Swapna Mukhopadhyay creates functional and sculptural porcelain works, all hand built out of porcelain. “The combination of aesthetics and functionality in handmade folk artifacts has always fascinated me,” she says. “My grandmother made traditional Bengali quilts (kanthas) and wove mats for sitting on the floor (asanas). I now realize how deeply I was influenced by watching her work.” Delicatly drawn elements cover many of her ceramic surfaces, and several recent works incorporate textiles and found objects. Mukhopadhyay describes her process as “improvising around what’s available,” informed by her longtime study of ethnomathematics. 

Philip A. Robinson Jr. is a sculptor and conceptual artist whose work has been exhibited nationally and internationally. Working primarily in wood and metal, Robinson creates large-scale figurative and patterned works that explore memory, structure, and identity. “My practice examines structure as a living system—how materials carry memory, how patterns encode history, and how built environments shape identity,” he explains. “Whether in wood or steel, I am asking how structure holds memory—and how we locate ourselves within it.” Robinson holds a BFA in Studio Art from Skidmore College and an MFA in Sculpture from the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University.