Deborah Stewart, “Propagation and Endurance”

Deborah Stewart’s Propagation and Endurance highlights the strength in fragility through clay and metal seed pod ceramic sculptures. Seed pods are the protective casing on flowers and plants that keep seeds safe until they are ready to spread. This structure allows delicate flora to propagate, endure, and continue into the future—despite intense environmental, climate, and other outside forces. Robust clay seed pods are complemented by minimal steel and wire structural forms, blurring the line between what appears fragile and what appears formidable. By pairing the vulnerability of clay with the rigid strength of metal, Stewart encourages respect and acknowledgement of the enduring power of fragile things.