Celeste Lucero Maas
she/her
Vancouver, BC, Canada
Celeste Lucero Maas (1989) is a queer Argentinian jeweller living in Vancover. She studied silversmithing and design in Buenos Aires and holds a BA in Appraisal and Authentication of Works of Art from UMSA. Currently she is Chair of Exhibition at VMAA.
“I engage with Jewellery as a way to communicate with others and myself. My current work studies the boundaries of comfort and uncertainty within the intersectional observation of matter and sensation. I engage with Jewellery as a way to communicate with others and myself.
As an art jeweller I get to express and shape internal conversations into pieces that can be carried, observed, and transformed again many times by whoever relates to them.”
What does being queer mean to you in relation to your material choices? Is it something you consider?
“The relationship with materials in my practice has to do with sensation and perception. Each material constructs a sensation on the skin, aspects of soft, sharp, stiff, cold, warm, tight, heavy, but the most important, the uncomfortable. Being uncomfortable in one way or another within a normative context is a major aspect of existing as a queer person."
"Out of my Body", Sterling silver, cotton, 4.1" x 2.2" x 3.1", 2023Is the work queer because the maker is queer, or is it queer because the subject matter is queer?
“The work is inherently queer as much as it talks about fatphobia because it touches on the strength of coming out."
Anything else you would like to share about this work? This can be an important part of the process, sourcing materials, or research.
“Out of my body. What once was made to pour out sour feelings, now it's recreated in honor of bravery and love and brings forth the silhouette of a joyful dancing young kid that stood in front of peers. In the face of bullying, he danced.
In 'Out of my Body,' I bring him forth as a paladin. I am saying that 20 years later, I'm finally able to unabashedly dance alongside him."