Red Lodge Clay Center – Short-Term Resident 2023
Katelyn Odenheimer is an artist based in Shawnee, Colorado. Odenheimer holds a BA in Art History from the University of Colorado Denver and a BFA in Ceramics from Metropolitan State University. She works primarily in porcelain, exploring human anatomy and the relationship between physiological and psychological states. Intrigued by chance and atmospheric firing, Odenheimer experiments and incorporates non-traditional materials and tools into her practice. Katelyn has exhibited throughout the US.
The heart is both a vital organ and a forceful image, real and symbolic, literal and figurative. It is the center of vitality, houses the soul, and encompasses the innermost emotions. The anatomical hearts that make up my work represent the anxiety and panic that consumes me. Conceptually each form demonstrates the relationship between my physiological and psychological states: converting neurotic, obsessive, intrusive thoughts, and the debilitating physical symptoms of panic attacks into a positive act of creating. I meticulously sculpt one porcelain form a day, allowing time for self-connection, a release of emotion, ritual, and a moment that is captured in time. Each form has life, a story that is burned and petrified by fire.
Chance and accident are inevitable in life. The forms ultimately become a representation of self. Synthesizing personal experiences through self-expression with fate and coincidental occurrences from the firing. There is a presence of the unpredictable. Much like how experiences and hardships leave imprints on a person. No two forms are identical just as no two humans experience anxiety the same way.