MICHAEL LUCEROBy: Regina Faraj

Born in Tracy, California, he earned a BA degree from Humboldt State University in 1975. In 1978, he earned an MFA at the University of Washington in Seattle. Soon after, he settled in New York when Minimalism was dominant in the art scene. Some of his work such as "Lizard Slayer," reflects that movement. He taught briefly at New York University and the Parsons School of Design. In the late 1980s, he turned from polychrome clay to cast metal and then began to incorporate both mediums. Generally he sees his work as "reverence for high art, affection for folk art, nostalgia for nature, and curiosity about other cultures."

Biography

At an early age, Michael Lucero made

complex and fused sculptures using

several lean, hand-made tiles which

were attached to wire frames. He

often chose to do human figures, but

sometimes he varied into animal

forms. Already in these early works,

one can see combinations of

human/animal, culture/nature,

architecture/organism that have

remained an component in Lucero's

ensuing work.

Once Lucero committed to

working primarily in clay, he was

determined to grant it the

primacy traditionally given oil

paint or marble. This implicit

faithfulness to the integrity of his

material permeates all his work.

Lucero's interest in the Native

American Pueblo dates back to his

childhood travels from California to

relatives in New Mexico. Here he

would come into contact with

American Natives and their culture.

Native American rugs, jewelry,

sculpture and ceramics would come to

influence Lucero in his later life. The

Californian and New Mexican

environment also supplied the artist

with a rich abundance of animal life,

especially reptiles and amphibians

that he loved as a child and employed

in his imagery later in life.From the beginning of his career, Lucero challenged the perceived limitations of his chosen material—clay. His definition of "fine art" was not limited to paint and canvas, stone, metal, or wood. Instead, as is the case in many non-Anglo cultures, for Lucero the concept of fine art equally defines archeology, including ceramic-based vessels and figural forms.

In his 'Dreamer' series, Lucero made Pink Nude Dreamer, which

consists of the head form that Lucero constantly uses for this

series. It is decorated with a range of painted scenes reflecting

Lucero's early undergraduate training in painting at Humboldt State University in California.

Employing painted underglazes and sgraffito on a shape that doesn't

directly relate to the imagery, we see typical painterly elements of Lucero's

work that he has become so well known for. One cannot but help

getting a distinct feeling of surrealism here. The fantastic images Lucero paints on his forms seem to spring

from the sub-conscious and speak to sub-conscious strands of the viewers

mind.

Lucero’s maverick vision presented

the artist with challenges unlike any

he imagined. Lucero was immersed in

figuration at a time when Minimalism

,

performance, and earth art were

among the dominant and critically

accepted art forms.

The imagery that slides in and out of

the complex glazes of this master of

the ceramic medium is art about art,

art about place, art about self. The consistent strength of the work comes from a fusion of ceramic

tradition with sculptural innovation, and from a combination of

extraordinarily fine technique, keen

wide-ranging intelligence, and the

resonance brought to bear by past associations, cultures, and use.

An ardent admirer of global culture, he often incorporates specific stylistic

references to one culture or another into his work, creating complex, hybrid forms. Throughout his career, he was discouraged by many in the art world from describing those interests in his work. But he

persevered, and the stunning results of this career-long odyssey are a provocative and enduring body of sculpture that illustrates the fluid,

dynamic character of global culture.

Taken as a whole, Lucero’s artworks

contain three core elements: an

ecumenical borrowing from the

history of art of various cultures, a

persistent metaphorical and physical

movement between interior and

exterior structures and spaces, and a

faithfulness to the ceramic medium.

While at first glance his work appears to be a vigorous example

of contemporary ceramic sculpture, with a background in

1960s California art and a foreground in New York

eclecticism, in fact his figurative forms borrow liberally and wittily from the history of art of various cultures, including pre-Columbian

and Native American; the European avant-garde; African-based forms; and George Ohr

ceramics, as well as the vernacular and mass media. Since the 1970s Lucero has consciously moved backwards and sideways

through the history of art. His most recent work incorporates

found objects of popular art and culture.

The artist’s creative reworking of

multicultural forms and his

exploration of such contrasting ideas

as beauty and the grotesque, culture

and nature, the sacred and the

profane, ritual and accidental, and

purity and contamination offer an

authentic model of cultural pluralism.

Technically, visually, and

conceptually, Lucero’s work offers

immediate access to alternate

notions of originality and cultural

relativity. The visual and formal

diversity of his works is a metaphor

for contemporary life and collective

existence in which there is not one

predominant culture, but many voices

existing simultaneously.

THE SUN VASEBY: Regina Faraj

This is a big size ceramic vase glazed in bright colors

such as orange, red, and yellow; which represent the

sun’s vibrant colors. This ceramic piece is very simple,

but still contains the right elements to make it a

beautiful work of art. The vase’s colors transmit a joyful sensation to the

observer, and is as well a very symmetric and unique composition, consisting of a bottom piece and a handle.

Snow Vase

By: Regina FarajThe snow vase consists of a classical, simple style, inspired on a minimalistic art. Its pure white color gives it a touch of

pureness, fragility and simplicity. It measures 15” H and 7” W, which makes it a

unique structure.

http://ceramicstoday.com/potw/lucero.htm www.carnegiemuseums.org/.../marapr/feat6.htm

http://ceramicstoday.com/potw/lucero.htm http://www.ragoarts.com/onlinecats/10.07MOD/0065.jpg

www.carnegiemuseums.org/.../marapr/feat6.htm mountshang.blogspot.com/2007_11_01_archive.html

BIBLIOGRAPHY