As we increasingly operate through digital interfaces in our daily lives, the role of craft has come to represent an alternative; a preservation of analog process and tradition that seems lacking in a digital world. At the same time, craft media has always been at the forefront of developments in new technology. The work of Tom Schmidt represents a spectrum of sculptural objects which attempts to tease apart the amorphous state of ceramics and craft in a post-digital age. From digitally modeled vases to crumpled porcelain tile, Schmidt draws upon both digital fabrication and the hand made to orchestrate and capture a variety of material moments for the viewer to experience and unfold.
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“Modular Vase Series” |
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Installation of “Immaterial Artifacts” |
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“Network Series” |
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Installation of “Immaterial Artifacts” |
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“Sampled Spaces” |
Schmidt writes “In my work, I am driven by a sense of discovery that develops as I investigate materials and their properties. I use methods such as mold-making, scanning, and photography to capture material moments. These samples can then be printed, cast, layered, and distorted. This process fascinates me, because like our own constructed histories, the objects are imbued with layers of material memory that echo and obscure the original moment. Like the shift from experience to memory, all the transformations that take place are deviations from the original event, yet each transformation carries with it a new truth.”
Schmidt currently holds the position of Associate Professor of Interdisciplinary 3D Studio and Digital Fabrication at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. From 2009 through 2013 Schmidt taught ceramic design at the Alfred/CAFA (China Central Academy of Fine Art) Ceramic Design for Industry program in Beijing. He received his Post-Baccalaureate Certificate at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago and MFA at The New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University.
