Palace of Leaves

While working on this exhibition, I was thinking about trees. Because they often experience life in a longer time scale than humans, trees can be felt as witnesses to our human achievement and our folly, our appreciation and our exploitation.

With this new body of work, my abstracted human figures have taken on evolving shapes referencing arboreal forms. Before the silicon age, the Santa Clara Valley was blanketed with some of the most fertile orchards in the world and dubbed “the Valley of Heart’s Delight.” Before that, it was home to ancient native oaks and redwoods. Trees have accompanied us, and I have taken inspiration from our bonds with them.

Beyond our tangible relationship with trees, I also think of my artistic practice itself as a ‘palace of leaves.’ For me it is a canopy of focus, rooted in purpose. The phrase is from a poem by Mary Oliver, “Crossing The Swamp” which emphasizes resilience and creative potential.

My approach is improvisational. The materials/processes (clay, pigments, kiln firings, etc.) are partners in dialogue with me, rather than merely subject to my preconceived ideas.

With each round of decisions I make during the forming, surface coloration, firings, I am responding to the changes the material presents. I highly value the geological impressions and subtle tonal changes as the clay body matures with each firing.

The seasons pass very quickly and it’s important to enjoy what is there in front of you. You have to have a certain amount of faith that your process will reveal a path or a direction, even if you don’t know what the end point will be. You have to have faith that the water will be deep enough when you jump into it.

Michelle Gregor, 2024