Rice Evans

Artist Statement

I want to give people permission to laugh at art,

like you would finding a fresh meme that makes you laugh alone in a dark bedroom.

A gasping laugh validated by a twinge of brutal honesty.

After all, the internet is a lonely place. 

Always surrounded by strangers.

Propelled down a tunnel carved by an algorithm into a brain-dead abyss.

But it’s a nice break.

I create art that hurls jokes which land in your belly and not your soul.

I vilify elements of our culture without causing the urge to throw yourself into traffic.

Art that is both funny and subversive.

Light hearted and deeply thoughtful.

I feel like we could all use a joke.

Too much anger around to be forwardly serious.

I need a break.

A break from being miserable.

But maybe I’ll just look at my phone some more until it’s time to go to bed.

I am not an activist.

But I provide a long drink of humor with a backwash of social commentary. 

I construct work that is creating visual and humorous pleasure.

Art that invites approachable decoding,

 a gentle subversion,

some considered craft,

and a boatload of dumb jokes.

Bio

Rice Evans is a multi-medium artist primarily working in clay and video. Originally from the Midwest, Evans received her BFA from New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University in 2016 and her MFA in Ceramics from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2021. Previously, Evans worked for the John Michael Kohler Art Center’s Arts/Industry program in both the pottery and foundry. Before coming to VCU, Evans worked as Studio Manager and Ceramic Technician for DBO Home, a luxury handmade home goods company in western Connecticut. Currently, she is adjunct faculty in the Clay Area of the Craft/Material Studies department at Virginia Commonwealth University. To quote Evans about her work: “My art practice meanders through concepts, techniques, and mediums to arrive at a messy, confusing, and overwhelming shared experience of digital life. It is here where we find humor, creativity, and most importantly our own contemporary folk culture.”