans. Crows stay with their family many years after maturing, while blue jays bring food and nesting materials to their mates. Birds are also free creatures but they still settle down for a moment. I like to believe that all creatures are sentient and live like humans. This includes building homes, creating a family, and finding their own sense of place in one another and life. 

20 September 2024

My Crows

16 September 2024

So I have shifted my ideas/theme just a little, because I am mostly focusing on birds, their behavior, and how it can be similar to humans by how they interact with each other. I find this theme/idea compelling because I believe it brings an awareness to our connection with the natural world. As well as reminding us that the natural world and the human world are intertwined. Through some research, I found myself interested in corvids or the crow family, which consists of crows, jays, and magpies. They are intelligent, as well as social birds.

Idea 1

In this idea, I wanted to show a crow funeral, but give the crows emotion through facial expressions. Like humans, crows will gather around one of their own that passes on, however, crows will be loud. The reason being that they are trying to alarm other nearby crows and figure out how their fallen friend died. There are studies that discuss how crows form bonds with each other. Often a group of crows (a murder) is made up of family members, like older siblings who will stay and help their parents, aunts, uncles to raise their young. For this idea, I feel like something is lacking, perhaps I could include some words/text/phrase, and/or have some shiny trinkets around the dead crow to show the other birds have said their farewell. 

Idea 2

As for idea 2, I would like to show vulnerability, and let people in. In a way, you give a piece of yourself. The blue jay on the left holds the feathers tightly, keeping them close. I almost feel like the idea is too literal, yet after I finished the sketch I began to consider writing, or some type of text. Also, I think having some feathers next to the bird on the right would help the concept as well. I found that most blue jays pair for life, but some do separate. But blue jays, like many other birds, bring food offerings to their partners, as a form of courtship. 

Idea 3

In my third sketch, I am exploring the idea of how it is okay to lean on others when one can feel entirely hopeless. The chickadee on the bottom is wing-less, and looks like a fluff-ball, while the chickadee on top is carrying the other. ???

9 September 2024

I have become drawn to the symbiotic relationship between ravens and wolves. Their symbiotic relationship is classified as mutualism, where both organisms benefit from one another. It reminds me of relationships between friends, family, and a partner, where there is give and take. In nature, some ravens have formed a strong bond with wolves since they were young. There are some incidents where a raven will continue to follow the wolf if it departs from the pack. I'm still trying to figure out how I would like to discuss/represent the relationship in correlation to humans. Like how can the relationship between wolves and ravens overlap, or relate, to human interactions or relationships?

Currently, I'm considering morphing animals together into hybrids. Something like this bird (it's a black-capped chickadee) with antlers I molded in clay. Birds are delicate, petite creatures, but by giving them antlers/horns they become different, stronger.

2 September 2024

Previous Work

Accompany Me to the Beyond
2024

    This piece allowed me to explore the practice of multiple, which I find myself drawn to again. I would love to create more little hummingbirds for this piece one day, but I am looking to create another piece with multiples.

Spiral of Life

2023

       In this work, I really enjoyed working with actual outside materials. I think a part of this piece I would like to push some more into other work is painting on the wall(s) when installing the work. 

 

Healing River
2023

    This became very cathartic for me. I have always been drawn in by rivers, their sound, feel, and movement. This piece gave me the ability to work with ephemeral materials, like the red tissue paper, sticks, and jute twine.

Lift and Help Me to Soar
2024

    I enjoyed the process of creating the figure, which is cast resin, painted, and then covered in wax. There is such a wide range of materials in this piece, and I am looking forward to pushing myself into other materials that may work together.

Untitled
2024

    Much to my surprise I loved creating this piece. Perhaps the reason I enjoyed it so much was because it was a different style - not realistic, more cartoon. This piece was a break and refresher from my usual work. However, it still dealt with heavy themes like loss and abandonment. I would like to pursue more work similar to this, but pushing it into a more realistic style. 

Materials, processes, tools

    As for materials, processes, and tools I am currently leaning towards steel, plaster, and casting (bronze/iron/aluminum/paper). I love working with steel because it feels like a versatile material, and welding is one of my favorite processes. As for plaster, I think I would be interested in carving it, instead of creating molds from it. I have a little experience carving into plaster, but I am interested in exploring the process some more. Then casting is a process that I find enjoyable to practice, especially when it comes to creating multiples. 

Iron Pour

    I think by working on a small scale it will be extremely beneficial, not only because of weight but also working smaller can allow more room for multiples. Also, I am looking forward to new experiences and maybe even some processes during the San Diego Western Cast Iron Conference. 

Thematic threads

    Currently, I am interested in exploring anthropomorphism, which is the act of giving human traits to non-human entities, like animals or objects. I am especially intrigued by the overlap between wildlife and humans, like relationships and social interactions. In my exploration I would like to give the animals emotion, much like my wooden bird piece. However, I would like to create my pieces in more of a realistic style unlike my wood bird. When reflecting on my past work, I feel like anthropomorphism has been present before, and I am thinking about exploring it a bit more.

Artist Inspiration

(For anyone who is interested the websites should be linked through the artists' names.)

Valerie Hegarty 

    Hegarty's work is intriguing because it is both painting and sculpture. She seeks to make connections between art history, her life and the present. Also, most of her work is mixed media. I find her ability to recreate historic paintings into sculptures admirable, especially since I am considering working this way myself. 

Skull, Candle, and Book Distort with Sparrows

Wood, canvas, wire, air-dry clay, foil, epoxy, plastic, acrylics 

31”h x 31”w x 8.25”d

2024

Wine Glass, Grapes and Peach Distort with Sparrow

Wood, canvas, wire, air-dry clay, foil, epoxy, plastic, acrylics

19.5”h x 17”w x 7”d

2024

Death Mask with Sparrow

Wood, canvas, wire, air-dry clay, foil, tape, epoxy, acrylics 

14”h x 14”w x 2.75” d

2024

Ellen Jewett

    Jewett's sculptures led me to consider and reflect on my own work more, mostly when it comes to labeling/categorizing it. Her work can be considered surrealism, which feels like some of my pieces fall under the same category. I find her intricate detail lovely, there is always something new to find in her pieces. Jewett's work inspires me because of her use of animals and way of working.  

Vulpes ferus (untamed faox/kitsune)

Air drying polymer, polymer, cold porcelain, no VOC acrylic, mineral powder, metal, nylon fiber

20x10x18.5"

2024

Vulpes anima (soul fox/kitsune)
Air drying polymer, polymer, cold porcelain, no VOC acrylic, mineral powder, metal, nylon fiber
16x12x19.5"
2024

Ouroboros
2024

Kate Macdowell

    Macdowell focuses on our current impact on the environment. There are some animals that have anthropomorphic qualities to them, while the figures in other pieces are a representation of us. Her work intrigues me because her animals possess a strong sense of emotion, and her use of little color. 

Casualty
Hand built porcelain, cone 6 glaze
15"x9"x3"
2/2009

Feather trade: Carolina parakeets, 
Wall installation roughly 6-6 ½'x4’, feather bunches 3-4"x4-4 ½"x ½", solo bird 10"x12"x3 ½", hand build porcelain and glaze
7/2016

Panhandlers: house sparrow
 Hand built porcelain, cone 6 glaze
 5"x5 ½"x3 ½"
10/2013

Darla Jackson

    Jackson explores human emotions and utilizes animals and nature to express her ideas. She also works through anthropomorphism. Her work truly inspires me as well as my current theme(s). I will be referring back to Jackson quite often. By mostly focusing on her pieces that possess a strong body language and emotion will allow me to obtain a better understanding of how to go forward with my ideas. 

Tell me all your secrets...

All my failures (Aren't they lovely...)

I imagine losing you all the time

Sad Rabbit

Tomohiro Inaba

    Tomohiro creates work about the intangible and engages his viewers' imagination. He purposefully makes spaces in his to encourage some participation from his audience. His work is interesting because of the idea of the intangible. It reminds me of my exploration of spirituality, and gives some understanding/examples of how to discuss pieces. 

Memories of the Sky
Iron, urethane paint, acrylic paint
1920x600x110
2021

Footsteps of the Stars
Iron, urethane paint, acrylic paint
960x1000x400
2021

If I could get there tonight
Iron, urethane paint, acrylic paint
1200x480x1830
2021