Trae Story

I am interested in making art without prescriptive expectations. My artwork serves as a corollary to censorship, by seeking to change the way people understand an issue or situation for the purpose of changing their actions and expectations. I attempt to circumvent this problem by avoiding initial confrontation, which happens through multidimensional transmutation of my upbringing, cartoons, folktales, and pop culture into abstracted objects. My work references issues and preconceptions about the nature of black people. Black people are lauded for their perceived tendencies and natural physical abilities far more than their intellect and diligence – a recurring theme in the perception of the black body. Stained porcelain, which is known historically for its whiteness, is used with molds like a thick paint. Molds of found objects, hand carved models, and 3D modeled printed objects allow me to repeat forms and symbols that emphasize importance, progression, or redundancy. I am curious about the idea of the “takeaway”, where the viewer can walk away with a fragment of a larger whole, like a physical adage. I utilize the ceramic ability to mimic other materials, and take fragments from source material to deceive the viewer and trap them into a dialogue about the topics of my work.