Chicago artist uses clay to connect to 'fragility' of Black life
CHICAGO (CBS) – As we continue our celebration of artists during Black History Month, we meet a young Chicago artist who uses clay to mold her vision of the world.
As CBS 2's Dorothy Tucker told us, she's also sending a message of strength and determination.
"Clay is flexible and adaptable," said Kenya Moffett-Garner. "3D, I can hold it.
"I'm using my hands. You can actually see my hand."
You can also see her history in Moffett-Garner's art.
She showed CBS 2 a piece that she said "was inspired by my family's story. It represents my ancestors."
"I come from a huge family," she said. "They were from the South, from Alabama. They moved with the Great Migration, and they literally built roots here. I feel like I'm honoring their legacy by continuing to stay here and work here."
Moffett-Garner's love of art runs deep and started early in her Marquette Park home, with crayons and very patient parents.
"Ever since I was a child, I used to draw a lot, on the walls, everywhere," she said. "They kind of knew I was a very overly-confident child and I knew exactly who I wanted to be so they let me express myself. They bought me supplies. My family embraced my entire being."
By college, the flexibility of ceramics called and the need to create not just her work, but herself.
"We see ourselves every day," she said. "You look in a mirror. The first kind of inspiration was myself, seeing myself in the mirror, seeing how I saw myself and seeing how other people saw me."
The way the world sees people of color weaves its way through much of Moffett-Garner's art.
"All my work is intentionally painted brown or Black because I wanted the viewers to see themselves reflected as like in a mirror," she said. "My sculptures don't stand up straight. They're twisted or bent or curved. They stare at you or they're staring away. It's just like a hidden layer or anxiety."
Moffett-Garner's art also reflects political movements that are changing history.
"I've made work about the Black Lives Matter movement and how it inspires me to create work about the fragility of Black life," she said. "I feel like clay kind of lends that material to me as well, because clay is also fragile. So, I try to connect them together."
And Moffett-Garner wants to connect more people with her work. But she said making it big in the art world takes a lot of hard work, and a little luck. She turns to Instagram, cold calls, and sheer determination.
"I just try to break doors down, honestly," she said. "If I can't find a way somewhere, I'll just make a way. You're gonna see my name and you're gonna see my work."
Moffett-Garner is working on putting together a solo show. You can see her art on Instagram by checking out @KenyaCree. She told CBS 2 she wants to find more studio spaces for Black artists so they can work together and learn from each other.
