{"id":91801,"date":"2025-03-29T05:35:13","date_gmt":"2025-03-29T12:35:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/?p=91801"},"modified":"2025-04-02T05:45:25","modified_gmt":"2025-04-02T12:45:25","slug":"the-shape-of-tenderness-utility-play-and-vulnerability-at-signed-numbered","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/artistsofutah.org\/15Bytes\/the-shape-of-tenderness-utility-play-and-vulnerability-at-signed-numbered\/","title":{"rendered":"The Shape of Tenderness: Utility, Play and Vulnerability at Signed & Numbered"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Gallery

don\u2019t be careful with me i\u2019m normal at Signed and Numbered.<\/p><\/div>\n

\nDeep in South Salt Lake, Signed & Numbered framing shop hosts one of NCECA\u2019s 2025 ceramic exhibitions, don\u2019t be careful with me i\u2019m normal<\/em>. The exhibition, boasting 22 pieces, lies across two rooms of the studio, where the rich scent of cut wood frames the atmosphere. \u201cCare is a formative and (re)configuring force,\u201d reads the exhibition extract. \u201cConsider the unexplored brittle, self-conscious, and abrasive vestiges of care[giving\/taking] alongside the presence of tenderness\u2026\u201d<\/h4>\n
\n
\"Playful

Em Spakoski, “Hopscotch”<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Em Spakoski\u2019s “Hopscotch,” sitting upon a wood panel on the floor at the back of the exhibition, is a playful and cartoon-like work. Two figures are suspended in motion as they hop along a hopscotch path constructed from colorful, numbered tiles. \u201cWhile working on this piece, I was reflecting on the nature of play within collaborative artistic relationships,\u201d says Spakoski. Each participating artist in don\u2019t be careful with me i\u2019m normal<\/em> selected another artist\u2014someone who has shown them tenderness\u2014to exhibit a piece alongside them. Spakoski was invited by Mayetta Steier, the pair finding their connection through the process of creating pieces in tandem. \u201cI find that care is often communicated through play\u2014lighthearted games invite gestures of tenderness and offer us a chance to escape the gravity of the everyday,\u201d Spakoski says. “Hopscotch” sparks vivid memories of childlike play and elicits lighthearted emotions. Spakoski\u2019s choice to play with proportion furthers the childlike, cartoonish energy, while her choice to suspend the characters in motion provides insight into their relationship with one another. The pair seem to dance along the path, chasing each other to the finish line. The fragility of the ceramic medium is on display, mirroring the momentary nature of the scene itself.<\/h4>\n

Steier\u2019s “Buddy Cups in Salt Lake City” unmistakably sits in communication with Spakoski\u2019s “Hopscotch.” Twelve mugs sit in pairs of two, one stacked over the other, in a neat row against a wall. Each mug has an arm, holding onto the neighboring mug\u2019s handle like a barrel of monkeys. Their faces, adorned with a smile styled with clownlike features, exude a playfulness similar to “Hopscotch.” \u201cOur work exists in the same universe with similar styles, sensibilities, and influences,\u201d says Steier. “Buddy Cups in Salt Lake City” also presents a different facet, integral to the ceramic medium: utility. Each mug serves a distinct function while contributing to a unified relationship with the whole set.<\/h4>\n
\n
\"Series

Mayetta Steier, “Buddy Cups in Salt Lake City”<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

In “Body Massager,” by Gabby Gawreluk, the exhibition\u2019s emphasis on relationships and nurturing takes a turn to the individual while presenting another utilitarian tool\u2014intended not for interpersonal care, but self-care in. \u201cMy piece was created as a tool to take care of the human body\u2026using this object is a way to show oneself mindfulness and care,\u201d comments Gawreluk.\u00a0 Ceramic is a compelling medium for this piece, as clay sourced from the earth provides a grounding effect, especially when paired with the massager\u2019s earthy green glaze. Gawreluk invited artist Linda Christianson, who presents “Kitchen Bucket,” a pairing that is both minimal and utilitarian. The bucket, a basic vessel for domestic labor, is elevated through its ceramic form and glaze\u2014functional yet thoughtfully rendered.<\/h4>\n

Relationships emerge in the exhibition even when the artists were not directly paired with each other. E.C. Comstock\u2019s “Shot Peening Park” offers an abstract counterpoint to the utilitarian works of Gawreluk and Christianson: it appears as a cross between bodily forms and utensils, blurring the line between instruments to be used by the body and instruments of the body itself.<\/h4>\n