‘Kitsch and catharsis’

“Floral Glory” (blown and sculpted glass), by Nancy Callan, in the show “Nancy Callan and Katherine Gray: The Clown in Me Loves You,’’ at at the Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, Mass., through March 1. The show is sponsored by Artscope Magazine.

— Photo by Russell Johnson. Image Courtesy of Fuller Craft Museum.

The museum explains:

“A sculpted fusion of kitsch and catharsis, this exhibition marks a dynamic, four-year collaboration in glass between West Coast artists Nancy Callan (Seattle) and Katherine Gray (Los Angeles). In this remarkable body of work, Callan and Gray explore our collective experiences with—and reactions to—clowns. Whether found in childhood memories, in circuses and parades, among those we love, or in our political worlds, clowns are ubiquitous. The artists use traditional Venetian glassblowing techniques to spark viewers associations and emotions, while mining complex social commentaries. It may seem like light-hearted fun, but multiple layers of feelings and realities emerge—is it a tunnel of love, a house of horrors, or a combination of both?

“The artists seek to explore reactions to ‘clowns’ and all that the word entails - ‘whether {they say} found in childhood memories, in circuses and parades, among those we love, or in our political worlds, clowns are ubiquitous.’ The artists hope to elicit associations and emotions, and mine ‘complex social commentaries.’’’