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Photo above by Ascent Photography
Katelyn Sugalski, a BFA recipient in Fine Arts, graduated from the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in Baltimore, Maryland. Her work encompasses both 2D and 3D media. Strongly focusing in ceramics, Katelyn also utilizes many materials and disciplines, from paper sculpture and drawing and painting, to video art, jewelry making, as well as fiber work, and baking. Her art is inspired by the delicate forms and patterns that are found within nature. Drawing from these, she creates detailed and carefully crafted pieces, each embedded with sentimental meaning. When she is not making art, she teaches inspired artists of all ages to embrace their creativity. During the summers she is the ceramics instructor at a children's day camp, while the rest of the year she teaches adults at her home studio.
Delicate — Yet, Determined
The process in which I work is estimated and streamlined, and through this extensive process comes a new understanding. There is something inspiring about working with my hands. It’s refreshing how malleable and textural the material becomes, combined with the ability to create something without boundaries, other than the limits of the material itself. Branching out from solely 2D work originally, my work now has become an extension of myself, creating abstract, sculptural, non-figure self portraits. Focusing on the textures and forms that appear in nature and molding them with a strong foundation, I create ceramic vessels, both functional and decorative. My unique cocoon work represents the moment of limbo in between the life and death of a natural being. The textures fold over one another, frozen in time, stuck between the process of growing and decaying. These pieces are created with an aim to motivate the viewer to think of their own "cocoon" or forms of comfort and protection in life, remember their foundation and childhood, and become inspired.