Adam Meistrell

Florida Man makes pots!

Adam Meistrell was born and raised in Naples, Florida. His first memories are of making art and traveling. After graduating from Penn State, he spent a few years seeking out adventure: driving to Alaska, jumping off cliffs in Italy, and surfing in Costa Rica. Adam’s work experience has been as varied as his travels. He has extensive teaching experience in K-12 art, along with adult and community education.

Adam earned his MFA from The Louisiana State University in 2017.

Adam and his wife, Monica, have returned home to Naples, Florida and maintain their artmaking practice through Trek and Tern Studios.

Statement: My son tossed an egg onto the floor and, after seeing it splat, he enthusiastically reproduced the exciting results. I am intrigued by this crystallized moment of learning and the sometimes-messy cycle of investigation, understanding, and response. Ideas begin with crayons and pencils and move towards construction. I combine thrown, hand built, and molded ceramic forms, then inscribe lines across surfaces to act as geoglyphs and records. The surfaces of my pots integrate moments of visual rest, exercise, interruption and play through layers and spirited colors. I best appreciate complexity when it is housed within context and parameters. These borders and fences evoke a sense of comfort and safety, as well as the impending excitement of jumping those boundaries and exploring beyond.

Adventure inspires my artwork with allusions to travel and flight. Play, as an investigative tool, is an integral part of my work as I employ intuition and detailed rendering. The resulting finite objects serve as a key or legend to stir wonder towards the infinite. Questioning reminds me that I do not know. -Adam Meistrell