Artist Information

Justin Manfredi

I draw inspiration for my artwork from an accident I had when I was two years old. I drank a highly acidic fluid that completely destroyed my stomach and some of my intestines. After a couple of surgeries and a courageous doctor willing to try a new procedure, I was put back together and have lived ever since without a stomach. Most of my artwork has been centered on this story as well as the psychological state with which I deal living with this unique condition. The stomach has always been this unattainable object that I have deified. Through ceramic sculpture, I glamorize and glorify the stomach, bringing a grotesque, out-of-body organ to life. I utilize the duck form because of the beauty, wonder, and majesty that they dictate and demand. Ducks are amazing creatures, revered for their healing properties and beautiful colors that are unlike any other animals. They seemed perfectly suited to give my new stomachs life and give them a ﾓpseudo-naturalﾔ or ﾓsurrealﾔ existence. The Raku firing process helps me capture some of the wonderful iridescences and color changes that nature allows for waterfowl. Like me, these sculptures are organisms that have been tampered with, stitched up, and pieced together. I enjoy the idea of making something as grotesque as the stomach into something as beautiful as a duck. I feel a bit like Frankenstein creating monsters of that for which I long for most. Perhaps now I do have a stomach, and a much more interesting and complex version than most. The process is a joyful one.

All 2 artwork(s) by Justin Manfredi

Full Stomach

Stomach Strength and Beauty