Items Similar to Olympia.Porcelain Sculpture with hand-painted details
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 5
Alex HodgeOlympia.Porcelain Sculpture with hand-painted details2019
2019
About the Item
This piece recalls Manet’s painting of the same name. While Manet sought to confront the viewer with Olympia’s gaze, as she was a known sex worker, Hodge’s reinvention of the scene focuses on the connection between the two women in the scene. Instead of Olympia looking out for her next client, she is captured by this woman’s gesture of affection in the form of a bouquet.
The three series that make up her thesis show all center around the woman as an art historical trope who becomes a contemporary archetype of tenderness and tenacity with her own narrative. The tradition of the woman as muse or object is questioned and turned upside down as she gives her women the position of subject, i.e., the position of power. The jars, which uphold pairs of women, are the ultimate overturn of male dominance as she removes and replaces all male characters from famous artworks with women. The couples care for one another and are so consumed in their connection that the viewer is ignored. They do not exist for the viewer’s fantasy because their desires are already fulfilled. Through these three bodies of work, she creates archival objects which combine to build a narrative of women’s power, based on the Love Ethic, as discussed by bell hooks in her book, All About Love. Furthermore, notions of power are investigated in tandem with Mary Follett’s writings on power, which delineate Western conception as power-over, and the feminist ideal as power-with.
Alex Hodge is an artist-ceramist primarily interested in creating work that juxtaposes the canon of Western art with the lived experiences of contemporary women. As a queer woman growing up in the rural south, she became familiar with the feeling of being on the periphery, spending her youth wandering the woods, collecting material for small sculptures and creating stories for herself.
Alex Hodge grew up on a blueberry farm in South Georgia where she learned the value of cultivating the earth. Currently based in Miami, Florida, Hodge focuses on prioritizing women’s narratives in all aspects of her work. Her poetic porcelain objects examine and reimagine the history of art in a way that values women, not only in body, but in wholeness, power, and love. By combining sculptural and drawn elements, such as carved and painted patterns, her works create a dialogue between space and line, form and surface for a dynamic viewing experience. Often limiting her color palette to black and white, she uses the carving technique called sgraffito to incise her pieces with drawings, her own text, and pattern. Focusing on the narrative qualities of art-making, Hodge weaves stories into the clay which are both personal and universal. Through the decorative and symbolic details, she hints at narratives without completing them to invite the viewer to participate in creating meaning. The women she invents exist in the present but are of the imagined future in which we all have room to flourish, tell our stories, give and receive love, and express the beauty and pain of the human condition. Fundamentally, her artworks are a celebration of the tenacity and vulnerability of women and clay, an interplay of history and hope.
About the Seller
4.9
Recognized Seller
These prestigious sellers are industry leaders and represent the highest echelon for item quality and design.
Established in 2000
1stDibs seller since 2016
257 sales on 1stDibs
Typical response time: 6 hours
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Shipping from: Adel, Georgia
- Return Policy
Authenticity Guarantee
In the unlikely event there’s an issue with an item’s authenticity, contact us within 1 year for a full refund. DetailsMoney-Back Guarantee
If your item is not as described, is damaged in transit, or does not arrive, contact us within 7 days for a full refund. Details24-Hour Cancellation
You have a 24-hour grace period in which to reconsider your purchase, with no questions asked.Vetted Professional Sellers
Our world-class sellers must adhere to strict standards for service and quality, maintaining the integrity of our listings.Price-Match Guarantee
If you find that a seller listed the same item for a lower price elsewhere, we’ll match it.Trusted Global Delivery
Our best-in-class carrier network provides specialized shipping options worldwide, including custom delivery.More From This Seller
View AllWho Washes the Feet of Mary Magdalene. Sculpture made in Porcelain, hand-painted
Located in Miami Beach, FL
This piece recalls the art historical depictions of Mary Magdalene. Though she is often contextualized as the one who washed Jesus’s feet, Hodge centers her as the subject and asks “Who takes care of her?”. She answers with the scene of another woman washing her feet, which speaks to the ways that women’s care for one another is often unseen.
The three series that make up her thesis show all center around the woman as an art historical trope who becomes a contemporary archetype of tenderness and tenacity with her own narrative. The tradition of the woman as muse or object is questioned and turned upside down as she gives her women the position of subject, i.e., the position of power. The jars, which uphold pairs of women, are the ultimate overturn of male dominance as she removes and replaces all male characters from famous artworks with women...
Category
2010s Other Art Style Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Gold
Untitled #10 Female antique Bust painted and adorned. Infortunios De La Virtud
By Armando de la Garza
Located in Miami Beach, FL
Untitled #10 (female bust), 2016
from Los Infortunios De La Virtud series
Antique porcelain bust with the intervention of oil, gold, silver, lea...
Category
Mid-19th Century Romantic Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Stone, Gold
Reimagining the Divine as You. Large Carved Porcelain Vase
Located in Miami Beach, FL
This vessel is a part of the series Unsung Muses and references art historical imagery such as Botticelli’s Venus, the Minoan Snake Goddess, Hera, and th...
Category
2010s Other Art Style Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Ceramic, Clay, Porcelain, Paint
Tribute to Astarte and Her Spirit of Tenacity. Large Carved Porcelain Vase
Located in Miami Beach, FL
This vessel is part of the Unsung Muses series, and it illustrates various versions of the Goddess Astarte in juxtaposition with rows of pattern and text. The text on the body of the...
Category
2010s Other Art Style Abstract Sculptures
Materials
Ceramic, Clay, Porcelain, Paint
History Lesson Power Is Always Taken. Hand Carved Large Porcelain Vase
Located in Miami Beach, FL
This vessel is one of the first from the series of pots Unsung Muses and prioritizes the narrative of Hatshepsut, as she was perhaps the most successful female pharaoh of Egypt. She brought prosperity and peace to Egypt through her work to improve infrastructure and trade routes. Her success was so great that her male successors attempted to erase her from history by literally chiseling her image off the walls and attempting to destroy all statues of her. By honoring her existence in this large vessel, I center the narrative of women’s power...
Category
2010s Other Art Style Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Ceramic, Clay, Porcelain, Paint
Lead with the Hear tPortrait. Carved Porcelain Wall Sculpture
Located in Miami Beach, FL
The portraits, loaded with symbolic imagery, gaze out at the viewer, with a variety of intensities and emotions. This is to say, each woman has a story, which may not be directly evi...
Category
2010s Other Art Style Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Porcelain
You May Also Like
"Wild Cherry" (2024) By Carolyn Barlock, Original Gold and Porcelain Sculpture
By Carolyn Barlock
Located in Denver, CO
"Wild Cherry" (2024) by Carolyn Barlock is an original, handmade sculpture made with Persian luster and 22kt gold on porcelain.
About the Artist:
Carolyn L. Barlock was born in Den...
Category
2010s Abstract Sculptures
Materials
Gold
Balloon Dog (Yellow)
By Jeff Koons
Located in New York, NY
Metallic porcelain multiple. Numbered 13872/2300 on the base. Original printed booklet numbered 1382/2300 in ink on the justification page. Produced by Bernardaud, Limoges. Published...
Category
2010s Contemporary Abstract Sculptures
Materials
Metal
Sheep
Located in New York, NY
Hung Yi was born in Taichung, Taiwan in 1970. The artist’s works are inspired by Taiwanese culture or day-to-day life in Taiwan. In the 1990s, it was popula...
Category
2010s Contemporary Abstract Sculptures
Materials
Enamel, Steel, Stainless Steel
Price Upon Request
The Giving Tree
By Shamona Stokes
Located in Jersey City, NJ
Hand-built ceramic, flashe, metallic foil, UV matte finish, 19.5" high x 10" wide x 5" deep.
Black, gold, red, blue.
COA available upon request
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Gold Leaf
"Another Connection", Abstract Figurative Ceramic Sculpture with Colorful Glaze
By SunKoo Yuh
Located in St. Louis, MO
The ceramic sculptures of SunKoo Yuh are composed of tight groupings of various forms including plants, animals, fish, and human figures. While Korean art, Buddhism, and Confucian be...
Category
2010s Contemporary Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Ceramic, Clay, Porcelain, Glaze
"Iridescence, " Mixed Media Sculpture
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Based in Chicago, IL, contemporary artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites, collages and mixed media works assembled from material fragments of past and present collected in his travels. In his ongoing series of memory jugs, Thompson adorns stoneware vessels with a kaleidoscope of ceramic shards, found objects, and pocket-sized trinkets he collected over the course of his life.
Also known as forget-me-not jugs or spirit jars...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Figurative Sculptures
Materials
Stone
