Bio
Born in Italy and daughter of refugees from North Africa, Yael was raised in Italy in a visually abundant environment that shaped her love for composition, aesthetics, and visual arts. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design from the European Institute of Design in Rome, and a Master of Fine Arts in Cinema from San Francisco State University. Her past multidisciplinary background – from graphics design, to cinema, to metal fabrication and installation – informs her recent focus on ceramic work. In 2021 she was awarded the Multicultural Fellowship Award from the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA).
website: Yael Braha
Statement
I create functional ceramics with bold and stylized surface patterns which feature tessellations, optical and geometrical illusions. I use lines and curves to distort and add dynamism to the surface of the work, and I use seams and negative spaces to create contrast and tension within a form. The surface patterns reliefs add a surprising tactile experience when the work is held, touched, and used. The way that patterns are framed within a form, where they are cut, assembled, and overlapped, alludes to the process of film editing – assembling separate but related parts to create a sequence of forms that is larger than the sum of their parts.
