Masako Onodera | Ann Orr Morris Memorial Fund Lecture

Speaker Name: Masako Onodera
Department: Visual & Performing Arts Department, School of Art & Design
University or Organization: University of Wisconsin-Stout

Banner image: Masako Onodera. Ghost, 7’ x 8’ x ½’.  Washi paper, ink, thread, piano wire.

The Ann Orr Morris Memorial Fund, in partnership with ATHICA, presents a public lecture by visiting artist in jewelry and metalwork Masako Onodera. Onodera’s visit coincides with an exhibition of her work in tandem with Associate Professor of Jewelry and Metalwork Mary Hallam Pearse titled Onodera & Pearse: Contrasts and Correlations, on view from January 13 – February 11, 2024 at ATHICA. An artist talk will be held at ATHICA on Sunday, January 14 at 4 pm.

Onodera & Pearse: Contrasts and Correlations Exhibition Statement

Onodera & Pearse: Contrasts and Correlations features the work of two artists who share backgrounds in craft while embracing sculptural applications of metal, paper, gravity, and motion. Brought together in exhibition by curator and Lamar Dodd School of Art BFA alumna Lauren Fancher, the two women were already known to each other through the craft community.  Fancher states that “I have been a fan of fellow Athenian Mary Pearse’s work as an artist, curator, and educator, and followed closely the development of her magnum opus, Full Bloom, harboring a secret aspiration for this intricate and epic sculpture of lead blossoms to be presented at ATHICA. After I encountered Masako Onodera and her delicate, mysterious, and grave work at the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, I proposed that the three of us develop this exhibition, which positions Full Bloom beside pieces from Onodera’s Vestiges and Phantoms series, among other works. Both of these masterful artists demonstrate an acute conceptual depth while using materials that align and echo with layers of meaning.” Of particular import are their mutual use of non-traditional materials to both play homage to and critique the gilt and silver domestic accoutrements of women. Heavy is light and light is heavy in this thoughtful and subversive exhibition.

About the artist

Masako Onodera utilizes craft techniques in her art and connects the audience emotionally to the materials and practices employed. Her creations suggest an experience of the body altered by the tactile and visual characteristics of the object. 

Onodera’s art is exhibited nationally and internationally in curated and juried exhibitions and is included in many private and public collections such as Toledo Museum of Art in OH, Mint Museum in NC, and Racine Art Museum in WI. She is the recipient of the Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Award and a Mid-career Educational Endowment Scholarship from the Society of North American Goldsmiths. Her work is published in journals and books, such as Metalsmith Magazine, the Art Jewelry Today, the Lark 500 series, and ACTIVA from Design Deffusion Edizioni, Milan, Italy. She graduated with an MFA in Metals from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and currently is a Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Stout in Menomonie, WI.

Masako Onodera. Eruption Necklace, 57” x 7”x 4”.  Wool, plastic grape, brass.