Miniature Masterworks: Lee-Ann Chellis Wessel

May 21, 2017

Here at Small Talk we have featured several of Lee-Ann Chellis Wessel’s egg tempera paintings, but not what she might be most well known for: ceramics. Wessel has a BFA from Moore College of Art and a MFA from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in ceramics and has been creating fine-sale works of art in pottery and porcelain for more than 35 years.

Wessel says her work is about presenting beautiful, old objects in a new way to revitalize interest in their history, beauty, and style. She not only researches the objects themselves before starting a new project, but also the original creator of the piece, the methods and materials used to make it, where it was made, who owned and displayed it, and the historical context in which it existed. With all of this information in hand, she sets out to capture the essence of the piece in 1:12 scale.

Lee-Ann Chellis Wessel is one of over sixty artists participating in Miniature Masterworks, September 15-17, 2017. She will be giving a gallery talk about her work in the T/m collection and the inspiration behind it on Sunday, September 17 at 3:15 pm.