Theaster Gates

The Steeple, 2016

Glazed ceramic and plaster
53 x 13 1/4 x 14 inches (134.6 x 33.7 x 35.6 cm)

Nancy A. Nasher and David J. Haemisegger

Gates has a long history with clay. The artist studied ceramics as an undergraduate at Iowa State University, where he described his ceramics professor as his “only actual art teacher.” He continued to study ceramics throughout graduate school and returns to the medium frequently in his current practice. For Gates, clay is a metaphor for his ability to take on greater challenges in the world, as he has said, “I think that studying clay helped me understand that ugly things, muddy things, or things that are unformed are just waiting for the right set of hands.” This sculpture reveals the artist’s hands and the intimate one-on-one relationship between the artist and the object. 

Made in his ceramic studio, The Steeple comprises a traditional coil pot base and a conical plaster top. Both surfaces reveal their handmade qualities—the coils of the base are rolled and pinched together, layer upon layer, while the smooth plaster surface has been hand-sanded. The title refers to an ornamental tower of a church—a reference not only to Gates’s personal relationship with religion and spirituality (he was director of his church choir from the age of 14 and studied religion in graduate school), but also to the civil rights movement. Formally resembling a Klansman’s white hood, the sculpture’s tapering white shape alludes to the Ku Klux Klan and their violent and racist attacks on African Americans, as well as their use of religious symbols as weapons of intimidation. 

Exhibition:

February 17 - April 28, 2018

Established in April 2015, the Nasher Prize is the most significant award in the world dedicated exclusively to contemporary sculpture. It is presented annually to a living artist who has had an extraordinary impact on our understanding of the art form.