Colleen Dwyer ( she/her )

I create ceramic sculptures with coloured paper clay to investigate the idea of unravelling. At some point, every person or relationship goes through a transition of purpose and position. Each sculpture features multiple “resting points,” where line, surface, and volume converge to blur the boundaries between balance and belonging. My work engages the meeting points of nature and culture, where the act of becoming leaves marks of undoing.

I use paper clay to build forms that are deliberately loose and precarious — objects that seem to unravel as much as hold a moment of memory. Rooted in the Celtic concept of “thin places” — sites where the boundary between physical and spiritual experience becomes permeable; as well as a term referring to moments of deep emotional clarity — my work explores the tension between individuality and community. Rather than fixed vessels, my sculptures are temporary “thin places” where balance is tested, belonging unsettled, and the invisible weight of experience allowed to take form. 

Colleen Dwyer is a ceramic artist based in Montreal. As an American living in Canada, the notions of balance and belonging thread together the evolving nature of becoming in her sculptural work. Her art practice ranges from small collections of functional wares to sculptural works. An important aspect of her work is teaching and community outreach.Colleen received her BFA (Honours) from Concordia University. She has participated in long-term internships in both Quebec and France. Colleen has also attended art residencies with concentrations in drawing and sculpture in Italy. She has exhibited in France, Italy, the United States and Canada.