Blue Line Art Gallery Exhibition 2024 Off-Center

Vianne De Santiago, May 8th, 2024

On May 8th, I visited the Blue Line Art Gallery located in Roseville. This gallery has an established reputation in Sacramento for well-known artists and emerging artists to display their works. The outside of the building is more industrial and does not give any artistic expression on the exterior. When entering the building though there is art everywhere. 

The exhibit I focused on during my visit here was the 2024 Off-Center exhibition juried by Heidi Mckenzie. Heidi Mckenzie is an international ceramic artist and advocate. She describes the selected works for the show portray various narratives that viewers can interpret and connect to. 

The exhibit filled the majority of the gallery’s space. The works I will be discussing are from artists Mary Catherine Bassett, Sally Graves Jackson, David Stevens, and Marshall Green.

 I am not the most knowledgeable about ceramics, but with my limited background information I had, I was able to admire the craftsmanship and detail these artists put into their works.

To begin with, Mary Catherine Bassett, her ceramic work, Sora, $1,800, is an excellent ceramic work. She incorporates looping and texture into her work being complimented with motion throughout the piece. This was one of my personal favorites from the exhibition. Her craftsmanship with her medium is admirable and I love seeing ceramics used in unconventional ways. Her incorporation of the glass also helped amplify her piece as the glass brings movement towards the bottom of the work.

Next was Sally Graves Jackson, her work displayed was, Hatching, $1,000, this work was a full ceramics piece, not a mixed medium. When looking at this work, it gave me a mystical forest feeling, like what you would see in a fairy tale. The unity and shape of the piece bring your eyes up and down through the work. It was not stated if the books created had any specific meaning, but from the binding, the books look real. I enjoyed this work, she does a great job manipulating her medium and making her bottom slab look like an actual rock. 

The next artist was David Stevens, Cultural Study 0569, $1,850, this piece felt more expressionist. The formatting of the work reminded me of a Basquiat painting with different elements being assembled together. The shape of the piece made it more masculine and had a sense of importance. It is not hung exactly at eye level more above, so you have to look up to it. His corporation of other elements though helped bring the main body of work together. Alone the slabs would have not had the same impact.

The last artist I will be discussing is Marshall Green. His work displayed was, Impact Series #9, $700, this piece has great motion and shows the forms clay can take when left unmanipulated. Both pieces of the work are ceramic. While the bottom is a slab making it strong and sharp, the cylinder on top gives more of a delicate feel as it hugs the bottom piece. The work also has a great range of motions with the circles inside the cylinder. Overall the piece keeps your attention as you moved through it. 

The Off-Center exhibition displayed a great range of ceramic artists. I personally loved all the works pictures and hope their artworks get purchased.