Centered around admiration for the natural world, Bella Teitelbaum and Lila Paschall’s senior show “Evanescent” was displayed in the Eastern Star Gallery May 15. Their exhibit comprised of a combination of ceramic pieces created by Paschall and paintings done by Teitelbaum.
Students in the Advanced Study Ceramics class, such as Paschall, are given the artistic freedom to choose their projects. Paschall decided to create a variety of sculpting and throwing pieces on the pottery wheel. She sculpted vases and flowers that aligned with the show’s theme.
“The inspiration behind our show is using art to show our appreciation for the beauty of the natural world, as well as the fragility and the passing of time,” Paschall said.
Art teacher Hannah Kremin helped organize their show. She said Paschall and Teitelbaum chose the title “Evanescent” because they wanted to convey the experience of being connected to nature and animals.
“They really wanted to speak to that feeling of what it’s like to be outdoors and encompass in these natural spaces,” Kremin said.
Paschall said being in nature has helped her mind stop wandering and focus on the present moment, especially as she navigated her senior year.
“I hope that people who viewed our show come away with a greater appreciation for the natural world, and its ability to ground you in the present moment and just feel gratitude,” Paschall said.
Sophomore Darian Weiss viewed the senior’s art pieces at lunch. She said she loved how each piece was unique and special, yet they all were cohesive and worked together to reflect the larger theme of “Evanescent”.
“I loved seeing how all the pieces in the art show connect together, and it’s all so cohesive,” Weiss said. “I really liked all the ceramics.”
Paschall said the ceramic hand displayed in front of the title of the gallery took her the longest to make. She started only from clay, built the foundation and then worked on intricate details, such as the veins.
“[It] is supposed to be a hand reaching upwards — to highlight the feeling of a little bit of sadness about moments that pass in time,” Paschall said.
Kremin said some of the work in the senior shows is not seen by the artist’s parents or families until the exhibit’s opening, which makes the openings more exciting.
“There will be aspects that the parents will know — what the theme is and what some of the work is,” Kremin said. “But it’s always fun because it’s a surprise for them because they don’t usually know how it’s going to be installed or curated.”
Weiss said she could tell how much time and effort the artists put into the gallery, and she especially loved all the flower details.
“I liked how there wasn’t too much going on. I like the simplicity of it all,” Weiss said. “The artwork was amazing.”
Paschall said some of her pieces took 2-3 hours to complete, while other took over 5 hours. She reflected on challenges she faced while creating ceramics pieces for the show.
“A big problem I faced when sculpting a lot of the flowers was that, because ceramics classes are only one hour, I would come back the next day after having made a flower and it would be fully dried out,” Paschall said. “I would have to toss it out.”
Kremin said curating the senior shows is usually a stressful process because of the quick turn-around time. She said Teitelbaum and Paschall were able to collaborate well and help each other throughout the process, which made the experience less overwhelming for them.
“They were being really mindful about editing the work that they chose to include,” Kremin said. “It made me really excited to see them just at peace in there and having fun doing that because what I wanted for them to experience was just the joy of installing the senior show.”
