BARRY CANTER | Between Us | SHELF
January 4 - February 6, 2026
My ceramic practice is grounded in a desire to create objects that don’t trigger familiar associations. My construction process isn’t so much about building as it is about taking away. I’m removing all visual clues that might be read as recognizable imagery. I want to create pieces that are quiet and more or less wordless, like a rock you pick up and take home. After creating an initial form, my attention is focused on the surface; scraping and paddling and texturing. This is a meditative process for which I don’t place limits on time or repetition. There is a point at which the sculpture evolves an internal coherence and autonomy. It’s ready for the kilns. The interior of a closed form is space unseen, but its presence may be felt. The invitation to touch is intentional. There is always a place for the hand. I’ve placed each piece on a plinth in order to draw attention to its restrained completeness. These are small works looking to draw the viewer into their presence.
Barry Canter was born in Jersey City where he attended public high school in the 1970’s. The pervasive anarchy of that time suited his sense of nonconformity. Canter moved to New York in 1980 to live in the East Village. It wasn’t until 2013 that he started working with clay at Togei Kyoshitsu in Midtown Manhattan. During that time he showed work at Situations Gallery in Chinatown, at Kosaka Gallery in the West Village, and at 57w57 Gallery in Midtown. For the past few years Canter has been working at Sculpture Space NYC in Long Island City. This is Canter’s second show at 57w57, the first one having been in 2017.
PROJECT SPACE
BARRY CANTER | Ceramic Sculpture
September 8 - October 20, 2017
In the Back Room, Barry Canter will be present a series of ceramic sculptures. The hand-built vessels are tied to one another through their common initial form: the cylinder. This basic shape is constructed from a flat slab of clay rolled into a circular column of varying dimensions. Various tools are used to create contours in a process that is calculated, but also somewhat disorderly. The design of the vessel will grow from these interventions. In order to create visual cohesion, a smoothing tool is used to integrate the forms into a shape that is articulated, but not quite familiar. As the clay dries, a scraping tool scratches the surface, uncovering a gritty texture that will cause random variations in the glaze. The kiln firing adds a final uncontrolled effect, creating an object that is inspired by, and belongs to, the natural world.
Barry Canter has lived and worked in New York City since 1980. He spent many years working with paper, creating abstract collages, experimenting with line, color, and the relationships between adjacent volumes. This body of work culminated with a show at Frederieke Taylor Gallery. Now working with clay in three dimensions, his ceramic sculptures have been exhibited at Situations Gallery in Chinatown and Kosaka Art Gallery in the West Village. This is Canter’s first exhibition with 57W57Arts.