Created under a funerary theme, Of Mud & Blood fuses the talent of Richmond’s ceramic artists and tattoo artists into one collaborative art show. Over the course of about eight months, the ceramic artists of the Visual Arts Center (VisArts) and the tattooer community have dedicated their energy to unique ceramic pieces, adorned with tattoo art. Each artist incorporated their unique style, perspective, culture, technique, and vision, yielding a body of work that’s full of variation, and telling stories from all over Richmond and the world.
Of Mud & Blood is in its second iteration; the first took place in 2021 and created a lot of buzz. It was originally conceptualized by Jeff Vick, the Director of Studios + Facilities at Visarts. The idea initially emerged from a conversation he had with Katie Davis, a Richmond tattoo artist and co-coordinator of this year’s show. Katie had taken Jeff’s ceramics classes, decorated one of his pieces, and the idea was born. Culminating in a silent auction that raised over $16,000, VisArts donated the money to two local charities, MAD RVA and Health Brigade, as well as bolstering community partnership programs at VisArts. The hard work that has gone into the creations of this year’s show will be celebrated with an auction once again this time around, but that comes last.
What came first? Each ceramic artist made 1-3 pieces and bisque-fired them, which means that the clay has gone through its initial firing and hasn’t yet been glazed. The official theme was “ceremonial and funerary objects such as urns, jars, reliquaries, and wall hangings,” and each artist was inspired by this theme, adapting it to fit their aesthetic and inclinations.
“To me, one of the coolest parts of this process is making the piece and knowing that the tattoo artists won’t be slowed down at all by the fact that it’s three dimensional, because that’s something they’re already good at,” remarks Karen Hull, a ceramics artist and teacher at VisArts. Then, the tattoo artists came through and selected the piece that spoke to them the most. “It was really cool to see the artists come in, get settled, and then see a light behind their eyes when they choose a piece,” reflects Davis.
After finding their perfect vessel, the tattoo artists took their pieces home to underglaze them. Underglazes are not shiny, they come out matte when fired by themselves, and they are applied with a paintbrush. They’re perfect to be used in this case because they allow for more control of the color, but Katie noted that they’re a much different medium than most tattoo artists are used to. Deb Rice, a ceramics teacher at VisArts and co-coordinator of the show, gave a few underglaze demonstrations with Katie to help the tattoo artists transition their skills to the new medium and to teach them a few techniques. They very quickly familiarized themselves with a new art form in an unconventional way, with impressive results.
Echoing Hull’s sentiment, Davis (who, along with being a coordinator, is also one of the tattoo artists participating in the show) said that the three dimensional aspects makes the adaptation of mediums a bit more fluid. “A lot of tattoos take the shape of the body into account when designing, so the eye doesn’t get stuck in one area,” she explains.
On the flip side, she emphasized the fact that while tattooers usually see immediate, instantaneous results of their work as they do it, ceramics take more patience. Artists don’t really know what the piece will truly look like until after it’s fired, and there are so many different elements and avenues for variation, such as glaze combinations. When working with clay or skin as your canvas, there are many living, breathing aspects to consider.
Next, the tattoo artists brought the underglazed pieces back to VisArts, putting them into the care of the original ceramic artist. “It’s been such a thrill to see the pieces come back in,” says Rice, continuing, “you get it back and it’s such a surprise!”
Rice is also a participating artist, along with coordinating the show, and she initially worried about giving up control. However, she said the project has helped her grow a lot from connecting more with her fellow artists at VisArts, to trying new glaze combinations. Already gorgeous pieces, the tattoo art added another level of color and narrative to the pottery. Each ceramics artist marveled at the underglaze work done on their piece and carefully added another layer of glaze after discerning what would best highlight the tattoo artists’ work. They then placed the pieces back into the kiln for their final firing. Several ceramic artists added white gold or yellow gold luster to their pieces, truly highlighting the previous brush strokes with metallic details, which required a third firing.
An interesting take on an exquisite corpse style of collaboration, this project gave both the ceramicists and tattooers the freedom to uphold their own aesthetics while contributing to a unique piece. This enabled them to go in directions they may not have ventured into if it weren’t for the collaboration. Exquisite corpse, an artistic endeavor where each participant builds upon the work of the previous one with no prior discussion, was invented in 1925 by a group of surrealists in Paris. It differs from traditional collaboration because there is no official discussion of how the piece should look; it just flows. I like to believe that each tattoo artist gravitated to the bisqued pieces for a reason, and that the masterpieces that have emerged were needed in some way by the community.
“We really care about this project, and we also really care about each other,” muses Rice, amazed by the level of respect that all of the participating artists gave to each other’s work. She speaks about the VisArts community, and how they came together for this show, brainstorming their pieces, especially how to best honor the tattoo work with the final layer of glaze. “I’ve never had a community like this before I came to VisArts,” Rice says. “We all look out for each other, I’ve been really moved by that.”
The eight month process will finally be realized at an opening taking place from 6:00 to 9:00 on March 15th (the Ides of March, spooky right?) at Material Room in Scott’s Addition. According to Emily Nixon, the Exhibition and Residencies Manager at VisArts, who has handled many organizational aspects of the show, this space is much smaller than the VisArts gallery, where the 2021 iteration of the show was held. This presents some spatial challenges, but everyone is extremely excited for the exhibition. Material Room, a self proclaimed “DIY art space,” draws many local artists. Richmonders will be able to view their pieces and decide if one is meant to be in their home.
All of the bidding on the pieces will be done online, running from March 15th at 9:00am until March 24th at 7:59:59pm EST. The link for bidding and to preview the pieces can be found here, but please note that bidding won’t be active until March 15th. It includes full lists of the artists included as well.
This year, the proceeds from the Of Mud & Blood auction will benefit Mental Health America of Virginia. A branch off of the larger national organization, they support community members through advocacy, recovery education, and a peer run-warm line, which is a means for communication and connection. Nixon says they found the organization through one of their studio access residents who is very passionate about the work they do.
The confluence of this show is significant; though there is a funerary theme and each artist works relatively alone, the collaboration has fostered community and will give back to those in need through Mental Health America of Virginia. Making art can feel isolating when you haven’t tapped into a community of fellow artists, but that warm community certainly exists at VisArts.
“To have our expression benefitting people who really need our help is such a gift for us,” Rice exclaims. “For me, art is such a powerful way to express myself and maybe work through some things,” she elaborates. Art and mental health are connected in intricate ways, making the organization feel like a natural choice.
The 2024 Of Mud & Blood show is the realization of a long-awaited dream in more ways than one. Originally, the 2021 show was supposed to be a part of NCECA, a massive ceramics conference that was slated to come to Richmond in 2020. It was canceled, like so many things, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving many disappointed artists in its wake. Of Mud & Blood still happened, of course, but a year later and not as a part of NCECA.
This year, NCECA is finally coming to Richmond. According to Vick, who is a major part of making the conference happen, there will be over 70 exhibitions taking place from March 20th to 23rd, which will be free and open to the public. Bringing artists, art connoisseurs, and collectors to Richmond, it’s an understatement to say that NCECA is a huge deal.
Of Mud & Blood is such a strong representation of Richmond for those traveling from all corners of the earth. Tattoo artists and ceramic artists are such integral parts of our art ecosystem, and this show is bursting with Richmond’s energy. The 2024 NCECA theme is “coalescence”, which, according to Oxford Dictionary, is “the joining or merging of elements to form one mass or whole.” These pieces, originating from the coalescence of talent, passed back and forth between excited yet careful hands, electric with gratitude and vision, are like nothing I have seen before.
Top photo courtesy of the Visual Arts Center of Richmond.
