Ev Christie is a ceramicist born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. They recently graduated from Wayne State University. Receiving a BFA in Ceramics and Metalsmithing, with a minor in Art History, Ev is also a member of the Honors College. Their work focuses on the intersection of historical and scientific research and fine art pottery. Their work has been featured in the multiple local and national exhibitions. Ev is a member of the National Council on the Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA), Michigan Ceramics Arts Association (MCAA), Michigan Silversmiths Guild, and the Wayne State Ceramics Guild.
The work they make is inspired by their love of bugs and pests. As a child, they often played in the creek near their house, upturning rocks and logs to poke at the ants and other creatures that resided under them. They are so deeply fascinated by the coloring and evolutionary properties of bugs, especially beetles. Asking, what in its environment caused the beetle to have to develop these shiny gold carapaces? Does my reflection of my outer self act in the same manner that a brightly colored poisonous beetle does? This concept of self-expression and the ugly is explored through incorporating bugs and pests into artworks. Forcing viewers to come to terms with viewing the grotesque and unlikable as works of fine art.
Presenting themself through these gross insects allows them to exist as the truest self, regardless of the feelings of others. They openly present as a butch dyke, something that in media and in daily life is not seen as something desirable. Women in the media are meant to be consumable, pretty, polished, and refined. Ev exists as an antithesis to that, someone who is unrefined, loud, brash, and stubborn. Comparing oneself to roaches or pests that thrive under dire circumstances such as extermination and hate leads one to accept that just like the pests that one strives to rid their area of, one will continue to exist.
@ev_christie on Instagram
