Exer Thurston
they/them
Columbus, OH, USA
Exer Thurston (they/them) is a maker based in central Ohio. They work in a variety of media including but not limited to glass, fiber, and metal. Thurston was awarded a full scholarship to attend The Ohio State University and graduated with a BA in Studio Art in May 2023. While completing their degree they received an Undergraduate Research Libraries Fellowship, worked as a contingent preparator at the Wexner Center of the Arts, and as a technical intern at the Sherman Studio Art Center on Ohio State’s Campus. They received a Summer Fellowship at Pilchuck Glass School in the summer of 2023 and have participated in workshops at Penland School of Craft and Pittsburgh Glass Center. They recently completed two rounds of the glass internship at STARworks in Star, North Carolina and now pursue postbaccalaureate studies at Ohio State.
“My work directly challenges the line between disciplines, combining materials and techniques in unexpected and unorthodox ways. I am focused on structural phenomena, studying how different media react and interact. I am especially interested in interplay between media that queer the craft canon and defy material expectations. The division between media is constructed, and it is important to explore how our taxonomies of material limit their applications. Non-traditional interactions between media disrupts presumed valuation of materials, allowing them to interact on equal footing. These non-hierarchical conversations are a goal of my work.”
How does your work relate to the theme connection?
“My work is concerned with categorization, namely the rejection of it. I am interested in systems of understanding and how our taxonomies of craft limit material expression. The divisions between different media are drawn by a human hand and are therefore an imperfect means of understanding the material world. My work directly challenges the line between disciplines, combining materials and techniques in unexpected and unorthodox ways. I am interested in forming connections between materials not traditionally allowed or encouraged to interact. These conversations challenge the craft canon by drawing the system of categorizing objects by material into question. I am particularly drawn to the interactions between media that fall at different places on the hierarchy of value. Combining a material with a high monetary value such as glass with one of low value, such as polyester ribbon or unprocessed fibers calls into question the imposed system of valuation and the hierarchy of media. One media is elevated while the other is devalued, allowing them to interact on equal ground. This leveling of value brings out qualities in the materials that would be ignored under other circumstances: satin shines brighter than glass in gallery lighting, the matte surface of masking tape glows like skin, glass melts into its surroundings. The connections between disparate materials defy media hierarchy, which in turn leads to objects with strong emotional presences. Their challenge to material expectations leaves the viewer in a state of discomfort. I play this up by creating objects that both invite and discourage interaction. The scale of the work relates to the body, making the pieces easy to hold and touch. They are tactile in form, the textiles creating a soft surface to pet. The perceived fragility of the glass, especially in a gallery setting, disinvites touch. The sharp forms and bright colors also invoke toxic organisms that we have a biological aversion towards. The animal magnetism of the forms allows viewers to connect to the pieces on an individual level."
"Coat", Kiln cast glass, wool 7" x 3" x 7", 2024 
"Plicate", Kiln cast glass, plaster, cotton thread 9" x 5" x 6" 2024
What role does connection play in your creative process?
“I maintain a devotional studio practice. The studio is a space where I can work through my thoughts and ground myself through work. As a neurodivergent individual, I need to move and think constantly. My practice takes me through several areas of the studio, allowing me to engage different parts of my body and mind throughout the day. Making work to me is a form of play and exploration. I make my forms through a type of automatic drawing, responding in real time to how different components look and feel rather than sketching out ideas for each piece. I pay close attention to how materials interact and how forms coalesce, working in collaboration with material. The continuous creative engagement I get through making is incredibly satisfying and helps me to center myself in the world. I love seeing a piece come together before my eyes as it transitions through the mold making and casting processes. I am always connecting my work back to things I have seen or made before, drawing mental parallels between objects, concepts, and disciplines."
NYCJW24 @ UrbanGlass, Francely Flores
What connection(s) does your queerness make to the world around you?
"As a non-binary person, I am often at odds with the major systems of understanding and categorization. My queerness grants me a lens to view the world that challenges the dominant systems of understanding. My position as an outsider allows me to see the definitional grid that is drawn over the wild landscape. As someone outside the boundaries, I am able to look over, under, and between the arbitrarily drawn lines and make connections between concepts that would traditionally be disparate. My own existence is in defiance of the grid, and therefore I am able to understand it as a construction rather than a rule. My experience pushing against the categories of gender and sexuality have led me to challenge other systems of categories, such as the lines between media and creative processes, or art and science. Because of my position outside of the grid, I am able to draw my own lines that feel more intuitive, allowing me to connect deeper with concepts that interest me. My work pushes against the craft canon, creating space for new systems of understanding that decenter the dominant approach to making. My assertion as a queer artist has helped me connect to other artists that have a similar approach to craft which validates and drives my thought. It is my hope that through taking a visibly queer approach to making that I will be able to inspire other queer makers in turn."
NYCJW24 @ UrbanGlass, Francely Flores
“Coat is concerned with the interactions between opaque media of different degrees of hardness. Wool batting is needle felted onto the glass casting. The glass body of the piece is made with offcuts of fusible sheet glass and results in a very plastic texture. The opaque body with a matte surface is in opposition to the classic associations of glass as smooth and transparent. The warmth and pliability of the wool also defies the material expectation of a glass object as cool and ungiving to the touch. The opacity of the glass lends the fiber a sense of translucency, the eye seeking the form beneath. The density of the wool hides all but the tips of the form, stirring curiosity about the object while also creating a sense of discomfort in the unknown.
Plicate explores motion between two halves of a whole. Cast glass and plaster forms are bonded in a single object, the line between them imperfect. A plaster cast is a more immediate object than glass casting, requiring no specialized equipment or tools. While the materials have different demands of time, both halves were originally sculpted in clay and each bear indexes of their primal medium. The joy of this piece is that there is no set position for viewing, with no definable top, bottom, front, or back. The lack of a flat surface defies the pedestal, the piece gaining a greater sense of motion without an anchor. As individual halves, the objects are very static but when paired together feel very fluid. The cord is meant to disrupt the line between the glass and plaster, helping them to be seen as a singular object."
Anything else you would like to share about this work?
This can be an important part of the process, sourcing materials, or research.
[queerphoria]v4 @ ECU Symposium
