Caleb Miller

Artist Statement

Caleb Miller Artist Statement

I am a Brooklyn based African American Artist and Educator. Born in Brooklyn, my family moved around to several states before settling in Oberlin OH. Growing up in a few different states, helped me to understand the diversity of Black communities, there are infinite ways to be African American. I believe diverse experiences need a multitude of ways to be expressed. I create work to initiate conversations about race and to promote new narratives about being Black in America. My work is a way for me to confront and process racism, both small micro aggressions and larger institutional issues.

Currently, I am working on a series in Ceramics. I am throwing vessels of various sizes and sculpting faces on them. All of the faces represent different black men, to feature the individuality of black men and to highlight the experience of being both hyper visible and invisible at the same time. The sculptures are finished with glaze that is partially dipped in one color with a different glaze dripped around the rims leaving some of the piece raw. Dripping the glaze gives the feeling of tears and sweat to represent both pain, struggle, and determination. The contrast of the different glazes and the raw clay, represents the many different contrasting experiences of code switching, not being able to bring one's full self into spaces.