Cathy Della Lucia, "Trolling (strawberries and burnt tongues)," 2023. Fishing rod mount, tennis overgrip, wood, ceramic, glaze, underglaze, stain, paint, acrylic. 31 x 15 x 13 in.
Two coinciding contemporary art shows will be on view from June 19-July 27, 2024.at OVERLAP, located at 112 Van Zandt Avenue in Newport, RI : Peripheral Decoys, a solo exhibition by Boston-area sculptor, Cathy Della Lucia, and Same Rain, Same Stars , a collaborative immersive installation consisting of wall-painting, ceramic sculpture and vessels by Providence artists Eamon Brown, Judd Schiffman, and Athena Witscher, In the lower exhibition room, "Peripheral Decoys," Cathy Della Lucia creates sculptures from interlocking units of carved wood, ceramic, and 3D-printed forms that are juxtaposed with utilitarian items from work and play, such as deep-sea fishing pole mounts, motorcycle repair stands, and gym equipment. Her modular sculptures bridge the gap between fragment and whole. Made up of found, altered, and fabricated forms they display a variety of distinct surfaces that range from an array of smoothly sanded and polished hardwoods and laminated plywood, to lustrous and matte ceramic glazes, soft translucent gradients of airbrushed dyes and dense opacities of industrial paints. Built through repetitive assemblage and disassemblage, the sculptures reflect on the fragmentation and the subsequent gamification strategies we employ to navigate and focus in everyday life, as well as the concept of sculptural objects as decoys that embody both action and form, and exist simultaneously as imitation and reality. She says “To recognize a decoy requires deconstruction— a peeling back of sensory layers to detect misalignment of familiarity. Also on view, on the upper level, “Same Rain, Same Stars”, an immersive collaborative installation by Eamon Brown, Judd Schiffman, and Athena Witscher, will consist of ceramic vases, ceramic relief tiles, and full-scale wall drawing and paintings. Considering the shared natural world as raw material, “Same Rain, Same Stars,” is a playful intervention with the gallery and each other’s creative practice: Brown’s psychedelic patterning and sculpture, Witscher’s utilitarian pottery and textiles, and Schiffman’s ceramic relief tiles. In this experimental exhibition, these artists collaborate through the common experience of being artists, friends, and parents.
