Kiel Posner (he/they)
Virginia Commonwealth University, 2020
B.F.A., Craft and Materials Studies
@aspects_unlimited
Artist Bio
Pictured: Kiel Posner
Kiel is a Queer Jewish ceramicist currently living in Bethesda, Maryland. Their work investigates the legacy of the button factory their great grandfather worked his way up to owning after immigrating to NYC, from Eastern Europe, in 1912. 109 years later, after producing for Macy’s and Disney, what’s left of the now defunct factory are some ceramic decals and a dusty kiln. Kiel received their BFA in Craft and Materials Studies in 2020 from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, VA. While in Richmond they were awarded a Fellowship from the Virginia Museum of Fine arts and rented space at Shockoe Bottom Clay. Since relocating to the DMV They have started teaching ceramics classes at Vis Arts
Rockville and The District Clay Center.
Artist Statement
“Glitch” is defined as a minor malfunction. A word now inseparable from popular vernacular is derived from the Yiddish Glitsh meaning “slippery place”.
In my most recent body of work, I have been collaging the waterslide decals remnant from the factory on mass-produced second-hand ceramics creating glitchy surfaces that are intended to challenge the viewer’s sense of focus.
I want to confront the viewer with optical illusions that play on their sense of trust. The same lack of trust I feel when double-taking at reports of demands for book burnings and new alternative “sides” of Holocaust being added to curriculum. I am stuck in a slippery place, submerged in an untrustworthy information-hungry culture that pines for my attention while trying to erode my own history.
In attempts to translate this dishonesty and slippage in canon, I have become very interested in techniques of Trompe l’oeil and Op art as avenues for making work that pushes back against the viewer’s gaze, staring back and concealing information. I never realized the truth is such a Glitsh and I hope to bring to light the warps and mistakes usually camouflaged.
About the Residency
Located in Torpedo Factory Art Center’s Studio 319, this competitive juried residency provides meaningful support to emerging artists who have recently completed formal academic training in the visual arts. It is an opportunity to address the critical post-graduation juncture in an emerging artist’s career.
Residents have three months of exclusive access to a studio in the Art Center. Therein, they can create and sell work, interact with the public, and connect with other arts professionals. It’s an opportunity for professional development, networking, and a chance to define a practice outside of the academic context.
Applications are open to recently graduated students who earned a bachelor’s or master’s art degree from an accredited university. Submissions were accepted from across the U.S., provided artists submit proof of their permanent residence in the area and/or commitment to contributing to the future of the region’s arts scene.
