Past Exhibition: September 4, 2021 – September 25, 2021
All Fur: Calder Kamin, Ernesto Ibanez, Angelica Raquel
There’s a magical mysticism and an impartial crudeness in our human relationship to the animal world. This connection is apparent throughout history in narratives of ancient deities, folklore, and cultural beliefs worldwide. In All Fur, Calder Kamin, Ernesto Ibanez, and Angelica Raquel show their deep appreciation and shared wonder for the animal world. Each artist pulls from various perspectives on their relationship with animals and presents their individually unique crafting styles. — Jenelle Esparza
Calder Kamin is an artist, educator, and activist based in Austin, Texas. Her artistic process calls attention to the impact of plastic waste on the environment by repurposing waste materials to mimic the resourcefulness of nature, specifically birds and their nests made of the materials around them. The results are a fun, whimsical installation of beautiful foxes, flowers, and fungi in reimagined forests crafted entirely from trash. As a whole, you can see the joyfulness in her colorful characters. Upon closer inspection you notice the bottle caps, shreds of plastic grocery bags, and her skillful crafting of these materials into a complex environment of regrowth and renewal.
Kamin engages thousands of museum visitors through her public workshops and art projects, including the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, The American Museum of Natural History, Women & Their Work, The DoSeum, i.d.e.a Museum, Utah MOCA, and the Contemporary Austin. Kamin starred in an episode of the PBS series Arts in Context and two Disney Channel commercials sharing inspirational messages about creative reuse and serving on Austin Creative Reuse’s board. She holds a Double BFA in Ceramics and Art History from the Kansas City Art Institute. Kamin lives with her pup, Pixel, in her hometown, Austin, Texas, working as the Career Services Manager and Lecturer at the University of Texas at Austin, College of Fine Arts. Kamin is currently in Fort Worth as artist in residence for American Landmark Apartments.
Ernesto Ibanez is a professional sculptor and painter from Guadalajara, Mexico. Ibanez alters ordinary materials such as nails, wood and fiberglass to create intensely detailed sculptures of animal-like forms. What is striking about his animal forms is the presence of “fur” skillfully created using carpentry nails. Ibanez has developed a process that bends the nails before placing them onto fiberglass forms to create a dense flowing layer that resembles coarse animal fur giving his sculptures an alluring liveliness and exquisite quality. These forms are often paired with brightly colored appendages like ears and beaks. The colors he uses to tie his formations in with the cosmos and the spirit world. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Guadalajara, Mexico, in sculpture and has participated in solo and group exhibitions nationally and internationally, including shows at Patio Central Casa Museo López Portillo Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico; Victor Almendariz Gallery, Chicago Illinois and Mexican Cultural Institute San Antonio Texas.
Angelica Raquel is an artist and educator originally from Laredo, Texas. Raquel merges the symbolic qualities of animals with personal nostalgia in paintings, drawings, and sculptures. Her animal characters represent folkloric characters and the people and events in her life. Using multiple craft techniques and processes, she felts, hooks, and illustrates the narratives of fairytales and South Texas folklore that she grew up with. Raquel earned her MFA from The University of Texas at San Antonio and a BFA from Texas State University. Her recent exhibitions include shows at the Mexican American Cultural Center, Austin, Texas; Field Projects Gallery, New York, New York, and Amarillo Museum of Art, Amarillo, Texas.