Dream Machine
Mindy Solomon is pleased to present the sculptural works of Julia Kunin in her inaugural exhibition debut in Miami. Based in Brooklyn, Kunin is a longtime sculptor and museum artist. In describing her works, Kunin writes:
“My work addresses sexuality, beauty, growth and decay. In creating queer sculptures that reference the figure, I combine an interest in symbols, coding and surrealism. My work has long been influenced by the decorative arts, with an emphasis on the study of art nouveau ceramics, which can be seen in the glazes and imagery that I use. Here the glitter and iridescence of the femme fatale has been transformed into a gender-fluid warrior. The interior mirroring in the work creates a baroque and performative visual onslaught. The abstracted portraits merge body, machine, and architecture. The totemic wall pieces verge on the grotesque, robotic and otherworldly, addressing sexuality while incorporating imagery from once utopian space age structures. The psychedelia of iridescence emphasizes the dream-like science fiction quality of the work.
I am inspired by being part of a community of artists, and by the expert craftspeople who often remain invisible, but create many of the everyday objects we encounter daily. I live in Brooklyn, New York where I have had a studio since 1987. Since 2010 I have spent summers in Pecs, Hungary, where I work at the University and local ceramics factories and an enamel factory, conducting research and developing new work. Learning from expert plaster carvers, mold-makers, china painters, architectural ceramic experts and enamel workers is critical to my work. In addition, learning languages is one of my passions that I have been able to combine with art making. Studying Hungarian has been an exciting challenge and a necessity, as well as a means to connect internationally. I have also been able to research Hungarian art that was state sanctioned or made underground at great risk. Hungarian artwork made during the art nouveau period as well as work created during the socialist era continues to have a great influence upon the generation of ideas for my sculptures.”
Presenting a kaleidoscope of luminescent, luster glazed objects, Kunin’s exhibition will showcase both two and three-dimensional works. Included in the show will be her Scholars Rocks Series in which she states: “The first scholars rock sculpture that I made was cast from a cobble stone found on the grounds of Siklos, a monastery turned ceramics residency, in the town of Siklos, Hungary. Siklos was key in bringing together ceramic artists from all over the world during the socialist era. Sadly, it is no longer extant. When I embarked upon casting rocks fired with luster glazes, I wanted the glaze to enhance every mark and texture of the surface of the object, creating a new artificial, geological curiosity.”
Kunin’s work is contextual, joyful and powerful. An artist who has journeyed for many years, Kunin’s presentation of objects will solidify her position as one of the most significant artisans in the cross section of craft, contemporary and Queer art.
About Julia Kunin
Julia Kunin lives in Brooklyn, NY. She earned a B.A. from Wellesley College and an M.F.A. from The Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University. Solo exhibitions include Rainbow Dream Machine at McClain Gallery, Houston, TX 2020 -2021 and Mechanical Ballet at Kate Werble Gallery, NY, NY 2021. Les Guerilleres Sandra Gering Gallery, NY, NY, 2015, Golden Grove, Barry Whistler Gallery, Dallas, TX, 2013, Nightwood, Greenberg Van Doren Gallery, NY, NY, 2012, Against Nature, Greenberg Van Doren Gallery, 2007, Crimson Blossom Deutches Leder Museum, Offenbach, Germany 2002. Recent two person Exhibitions: Kaleidoscope Eyes, with Mara Held, at McClain Gallery in Houston, TX 2023. , Wild Chambers, with Yevgeniya Baras, at Mother Gallery, NY, NY 2022. Recent group Exhibitions include: Getting to Ick, Hesse Flatow Gallery, NY, NY, Behind this Mask, Another Mask, curated by Sam Adams at Abigail Ogilvey Gallery, Los Angeles, Queer Clay at AMOCA, LA, 2023, A Summer Arrangement, Object and Thing, the Longhouse, East Hampton, 2023, Conversing in Clay, at LACMA, Los Angeles, CA.
Kunin was a Fulbright Scholar to Hungary in 2013. In 2010 She received a Trust for Mutual Understanding grant to Hungary. In 2008 she received a Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant and a residency at Art Omi. In 2007 she received the John Michael Kohler Arts/Industry Artist Residency. Fellowships include: The MacDowell Colony, The Marie Walsh Sharpe Art Foundation, CEC Artslink grant to The Republic of Georgia, Artist Residency in Wiesbaden, Germany, Yaddo, The Millay Colony, Vermont Studio Center, The Core Program in Houston, TX, and Skowhegan. Julia Kunin currently has a series of ceramic lamps at Ralph Pucci International. In 2022 she contributed artist interviews to Two Coats of Paint. She is also a member of the board of FIAR, The LGBTQ Fire Island artist residency. Her work was recently acquired by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, LACMA, and by The Museum of Art and Design, in New York, NY. Her work was reviewed by Roberta Smith in the New York Times, October 2022, Yevgeniya Baras and Julia Kunin at Mother Gallery.
