Artist Statement

Working with clay offers a playful intersection of matter and spirit, continually revealing insights into nature, change, and myself. As an earth element, clay grounds and balances the wandering mind - much like yoga. Both practices have been transformative tools in my life. My work often merges preconceived ideas with spontaneous processes. As an artist and teacher, I explore the healing and transformative potential of ceramics through projects, collaborations, and mindful interaction with clay. Beyond ceramics, I also express myself through multimedia, organic materials, photography, and writing.

“Superimpositions” were inspired by a photo of the sky I took through a piece of cardboard from food packaging during a flight to Croatia years ago. This photo has always intrigued me. We define space by the forms within it, just as we define life by the events and our experiences. Yet forms, events, and experiences are fleeting, while spaciousness, as well as consciousness, beholds them and remains always present.

I hope that my piece leaves the observer with questions, just as the photo once did for me.

Artist Bio

Denis Licul graduated from the University of Rijeka, Croatia, with a Fine Arts and Art Education degree. She has been an artist member and associate teacher at Clay Art Center in Port Chester, NY, since 2000. Her work has been shown internationally in more than a dozen solo and numerous group exhibitions. She has participated in clay symposiums and taught workshops focusing on Raku firing, hand-building, and meditation with clay. Denis's recent work entails community art projects and interactive art installations. She explores clay as a medium for reconnecting with the inner source of peace, creativity, and clarity and as a tool for restoring and deepening our relations. Her work has been published in magazines such as Clay Times, Ceramics Monthly, and the New York Times, as well as in the books Contemporary Ceramic in Croatia and History of Ceramic in Croatia.