Michelina Guerra

Throughout my childhood, art was an important avenue through which I connected with nature. The house I grew up in is known for its Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired Usonian architecture that seeks to integrate the people, society, and architecture, with natural surroundings. I spent much of my childhood playing, creating, and growing alongside the trees, red-tailed hawks, deer, and the babbling creek. However, as I have grown, my interactions with the natural world have changed. I continued to learn about the Earth, but less from directly experiencing it. I care deeply for the environment and have a strong desire to protect it, but I find myself becoming withdrawn from the original curiosity and delight that first captured me. The pull I feel to strengthen my ties to the Earth is a strong motivator for my artwork. I want, once again, to connect with nature through art.

In Making Contact, I use clay in combination with natural found objects to capture moments of connection with nature that drive my desire to protect it. Through my artwork, I remind and encourage others to find connection, and nourish it into a relationship of reciprocal care, respect, and reverence which can become a driving force for emotional healing and environmental protection.

Building a relationship with the Earth requires you to be present, both physically and mentally. I choose to sculpt the human body, in relation to natural elements, to emphasize the body’s interaction with nature, specifically in moments of contact. I use clay, a tangible material that is given to us straight from the ground. The process of creating, using my hands to mold the earthen material and gathering the natural found objects that I integrate with the sculptures, is a way to explore my own connection. My exhibition includes photographs and a video of my sculptural work set within natural settings, associating my work with the context I feel it truly belongs in.

To encourage viewers to explore the themes I convey, I invite people to find and incorporate elements of nature with the piece Reintegration. Go out, experience nature, find something you think beautiful, and integrate it into the gallery. Like an ecosystem, the work continually changes and develops over time as contributions are added, becoming a culmination of interactions and connections.