An Exhibition of Clay Sculpture

Segreto Contemporary Art, July 24-August 20, 2002
Opening Reception, Friday, July 26, 5:00 - 7:00 PM

Segreto Contemporary Art is pleased to feature Judy Nelson-Moore in a solo exhibition starting July 24th at the gallery located just off the Old Santa Fe Trail at 225 East DeVargas in Santa Fe.

Having worked in clay for 40 years, Judy considers herself an outsider artist as she does not follow established paths. In seeking her own personal expression, she creates universal, multi-dimensional imagery--from stylized to abstract images, from explicit ideas to subconscious references.

Working intuitively, she starts each piece with a general idea of the size and shape, and then lets a dialogue develop between herself and the work to guide specific forming and finishing. While her early training was in traditional pottery, Judy realizes that sculptural work frees her to use any approach that gives her the look she wants, including mixed materials and forming methods, multiple firings at varied temperatures, and development of combined ceramic and un-fired surface effects.

Judy has been working on the theme of the house since 1994 when she and her husband undertook building their own house. The imagery in the show communicates on many levels. Everyone loves to explore other houses to learn more about those who live there, and this sense of finding a hidden story animates these sculptures. Judy feels the house image is a metaphor for the inner self and aspects of ourselves we discover through life events.

The clay sculptures in this show, built with slab, coil and pinched methods, are intensely colored and varied in size and shape. Judy fires each piece several times at a variety of temperatures and uses many methods to achieve the surfaces, which vary from bright to subtle colors; rich buttery surfaces to dry-velvety or bubbly, cracked, and cratered effects. While most are free-standing sculptures, this show includes several wall pieces. Considering these are images of buildings, they show unusual movement: They sway, dance, rock on their foundations, fly, sail, ride on the backs of animals or in a death cart, and have stairways to the roof.

More information and pictures of sculptures in this show can be found at www.nelsonmoore.com/art.