Nicholas Sevigney ( he/him/his )

Artist Statement

My work combines the forms and textures from sea life, species of insects, science fiction movies, and the Trompe L’oiel aspect of Yixing tea ware. Discarded coffee cup lids, exhaust vents and distressed and dilapidated metal are textures breaking through and combining with these surfaces. I find these loaded images speak of the daily wear on disposable products that remain in the environment for centuries. These layers make the devices seem inefficient and obscure with drips and stains suggesting leaking joints and connections. Like an ancient broken or damaged relic, I want to encourage the viewer to explore and question the potential function of each piece. The combination of all these elements adds timelessness to the work leaving the viewer wondering if it is from the future or of the past.

-- Nicholas Sevigney

Bio

I am an artist who works in and teaches ceramics. I have taught ceramics in higher education since 1996 and am presently an Associate Professor and Ceramics Program Coordinator at Plymouth State University in the mountains of New Hampshire. Growing up in Wells Maine created my earliest interests in the vast and timeless Atlantic ocean that ages everything from steel to stone. I am lucky to be able to stay close to it for most of my life as it is a place of solace, strength, and awe. My family moved to the mountains of New Hampshire in 2008 for my job at Plymouth State University which is a brief two hours from the coast. Charlie Kernaghan said “Who will save the precious memories in life that mean nothing because we can’t make money off them? That must be the role of the artist, to save those precious things.” My goal as an artist is to make those precious things and as an educator to assist people on the road to creating them.

— Nicholas Sevigney