“Reliquary,” an exhibition of ceramic sculpture by Northeast Ohio artist Mychal Vens, will be on display in Westminster College’s Foster Art Gallery in Patterson Hall beginning Monday, Feb. 17 and running through Friday, March 21.

Vens will discuss his exhibition work during a lunchtime gallery reception from 12:45-1:45 p.m. Thursday, March 6. Vens will also hold a figurative sculpture workshop with Westminster’s Handbuilding Ceramics class to coincide with the exhibition.

"In this body of ceramic work created over the past two years, I craft a metaphor for the complexities of identity and personal agency through exploration of the visual tension between historical and contemporary influences," said Vens. "Drawing on sacred and ceremonial motifs, I use veiled and otherwise adorned forms to evoke a sense of concealment, ritual, or spiritual reverence, while using exposed figures to speak to vulnerability and defiance."

"The faces of many of my figures also resist categorization of ethnicity or sex, and lack specificity in facial characteristics, rejecting fixed ideas of gender and identity. This deliberate ambiguity opens space for interpretation, encouraging a personal dialogue between viewer and object," Vens said. "Through these works, I aim to create a space where identity is celebrated, not as a singular definition, but as an evolving interplay of resilience, vulnerability and self-discovery."

A figurative ceramic artist, Vens earned a BFA in Interdisciplinary Studio Art from Youngstown State University in 2024. He has received numerous awards and honors, including the competitive Theresa Dupre Scholarship from Penland School of Craft, and has been showcased in various publications, such as Peters Valley’s “The Art of Craftsmanship” exhibition publication, and Biafarin’s “People 2024” online publication.

His work is a part of various public and private collections, and has spanned both regional and national platforms, with notable showcases at the McDonough Museum of Art, the Stifel Fine Arts Center, Penland School of Craft, Peters Valley School of Craft, Bethany College and at Western Reserve Currents during the 57th annual conference of the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA).

Vens offers lectures, demonstrations, workshops and private lessons that focus on sculpting the human figure using traditional ceramic hand-building techniques.

The exhibition and reception are free and open to the public. The Foster Art Gallery is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

For more information about the exhibition or the gallery reception, please contact Summer Zickefoose, gallery director and associate professor of art, at zickefse@westminster.edu.

“Our Lady of Reckoning”—red stoneware, cone 3 oxidation, polychrome cold finish, gold leaf

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