I sculpt tiny clay foods and household items in an attempt to reclaim domestic space separated from the actual highly gendered labor of caretaking.
My art practice grew out of my need to care for my own mental health while working and parenting my daughter. I have found that when I'm able to create space for my own work, caring for my child, my family, and my community nutures and expands my mental health and sense of self. When I don't reserve any energy for my own growth and processing, caretaking can feel stunting, overwhelming, and like a minefield of anxiety and obligation.
Crystal Ann Brown is an interdisciplinary artist/mother/academic currently working in
Buckhannon, West Virginia. For the past 9 years, her work has focused on holistically
blending art and life. This blending of her studio practice with her daily life also touches on
its inherent challenges. In her words, “my love/hate relationship with my kitchen might
manifest in my drawings and paintings that celebrate work and the labor of love with a hint
of fury and frustration shown in the economy of line found in blind contour drawings.” Her
practice strives to reveal the underappreciated aspects of mothering and everyday life
through the use of textiles, sculpture, time-based media, social practice and drawing.