About
"With sculptures of cute toys, commonplace objects and disturbing hybride creatures created through kiln casting and flamework, Krista Israel uses humor to meditate on the state of contemporary society. These sculptures are often covered with "glass fur". This might sound prickly and uncomfortable, but the artist engineered a technique of pulling each glass "hair" with tweezers to make thousands of of thin appendages that feel soft to the touch. This approach was inspired by het favorite childhood toy: a snowy owl plushie of soft white rabbit fur ,ade by an Innuit craftsperson, which provided Israel a sense of security in moments of disstress. This sensory experience remains crucial to her well-being, which she symbolizes through glassy coats on her sculptures, combining childhood memories, sociopolitical commentary, and irony."
New Woman's Work: Reimagining "Feminine" Craft in Contemporary Art - Angelik Viscarrondo-Laboy, author and curator, 2024 (USA) "... Israel's sculptures and installations transform a virtuosic medium into a mirror for our ugly thruths." |
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“Krista Israel is a mixed media artist with a main focus on glass. Looking at her work it is like entering a story. The artworks are pleasing to the eye, but there is a layer of bittersweetness in all of them. Her works are in a realistic style, but it is not about the obvious reality - she is an artist who uses a broad variety of techniques, using the natural characteristics of glass to express her thoughts and reflections of the world and people, thus addressing the needs of our well-being. The combination of different techniques and her thoughts make her work complex and intriguing.”
Neues Glas Magazine #2/3, 2020 - Helene Besancon, curator National Glas Museum (NL), |