Feature Stories 2020: Danielle O'Malley: Sink or Swim

Boston Sculptors Gallery
The LaunchPad Gallery

November 18, 2020 - January 10, 2021
Reception: November 21, 4:00 - 6:00pm

First Friday LaunchpPad hours: December 4, 7:30-9:00pm

Gallery Hours Wednesday - Sunday, 11:00am - 5:00pm and by appointment.
Note: The gallery will be closed December. 24 - January 5, except by appointment.

Danielle O’Malley first solo exhibition in Boston Massachusetts, Sink or Swim, addresses the role of humans in the environmental crisis through a foreboding installation. It is comprised of hand-built earthenware and upcycled waste materials collected throughout New England. Nautical buoys, traditionally used as warning beacons or navigational tools, become anthropomorphized industrial objects, warning the viewer about the perils of misuse and abuse of the natural world, as well as forcing awareness of their movements as they navigate through the installation. The marriage of these materials is a metaphor for the complexity of humanity’s role in the climate emergency, as well as the potential for society and nature to successfully collaborate and cohabitate. While acknowledging the gravity of the current situation, Sink or Swim also offers hope. It is not too late for us to turn to sustainable lifestyles, nurture the natural world, and allow the earth to regain its health, creating an environment in which all lifeforms can thrive.

Danielle O’Malley was born and raised in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire. After receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Plymouth State University in 2012, O’Malley attended residencies at Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts, the Paris Gibson Square Museum of Art, and the Red Lodge Clay Center. She has exhibited internationally, and her work is included in collections including the Northwest Art Gallery in Minot, ND; Silver Bow Art Gallery in Butte, MT; and the Taoxichuan Art Center in Jingdezhen, China. O’Malley served as a demonstrating artist at several universities, completed a ceramics-focused post baccalaureate program at Montana State University, and has assisted many artists in Helena, MT. She is currently pursuing a Master of Fine Arts degree at the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth.

Contacts:

Almitra Stanley, Director
617.501.5600
bostonsculptors@gmail.com
bostonsculptors.com

Danielle O’Malley
603.960.0731
omalleyceramics@gmail.com
omalleyart.net