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Fiction: A Figurative Abstraction Exhibit of Clay Monoprints
This Friday, January 2nd, I’ll have an exhibit opening featuring clay monoprint works — a medium developed in Pennsylvania. The collection of works focuses on art that can be considered figurative abstraction: recognizable, real-world forms portrayed in abstract ways.
“Fiction” Exhibit Opens January 2nd, 2026
This Friday, January 2nd, I’ll have an exhibit opening featuring clay monoprint works — a medium developed in Pennsylvania. The collection of works focuses on art that can be considered figurative abstraction: recognizable, real-world forms portrayed in abstract ways. See the works and other exhibits on First Friday from 5:00 to 7:00 PM.
"Fiction"
Clay Monoprint Exhibit
Adams County Arts Council
125 S. Washington Street, Gettysburg, PA
January 2026
First Friday Reception:
Friday, January 2nd, 2026
5:00 - 7:00 PM
Exhibit Artist Statement:
Artist Statement for Fiction
(Adams County Arts Council, January 2026)
In Fiction, I present a body of work that dwells in the space between representation and abstraction. Each piece emerges from the clay monoprint process—a method that combines the painter’s intent with the medium’s nature. Working on a slab of clay known as the matrix, I layer pigments and brushstrokes while allowing remnants of previous works to shape its evolving history. The results are neither purely imagined nor purely seen; they are translations of process and imagination into visual form.
The clay monoprint art form is relatively new, and many works are experiments that resist easy classification within traditional styles or movements. For this exhibit, I use the phrase “material-oriented figurative abstraction” because it captures that tension: forms may suggest vessels, landscapes, or other familiar objects, yet they never resolve into literal images. Instead, they become echoes of both past and present. The clay, pigment, and chance determine as much of the outcome as my own intent. The way the clay transfers to the material (often Pellon) becomes part of the work’s meaning, influencing future prints. Process and material are inseparable from the final image.
The matrix itself is a record: each layer of clay slips and pigment, embedded into the clay slab, is captured in time. I do not erase those echoes; I lean into them. Layers accumulate, and remnants of earlier imagery reappear unexpectedly, as though the clay recalls its past and chooses to speak. In this way, the material is both subject and medium, holding within it the memory of this transformation.
The title “Fiction” suggests that what you are seeing is not a direct representation of something tangible—it is a narrative shaped by memory, of what remains after the artist and chance collide. Even when a work seems to reference something familiar, it is always a story built from clay, artist marks, and the intent of the matrix itself.
This collection at the Adams County Arts Council encompasses not only the works on display but also the histories that shaped them. Ultimately, these monoprints are tactile and limited by the present. Peer closely at the surface and recognize that fiction—like art itself—is past and present transformed.
"The Lyons Share" Exhibit Article Updated
We had a wonderful opening reception for “The Lyons’ Share” exhibit at the Chester County Art Association. View photographs in the updated Culture On The Line article.
Lyons' Share Exhibit Opens September 5th at the Chester County Art Association
The Chester County Art Association shares the works of four active clay monoprint artists in their upcoming exhibit, “Lyons’ Share,” running from September 8th through the 24th. Learn more, including insights from the artists, in the Culture On The Line article linked here.
Culture On The Line article screenshot - © Culture On The Line and Andrew T. Smith
The Chester County Art Association shares the works of four active clay monoprint artists in their upcoming exhibit, “Lyons’ Share,” running from September 8th through the 24th. Learn more, including insights from the artists, in the Culture On The Line article linked here.
"The Lyons' Share"
Chester County Art Association
100 N Bradford Ave, West Chester, PA
Parking Available On-Site.
chestercountyarts.org
September Gallery Hours:
Monday-Friday: 10 AM - 5 PM
Saturday: 10 AM - 4 PM
Closed Sundays
Artists:
Steve Koelsch (skoelsch3@yahoo.com)
Robin Sesan (www.robinsesanart.com)
Andrew Smith (visualrealia.com)
Meredith Wakefield (mitchlyonsstudio.com)
Works by Mitch Lyons (mitchlyonsstudio.com)
"The Lyons' Share" opens on Thursday, September 5th, from 5:00 to 7:00 PM, at the Chester County Art Association in West Chester, Pennsylvania. The exhibit, featuring four clay monoprint artists plus representative works of Lyons, runs through September 24th. The Art Association is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that has served the region since 1931.
Visual Realia Exhibit at York's Out Door Country Club
Visual Realia’s (Andrew T. Smith) exhibit at York’s Out Door Country Club
Thanks to the ongoing efforts of Creative York, I have an exhibit of approximately two dozen clay monoprints and photographs at York’s lovely Out Door Country Club. The exhibit runs through July 12th, 2024.
The hallway-based exhibit area naturally allows for sharing monoprints on one side and photographs on the other, essentially providing two mini-exhibits.
For more information on the exhibit, visit the online article on the Culture On The Line website. Works may be purchased here.
“Clay & Pigment” by Andrew T. Smith
Out Door Country Club
May 13 - July 13, 2024
1157 Detwiler Drive, York, PA
Enter Through the Center Doors
Curated by Creative York
All works copyright by Andrew T. Smith and/or Visual Realia, LLC.
Copper and Collaboration in the "unentitled" Exhibit at Marketview Arts
Seven artists with unique mediums and techniques exhibit collaborative works in the unentitled exhibit at Market View Arts.
Early during the summer of 2022, several members of the Collective Rogue Arts (CRA), an informal group of area creatives, artists, and entrepreneurs in south-central Pennsylvania, began discussing an exhibit of works focusing on collaborations between two or more artists.
As visual artists, we typically join an exhibit with many predetermined specifics: location, dates, times, exhibit themes, mediums, etc., but in this case, the task was designed from the opposite direction. We opened up this possibility to fellow CRA members.
Seven artists started down the path without a confirmed exhibit location and with only the concept of working on these joint works. During initial meetings, the artists themselves determined the exhibit theme, randomly selected initial collaborative partners for artworks, and a common color (copper) to use on individual 12" x 12" tiles that each would create.
Art is a powerful and valuable tool for looking at social issues, and this exhibit's artists chose to examine challenges around entitlement via their unique mediums, techniques, and place in life. The result is shared with visitors to the gallery space at York's Marketview Arts, part of York College of Pennsylvania's Center for Community Engagement.
In addition to collaborative works, exhibit guests will see individual sample art from each contributor. We hope you join Reagan Bitler, Ophelia Chambliss, Jeannine Dabb, Kristin Kest, Nicole Osborne, Andrew Smith, and Debbie Toluba in considering our continuing role in issues revolving around the challenges for the unentitled.
“The Summoning of Everyman” 2023 © Nicole Osborne & Andrew Smith
The Summoning of Everyman
In the 15th Century play, The Summoning of Everyman, the Everyman character — representing humankind — tries in vain to get others to travel through life's journey by his side. In the end, he learns that he must take this voyage alone.
Some of us are in positions in life that come with supports and inherent systems that aid our journey through life. Others, however, are placed in a tier of those that society has deemed unentitled to companionship, the ability to move forward, and the capacity to discover self-improvement. Their journey is one of disappointment and loneliness.
Artists: Nicole Osborne & Andrew Smith
“Sabotage” 2023 © Kristin Kest & Andrew Smith
Sabotage
Art can be behind obstacles for some: lack of access to meaningful arts experiences is an entrenched part of poverty.
In Sabotage, a work by Kristin Kest and Andrew Smith, gallery visitors are asked to place one or more clay tiles into a smaller display area to represent those with significant barriers to participation in the arts. Adding or removing tiles in the larger central region as they wish, they may note that the systems to create fair, equitable arts access are uneven and broken — sometimes with intent.
“Clay & Play I and Clay & Play II” 2023 © Ophelia Chambliss & Andrew Smith
Clay & Play I and II
The Clay & Play artworks begin with a clay monoprint — clay slip clinging to pellon — which then is transformed with a second layer, this time of acrylic paint guided by a second artist. The top level of play was a series of continuous lines filled with non-contiguous color in the most random yet consistent pattern.
It's way too common in our societies for a less dominant (or unentitled) class to be forced to mold itself onto and into the seams and structures built by the majority or more established group.
Race, gender, age, orientation, and so on are all layers of our larger communities and can be challenging to traverse. Like the art mediums in collaborative art, a prosperous society is best achieved when we celebrate and understand our valued differences and unifying attributes.
Artists: Ophelia Chambliss & Andrew Smith
Medium: Acrylic Paint & Clay Monoprint on Pellon
“Redlined” by Andrew Smith, for the exhibit, unentitled. Copyright ©2023 by Andrew T. Smith.
Redlined
by Andrew Smith
Clay Monoprint, Slip, Copper Mica, LEDs, Copper Wire, Red Tape, Copper Foil, & 9 Volt Battery on Wood Panel
Each of the seven artists created a 12" x 12" tile touching on the shared unentitled theme, utilizing the color of copper to tie the individual artworks together cohesively.
Redlining has had a tremendous negative impact on our communities, the consequences of which can still be seen. In my tile, shown above, a clay monoprint serves as the circuit board, with some areas created with a copper-colored mica in addition to the clay slip. Copper wire is purposely cut heading into the redlined area, removing any potential benefits afforded to the rest of the board.
LEDs are active on the left but are nonfunctional within the redlined area.
unentitled
August 19th - October 21st, 2023
Curator: Ivy Rodgers
Marketview Arts
37 W. Philadelphia St.
York, Pennsylvania
All works copyright the artists and/or Andrew T. Smith
Visual Realia in the "unentitled" Exhibit at Marketview Arts
Andrew Smith of Visual Realia is one of seven artists who created collaborative works on the theme of “unentitled” for this new exhibit in York, Pennsylvania.
The "unentitled" artists discuss the exhibit setup.
Early during the summer of 2022, several members of the Collective Rogue Arts, an informal group of area creatives, artists, and entrepreneurs, began discussing an exhibit of works that were collaborations between two or more artists.
Artists typically join an exhibit with lots of specifics: location, dates, times, exhibit themes, mediums, etc., but in this case, the task was designed from the opposite direction.
Seven of us started down the path without a confirmed exhibit location and with only the concept of working on these joint works. During initial meetings, we determined the exhibit theme, randomly selected initial collaborative partners, and a common color (copper) to use on individual 12" x 12" tiles that each of us would create to work as a whole as a group piece.
Art is a powerful and valuable tool for looking at social issues, and this exhibit's artists chose to discuss challenges around entitlement via their unique mediums and techniques. The result is shared with you in the Marketview Arts gallery space,
Visitors will also see individual sample works from each contributor. We hope you join Reagan Bitler, Ophelia Chambliss, Jeannine Dabb, Kristin Kest, Nicole Osborne, Debbie Toluba, and me in considering our continuing role in issues revolving around the challenges for the unentitled.
unentitled
Marketview Arts
37 W Philadelphia St., York, PA
Opening Reception:
Saturday, August 19th, 2023
5:00 - 7:00 PM
Exhibit:
August 19th - October 21st, 2023