Oami Powers is an American visual artist whose work delves into themes of memory, nostalgia, grief, addiction, understanding of home and self. Raised in California and New Zealand, she has now lived in North Carolina for over a decade. Powers graduated from the University of Canterbury with a B.A. in Art History and Classical Studies. Powers was North Carolina Emerging Artist in Residence at Artspace (Raleigh, NC) in 2018 and has attended workshops at Penland School of Craft, Anderson Ranch and with Cristina Cordova. Her work has been exhibited in solo and juried group shows nationwide, and was recently acquired by Duke Energy.
“I am an artist who makes drawings, sculptures and installations. Since 2020 I’ve been working almost exclusively in clay. I’m entranced by its responsiveness, how it conforms to the touch and holds a gesture that once fired in the kiln becomes static. That at its core this ancient and humble medium can be accomplished with just three elements: mud, hands and fire appeals to me. Wet clay has a fleshiness, and fired clay a bony-ness, that has a lovely resonance when used for work centered on the vulnerability of human experience. ”
