ABOUT MIKAYLA
BIO
Mikayla Dennison earned her BFA in Metalsmithing and Jewelry from Maine College of Art in 2020. Dennison also earned a BA in Expressive Arts from Burlington College in 2016, where she studied psychology, art therapy, and studio arts. While there, she focused on multimedia sculptural paintings and her fascinations in child development and human behavior. Now, making metal objects that facilitate unconventional human interaction, Mikayla is dedicated to an Expressive Craft practice that highlights aspects of identity and the human experience.
STATEMENT
Making objects for the table and hand, I abstract traditional silversmithing techniques to create metal objects that foster unorthodox human interactions. Through familiar objects such as a drinking straw, my work acts as catalysts for communication, which leads to otherwise unknown relationships and perspectives between human beings. Blending a background in Expressive Arts with these technical skills of metalsmithing, I am bridging the gap between traditional Craft and Arts practices through the interactivity and performative qualities of my work.
I approach my making process through an individual and collective psychology by analyzing interactions among humans through intimacy, boundaries, and dualities. I draw from notions of ritual, play, and theater, to create objects that cultivate intercommunication, promoting togetherness and celebrating our humanness.