April Issue 2001
Pickens County Museum in Pickens, SC, Features Ceramic Sculptures by Russell Biles
Take one ball of clay; mix with social satire and a great sense of humor; throw in one of life's unique experiences and many hours of superb craftsmanship; bake at high temperatures for several hours Such ingredients as these are the recipe for an uproariously entertaining exhibition of Ceramic Sculptures by Russell H. Biles. The Pickens County Museum of Art & History, in Pickens, SC, is pleased to announce that this much anticipated exhibition will open Apr. 14 and will continue through May 26th, 2001.
Biles, a native of Concord, NC, is now calling Greenville, SC, his home. This body of work on display at the Pickens County Museum is one of the few occurrences that his work has been exhibited in the Upstate. This wonderful collection, selected from several different series of works will enable the viewer to experience a variety of the artist's experiences that have resulted in some labeling him as a "Sculptural Satirist".
Among the works represented will be several of his well known Daddy's Baby series from which he pulls ideas from his personal experience as a parent and presents them in forms that provoke responses to larger issues in contemporary society. Speaking of those experiences and his work, the artist said, "My concern for what influences the life of my family is my primary inspiration. As a parent, my children are particularly influential because they worry me more than anything else does. Personally, my work provides a dialog that enhances the communication between my children and myself. I believe that when I can make my themes personal, it enables me to lend an element of emotional honesty to my work. Like the unquestionable craftsmanship in my sculpture, this honesty creates an integrity the viewer can respect and sometimes identify with." Identifiable issues such as gender roles, parental perception, and even social ideology, while often difficult in the real world, become entertaining provocations when presented as three-dimensional "cartoons" from the hands of this meticulous craftsman.
Also included in the show will be the artist's Gumball Machines and a representative collection from his Figurine series. When asked about that series, Biles said, "Ceramic sculptures have always fascinated me and they were also my first introduction to sculpture. Figurines also have a narrative quality and a familiarity that makes them accessible to a broad audience."
"The figurine image works well in combining two central elements of my style which are craftsmanship and a social narrative. My highly developed craftsmanship glorifies the figurine and its content. My intention is to seduce the audience into exploring a complex narrative. Although there is a complexity to the narrative, the imagery used to illustrate it remains familiar. The element of familiarity helps to retain the figurine's accessibility," says Biles
Innocent at first glance, a closer inspection of Biles' work reveals each "figure's" own challenge to life's difficult task or improbable goal. These sculptures become metaphors for what we perceive vs. what is reality.
This dedicated and talented sculptor is a recipient of 2001 Individual Artist Fellowship from the South Carolina Arts Commission. Biles' work can be found in an array of galleries nationwide and will be featured in the South Carolina State Museum's Triennial 2001 exhibition in Columbia, SC. The Pickens County Museum's exhibition Ceramic Sculptures by Russell Biles is made possible in part through a grant from The Max & Victoria Dreyfus Foundation, Inc.
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