Derek Weisberg, was born in 1983. He began sculpting at a very early age starting with the medium of mashed potatoes as soon as he could hold a fork and knife, moving onto action figure assemblage when he could load a hot glue gun, and at age 7 he transitioned into the medium of ceramics, which was the beginning of his lifelong love and ultimate passion. He unwaveringly pursued ceramics sculpture throughout his childhood and teens, in Benicia, CA, where he was raised. At age 18 he moved to Oakland, CA, to pursue his love for ceramics and art in general and attended California College of Arts and Crafts. At CCAC he received several awards and graduated with high honors in 2005 with a BFA. Since then Weisberg has co-owned his own gallery, Boontling Gallery, as well as curated numerous other shows. He has also worked with highly esteemed artists such as Stephen De Staebler, Ursula von Rydingsvard, Manuel Neri, and many others. In addition Weisberg has maintained a strong and demanding studio practice, exhibiting regionally, nationally, and internationally. Weisberg has participated in over 90 shows in the last 8 years, and there are no signs of slowing down in the future. Weisberg currently lives and works in NY and is faculty at Greenwich House Pottery.
Artist Statement
How fleeting life is. We are all here with a limited time and capacity. We all exist with the knowledge that one day our last breathe will expire. How do we operate and move though life knowing this? With this awareness, how do we strive toward achievements and growth in all levels of our being as we and our world changes, every moment of every day? How do we move though the mud, as Beckett says, and funk of life, as Dr Cornell West calls it? And how do we do this as elegantly, beautifully, kind, invested, and responsible as possible? Life can be lonely, hard, complicated, and ugly. How do we wrestle with pain, longing, dysfunction, fragility, and vulnerability? How do we find truths in the face of these hardships and realities? How do we cope with human atrocities and extreme injustice, from local and personal relationships to the grandest of scale? Art provides a unique opportunity and experience to communicate powers beyond ourselves; it can traverse time, place, gender, race. It has the ability to touch the core and reach the deepest places of our existence. Through my art I attempt to tackle these questions and to kiss these truths.