Karly Perez, “Burrow” April 2nd – April 30th, 2022 Haven Gallery is honored to present Virginia based artist Karly Perez for her first solo show “Burrow” at the gallery. “Burrow” will feature unique handmade sculptures made of stone clay, natural fibers, and found plant life. Akin to dolls, these works speak through nature making a connection between growth and decay. Their presence embraces a duality of potent presence and a ghostly, gossamer spirit. Each being is ready to conjure spells and grant wishes for a passerby. They behold a quiet stillness yet team with life – awaiting the chance to share their timeless tales and secrets. It is through witchlike and natural qualities that they imbue a magical and other worldly existence. Karly’s dolls are made with ingredients of folklore, imagination and the natural world; when completed, they are not only fantastical objects, but enchantingly empathetic companions. Artist statement: “Dolls as an art form has a unique allure. When finished, they provide not only a piece that is visually stimulating, but they can also morph into a type of companion. Each one, from their conceptual inception within my encephalon to the last finished stitch of their dress, has a distinct personality and voice that they seem to create on their own. When they pass from my hand to another, their spirit can morph and grow to match the needs and desires of that who owns them. I love making them, but I also have the compulsion that they must be made. It’s as if there are incorporeal entities that cry for a physical form, and it is my ear they speak to.” – Karly Perez About Karly Perez: Karly Perez is a sculptor of art dolls that balance on the natural and unnatural, the literal and the deconstructed. Her inspiration comes from the interconnected state of all life, the merging of human, animal, botanical, and fungal forms. Her sculptures are created using as many natural and textural materials as possible; from bits of roots and dried plants to naturally dyed and pigmented muslin and stone clay. Her dolls have been shown internationally in galleries and featured in magazines.
