As an installation artist with a background in fiber and clay, I often marry the two materials, creating a dynamic relationship between tension and weight. Most recently, I have been investigating the idea of visual tension, using pattern both on flat surface and three-dimensionally.
I decorate the ordinary, allowing the viewer access by using familiar objects and materials. My work deals with personal conflict between the desire for domestic foundation and the need to fulfill personal goals. I struggle with my role as a woman, daughter, partner and artist. I translate this fight visually, creating noise and tension with material and pattern.
The desire for domesticity versus the need for change and growth within my studio practice has been an ongoing battle for me. I use pattern to create visual tension, representing the push and pull that I feel between my work and personal life. My practice is contemplative, allowing me to think while I make, which while informing the work, is also cathartic.
Time and place heavily influence my work. Because I work in both fiber and clay, I often switch between the two materials, contingent on facilities or site-specific needs. This gives me parameters while allowing the work to remain organic.
Bio
Claudia Mastrobuono is an installation artist working primarily in clay and fiber, often marrying the two materials, creating a dynamic relationship between tension and weight. She received her MFA in ceramics from the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth in May 2012 and began working in Colorado shortly thereafter. Mastrobuono has a background in traditional fiber processes such as weaving, knitting and embroidery, which heavily influence on her work.
Most recently Mastrobuono taught ceramics and sculpture at the Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design in Denver, Colorado. She has been an artist-in-residence at Anderson Ranch Art Center, Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts, PlatteForum, and Redline Denver.
