Virginia Leonard
Pus and Scabs
2020
clay, lustre, resin
124x50x58 cm
clay, lustre, resin
124x50x58 cm
About the artist
Virginia Leonard (b. 1965, Auckland) is a ceramic artist based in New Zealand with a Master of Fine Arts from Whitecliffe College of Art and Design.
Virginia’s work explores fragility, transformation, and adaptation within a constantly changing world. Through ceramics, she transforms personal experiences into expressive works that reflect physical memory, vulnerability, and change. Her practice is shaped by an ongoing dialogue with the body, influenced by the experience of a serious road accident. Virginia's sculptures combine raw textures and sharp, organic forms with vibrant colours, creating works that are both powerful and deeply human. Rather than presenting an idealised image of the body, she embraces imperfection and the idea of the body as something continuously evolving.
Virginia’s work explores fragility, transformation, and adaptation within a constantly changing world. Through ceramics, she transforms personal experiences into expressive works that reflect physical memory, vulnerability, and change. Her practice is shaped by an ongoing dialogue with the body, influenced by the experience of a serious road accident. Virginia's sculptures combine raw textures and sharp, organic forms with vibrant colours, creating works that are both powerful and deeply human. Rather than presenting an idealised image of the body, she embraces imperfection and the idea of the body as something continuously evolving.