Sierra Kirsche

Sierra Kirsche, from Athens, Georgia, is a Fine Arts Studio Major student with an emphasis in ceramics and sculpture. Her work is mainly based in high-fire stoneware as she draws from her experiences in nature as inspiration in creating her style. Her passion for ceramics began in 2015 at Good Dirt in Athens which led her to pursue a fine arts degree at Georgia College & State University. In pursuing her passions, Sierra has interned with R. Wood Studios in Athens and worked as a studio assistant to artist and professor, Sandra Trujillo, from 2018-2020. She also uses her creative talents through volunteering for events, such as Kids-N-Clay and Night of 100 Pots, to encourage her community to connect with one another through art.

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Artist Statement

I am fascinated by the relationship between self and environment. How do humans and nature affect one another? How do we leave parts of ourselves in the world around us? My art reflects these fascinations. By using vases with sculpted ornaments, inspired by local ecology, I investigate the interactions between habitat and object.

Symbiosis explores the existence of two living organisms in relation to one another. This body of work is a series of thrown and altered vases with attached figures. These figures consist of insects, reptiles, and other organisms to represent the perspective of living things in relation to human impact. Conversely, the vessels represent the presence of humanity in the natural world and begs the question: what role do I play in my own environment?

I am passionate about ceramics. I chose to work with clay as elements of it can be found in the ground we walk on and be home to many of the attached figures featured throughout this series. The malleable quality of wet clay allows for slight variations and immediacy within my mark-making process which will then be fired as a permanent impression. Symbiosis investigates our human nature as we connect and interact with the world around us.

Project Description

Symbiosis is a visual commentary on the relationship between self and environment. The vessels act as a manmade element while each of the attached ornaments, inspired by local species, compliment the shape and movement of each piece. Each work reflects the impressionable and impactful nature of how mankind interacts with the natural world, and vice versa.