Artist Talk: “Precious: The Value of Ornament” with Brian Smith and Lauren Fensterstock

Join Maine-based artists Brian Smith and Lauren Fensterstock for a conversation about their work in Precious: The Value of Ornament.

Both artists work sculpturally, using intricate materials like beads, glass, and crystal to explore profound themes through the language of ornament. Smith's Gay Bar (2024) bejewels a conch shell to reflect on queer sanctuary and resilience, while Fensterstock's When a Third Sun (2021) renders a sun in glass and quartz to meditate on impermanence and destruction.

Together, their works invite us to consider how beauty and meaning are bound up in the materials and processes we use to make sense of the world.