Ailia Rizvi
BIO
Ailia Rizvi is a queer Pakistani-Canadian craftsperson making ceramic works that explore play, ritual and reverie.
CAPSTONE PROJECT
OBJECTS OF AFFECTION
Through a vibrant investigation of colour and form, I explore play and reverie within a landscape of candelabras and vessels. I’m inspired by shrines as a physical manifestation of devotion and accumulation, and how they serve as places of personal solitude and interpersonal connection. I build each piece with exaggerated pinch marks, emphasizing tenderness and interaction; traces of my hand are left behind in the structure of each piece, making surfaces that both allude to and invite touch. I am drawn to finding these parallels and patterns that are over arching; connecting seemingly unrelated realms and ideas. I embrace the connectedness of everything, the layers and layers of references that can be endlessly combined to create a new language. I think about how knitting is coil building, a slab is quilt, and how Confetti glaze is a collection of beautiful paper. There are parallels and tangents, and a reason for everything. Through hand built, colourful and pattern-ful works, I create objects that are an invitation to look within with affection, rather than fear.
FEATURED Work
Title: Candelabras
Dimensions: 22 x 4 x 4 in.
Year: 2023
Materials: Glazed Stoneware
Title: Pillar
Dimensions: 24 x 6 x 6 in.
Year: 2023
Materials: Glazed Stoneware
Title: Candelabra
Dimensions: 7 x 5 x 5 in.
Year: 2023
Materials: Glazed Stoneware
Title: Candelabra
Dimensions: 22 x 8 x 4 in.
Year: 2023
Materials: Glazed Stoneware