Artist Bio
Sophie Francoeur double majored in Ceramics and Art History at Kansas City Art Institute in Kansas City, MO, where she earned her BFA. Her interest in art history informs her work as well as her life-long passion for anatomy and physiology. Sophie works mostly in ceramic sculpture and tile, but her background lies in 2D charcoal, ink, and paint. In the summer of 2022, she joined a study abroad program studying porcelain and mold making in Kecskemet Hungary at The International Ceramic Studio, and another program studying weaving and natural dyes in San Miguel De Allende. She also interned at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in the Exhibition Design Department.
Artist Statement
I want my artwork to evoke curiosity and wonder, like that feeling of awe and discovery when I pick up a moss-covered rock and see all of the roots, holes, and little critters beneath. My childhood obsession with creepy crawlies, which led me to take home every dead bug I found, now leads me to recreate them.
Whether they are flying through the air or burrowing in the soil, worms, insects, and arachnids are everywhere. They are vital members of the ecosystem, helping people in a million subtle ways. Yet they are easy to forget about and often portrayed as grotesque and repulsive. They are so tiny that they’re often perceived as a speck, but within that speck lies unseen beauty and complexity.
I make wall pieces of glazed ceramic tiles. The surfaces are colorful and tactile, textured with carvings, and covered with glazes of different lusters, painterly patterns, and illustrations. My subjects expose moments in nature too small or brief to notice, like a cicada emerging from its shell or a moth taking flight. I compress volumetric subjects into low-relief tiles while maintaining a strong sense of space and perspective. When expanding the scale of these critters in my ceramics, their alien-like anatomy, bright colors, subtle movements, and odd textures are discernible in all of their minute detail. I am zooming in beyond the point of instant recognition, making my subjects too big and beautiful to ignore. Their intricacy and uniqueness is highlighted and exalted, eliciting a more admiring and fantastical feeling towards these important creatures. There are many things we still cannot explain about bugs, their behaviors and capabilities, but in time, with care and observation, maybe I can learn a thing or two from them, while presenting them for others to experience and contemplate.