Biography
Russell Wrankle
Russell Wrankle moved to Southern Utah in 2003. His studio is an old barn that has no insulation and some of the walls are thin plywood that allows the slightest breeze to chill me. Russell said, “I am slowly fixing it up, realizing that it will grow along with me, artistically and logistically.”
The Tile Process
Each tile is painstakingly hand made from the wet clay to the finished fired piece. I do it the way tile makers have done it for thousands of years with no mechanical equipment, just a wooden frame and physical effort.
What is achieved from the hand made method is tile that has that irregular and intimate quality of things make entirely by the human hand.
When making the tile, I imagine them hanging on the wall over a fireplace or in a living room. They have also been included in showers and back splashes.
Artist Statement
My sculpture is an attempt to tell personal stories through the use of objects. Binoculars, bricks, ram skin and ram heads are just a few symbols that I adopted for this objective. While these symbols have personal relevance, I intend for them to take on a universal theme. Once I establish objects that have important personal symbolism, I look for innovative ways to put them together. I am also interested in the potency of using historical references, including ancient Iranian and Pre-Colombian Ceramics.
My stories are almost incidental when viewed through a more universal lens. The sculptures look to the past, but the questions they ask are looking forward. What do we do with our past? How much of it do we let define us and how much of our past’s influence can we control?
All of us have our own stories, but if we were to condense them down to their essence, they would all mean the same thing: death, loss, guilt, fear, self-loathing, love, sex, and the loss of innocence.
My aim with the sculptures is to tell my narrative and by so doing, tell the story of what it means to be human.
My functional work, including the tile, is a way to not only push myself artistically, but also, a means to put bread on the table. Functional artwork is more useful and therefore, more easily appreciated by the general public. I am able to pursue creative ideas within the scope of pots and tiles and also see an immediate response from the buyer. Making pottery and tile keeps a production going in my studio, but I don’t feel my work is complete without the sculptural aspect, as well. Together, both functional and non-functional work fulfills my creative need to make art.
EDUCATION
1999 Master’s of Fine Arts, Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville
1995 Bachelor’s of Fine Arts, Brigham Young University
1987 Associate’s Degree, Rick’s College