Artist Statement

This current work explores decay, transformation, and the persistence of form over time. These pieces imagine human-made objects that have endured eras of geological and environmental change—forms unearthed after thousands of years, reshaped by the elements, and worn by the slow violence of nature's forces. The wall hangings extend this dialogue into air and movement. Suspended fragments sway lightly, evoking the organic rhythms of leaves, shells, or shifting sediment. This work invites reflection on impermanence: how the traces of human touch and time converge, how function falls away, and how beauty exists within erosion and disintegration

Artist Bio

Michal Grapel is a ceramic artist whose handbuilt work explores the limits of clay and the organic patterns found in nature. Beginning her practice in Brooklyn during the COVID-19 pandemic, she now works as a CAC artist at the Clay Art Center in Port Chester, New York. Through carving, coiling, and bending, Michal creates biomorphic forms—ranging from bulbous, multi-necked vases reminiscent of sea life to whimsical ceramic wall hangings that capture movement and play.