Artist Statement

“I utilize the strength and delicacy of clay to create narrative works rooted in personal experiences. My inspiration comes from the externally quiet and internally loud realms of thought and memory. My work begins in the quiet tension between what is remembering and what is feeling. With the use of fragmentation, I emphasize memory, mystery, and the effects of time on the mind and human experience. I challenge myself to express sensation without the support of a facial expression, whether that be through an exaggerated foot, hand, or gesture. The fragment allows me to tell part of a story with a focus on the feelings of loss, fear, deep time, healing, hope, and wonder that I want to portray.  

Working with clay brings me a similar sense of tranquility and presence that being with nature does. I am drawn to the surface of marble sculpture, and with porcelain clay or terra sigillata I am able to mimic a similar soft and subtle surface. Roses are a recurring symbol in my work, representing my late twin sister, Grace Rose. I sculpt thorned stems alongside my roses to symbolize the duality of life where beauty and pain, joy and struggle, and life and loss coexist.”

Bio

Sophia Krumbein was born and raised in Southern California. After studying ceramics at Santa Ana College from 2018-2023, she transferred to the Kansas City Art Institute in 2023 to pursue her BFA in Ceramics, with a focus on figurative sculpture. As Sophia is finishing up her last year at the institute, she is also currently a Teaching Assistant for the sophomore figure sculpting class.

Sophia has shown her work in juried shows at the California Conference for the Advancement of Ceramic Arts, Davis, CA; United Colors, Kansas City, KS; the Kansas City Artist Coalition, Kansas City, MO; and Vulpes Bastille, Kansas City, MO.