Mariana Castillo Deball: The Flames Leave a Feathered Mark on the Clay Spider in the Chamber of Ash and Clay

What do you think everyday objects tell us about history and ourselves? What might future archaeologists think about our commonplace items? What might they be able to understand about our current moment and our social and cultural backgrounds?

"The Flames Leave a Feathered Mark on the Clay Spider in the Chamber of Ash and Clay" marks the first solo museum presentation for  internationally celebrated Mexican artist Mariana Castillo Deball (Germany, b. Mexico 1975) in Arizona. The exhibition features a newly commissioned installation of seven hand-built, pit-fired stoneware ceramics resembling natural and manufactured items –– from spiders and turtles to altars and backpacks. In addition to this commission, the presentation features another recent acquisition by Castillo Deball. Taken as a whole, Castillo Deball's work, bridging science, archaeology and craft, asks viewers to consider how objects shape versions of identities and histories in our contemporary world.

“Mariana Castillo Deball: The Flames Leave a Feathered Mark on the Clay Spider in the Chamber of Ash and Clay” is organized by ASU Art Museum Senior Curator Alana Hernandez and ASU Art Museum Windgate Curatorial Fellow Sade Moore and made possible by generous funding from Windgate Charitable Foundation.