Zoe Rosenfeld

**JULY FEATURED ARTIST**
Zoe Rosenfeld (she/they born 1993, Boston) has a fascination with the humorous and grotesque. Her cups and figures delve into the unnatural, and unnerve and thrill her viewers.
Rosenfeld distinctly remembers being a voracious reader starting in first grade. She devoured chapter books in a single sitting, and loved folk and fairy tales. These genres were an easy gateway into fantasy and sci-fi, and she never slowed down her wordy consumption.
Growing up in San Francisco gave Rosenfeld an appreciation for artists (many lived and thrived in her area before the tech boom), as well as alternative cultures. Rosenfeld walked past the Folsom Street Fair (an inclusive event for kink, leather and alternative sexuality communities) from an early age. It opened up her mind as well as her curiosity.
Rosenfeld was lucky to be able to pursue her creative inspirations in high school. The school hosted robust art classes, and she took full advantage. Reed College in Portland, Oregon became the space for her to study and graduate with a bachelors in theater (2016). Ceramics made a well-timed entrance during a low point for Rosenfeld. At home with family in California after completing her degree, she struggled with what to do next. The city college site closest to her featured intro pottery courses. It soon became the reason for her to get out of bed in the morning. Wheel throwing, coil building and a variety of techniques piqued her interested and grounded her spirit. The community of artists that took the classes gave her a sense of connection, and the exploration and negotiation with the medium lit her brain up. She felt well enough to pursue her other creative interests and started searching for opportunities.
An apprenticeship program at the prestigious Actors Theater of Louisville (Kentucky) followed soon after, and she spent a full year immersed in the program. The theater had a history of producing some plays by Naomi Wallace, a figure that Rosenfeld had personally researched in College. She wanted to explore her attraction to teaching in the theater world, which she did with a range of students from 3rd through 12th grade.

Chicago was the next logical step for Rosenfeld. It was in close proximity to Kentucky, and the theater scene was thriving. With no job or home waiting for her, Rosenfeld took a chance and made the move. A bit of couch surfing and some good leads gave her the chance to settle in and start her new life in 2019. The artist worked for a few Chicago theaters and continued teaching. The pandemic hit the arts community deeply, closing off education and classroom opportunities. Rosenfeld regrouped and looked for other work. The artist is a now a freelancer and writes the overarching narrative and dialogue for video games. The work reminds her of script writing, and also takes a great deal of imagination and pragmatism to complete. The players end up being her collaborators, responding to her words by the way they play, impacting the way the story is told.

**Three vessel pieces by Zoe Rosenfeld; Royal MilkTea (a childhood drink favorite), monster eye tumbler and bondage jar**

Rosenfeld settled into her new city and found a home, and an incredible friend group. New friend Christopher O’Meara introduced her to the studio after finding out she had an interest in the medium. She joined up a year ago and has been exploring a variety of short series of hand-built sculptures and cups. What drives her return to class each week is “I wonder if I can do that.” Rosenfeld likes a good challenge, which is why she prefers one-off objects to keep her interested. A more recent cup series has emerged that is keeping her amused. This set of small tumblers feature a kink/horror theme, focusing in on mouths and the object that gag them. Octopus tentacles, ball gags and other titilating foreign objects draw the viewer in and keep them riveted. This balance of grotesque and whimsical is what Rosenfeld strives for. The body horror aspect of her work has a foot in the sci-fi she reads, classic horror films and the manga she devours.

Rosenfeld doesn’t just create the work for reactionary purposes (although she does appreciate a good response). She truly takes joy from capturing uncanny and uncomfortable artwork. Surface treatment and appearance are also on the list of things that keep her fascinated. Creating realistic texture to replicated flesh, bone and saliva are constantly being tested. Her most recent bust of “Tomie”, a two-face Manga character, explores stretched and broken skin and muscle. While the work looks monstrous, it also delights the senses. The delicate approach and rendering of the mangled skin pulls the viewer in, but simultaneously revolts. That juxtaposition of beauty and horror causes a recoil but is also strangely compelling. Rosenfeld hopes to create more work in this vein.

Rosenfeld feels ready and focused to move towards making work for sale (she’s mainly gifted and traded pieces with friends and admirers). The artist has attended The Oddities & Curiosities Expo in Chicago and feels like her work would be a good fit there. The show, which boasts all things weird (taxidermy, handcrafted oddities, animal skulls/bones) also attracts one of the most diverse groups of attendees. Rosenfeld hopes her work will find an audience there that not only appreciates her creations, but wants to own them.

At the moment, Rosenfeld is working on a piece inspired by a friend’s naked cat, aptly named Sonora. She’s working hard to capture the fat rolls and strange coloration of the animal’s skin and odd appearance. The artist is doing what she loves most; working through a uncomfortable aesthetic challenge while amusing herself!

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