Artists
Michael Boroniec (b. 1983) is a sculptor and designer. Best known for his unique Spatial Spiral ceramics, these forms began with a single spiral and have evolved into a series of vessels that vary in form, degree of expansion, and number of coils. Each piece is wheel thrown then deconstructed. This process reveals aspects of the vessel that most rarely encounter. Within the walls, maker’s marks become evident and contribute to the texture. The resultant ribbon effect, reminiscent of a wheel trimming, lends fragility, elegance, and motion to a medium generally perceived as hard and heavy. This emphasizes a resistance of gravity, allowing negative space to unravel and become part of the form. The result is a body of sculptural objects resembling and born of functional vessels.
A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, Michael Boroniec has shown in numerous museums and galleries throughout the United States in both group and solo exhibitions including the Gyeonggi International Ceramic Biennale, Icheon Cerapia in Gyeonggi-do Province, Korea, Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, MA; Berkshire Museum, Pittsfield, MA; Boise Art Museum, Idaho; RISD Triennial, Providence, RI, the New York Ceramics and Glass Fair; National Bohemian Hall, New York; Albany Institute of Art and History, NY, and the Sculptural Objects Functional Art and Design Fair (SOFA), Chicago, IL, among others. Michael Boroniec lives and works in Pittsfield, MA.
Artist Statement, "After decades of centering my practice and primarily focusing on functional objects, I wished to link ceramics with contemporary sculpture. I began to think a lot about the connection of objects in contexts to the human experience. “What is a vase if it does not hold water?” This concept led me on an eight year engineering challenge to create a wheel thrown vessel that spirals and suspends into space. This body of work I title, “Spatial Spirals.” Each spiral represents a harmonious dance between symmetry and balance. Their delicate curves symbolize the rhythmic flow of spirals beyond the galaxy or helix of DNA. Each artwork transcends the conventional boundaries of its original form, unraveling into positive and negative space, and encouraging the viewer to contemplate presence and absence, while challenging the known and logical."