Jen Dwyer grew up in the Bay Area and studied at the University of Washington in Seattle. She has lived in Brooklyn, New York but is currently pursuing a Master of Fine Arts in ceramics at the University of Notre Dame. Dwyer is a ceramic artist and painter who makes socially engaged work. She also likes dancing, reading and hot yoga.
In the post-election aftermath, my practice shifted in response to contemporary gender politics. In my current practice I aim to question and subvert hierarchies through both humor and vulnerability. In my recent work I use fanciful, intricate porcelain mirror frames, candelabras and miscellaneous vessels that merge iconology from antiquity, rococo, pop, surrealism and the uncanny, infused with contemporary feminist themes. As a culture, our associations with power are limited, I hope to broaden them by gathering imagery across cultural lines and histories that explore the subjugation of the female body and create decorative quasi-functional sculptures that offer a remixed interpretation of utopia.
Process
My work is a complication of hand build, slipcased, thrown and burns out in ceramics (mainly porcelain). I use a variety of underglazes, glazes and lusters for my surfaces.
