Studio Visit: Haylie & Sydnie Jimenez
By Kate Greenwell
Immediately upon walking into the Jimenez Twins’ studio, I was hit with a gust of warm air. I witnessed a studio relationship that I hadn't seen since I graduated, when I shared a studio with my closest friends. The air was, on one hand, credited to the neighboring studio who controlled the heating unit, and on the other hand, collected from the four of us: the twins, my friend, and myself filling the small room as I took it all in.
My eyes were first drawn to two nearly life-sized ceramic figures, which I was told were Sydnie’s undergrad thesis works. They were nonpurposefully adorned with scattered articles of clothing from the twins, almost acting as a coat rack, making them even more personal in the moment I was introduced to them.
Left: Girl Talk (Hero Twins) by Sydnie Jimenez, 2020 - 56"x17"
Right: Work In Progress, 2024
The leopard print headband that decorated the left statue was echoed in another work that was set to be fired that night. When I questioned the connection, the twins laughed and noted that they had been watching a lot of Jersey Shore, and it had slipped into some of their works accidentally. Setting aside the additions of their own closets, the statues that the twins create are imbued with a lot of personality. Similarly to the twins, the figures embody a certain sector of culture that grew out of self-acceptance; colorful hair, piercings, t-shirts with friends’ bands or cultural references. The styles are intimate and could only grow out of the twins own experiences, all of the small references only being completely understood by themselves. They center subjects that are often unrepresented in the art world. Black, queer, femme, and nonconforming.
When I inquired about whether or not their works were self-portraits, Haylie said that the pieces never began like that but her work was always rooted in memory. She gestured to Sydnie, “I mean, I never mean to make it myself but when I’m staring at her all day all I see is our face.” The concept of twin-ness when it comes to the figures is not only from the direct pair of the Jimenez sisters, but also the idea that other like individuals can see themselves in the figures. Whether they recognize traits in the clothing, the tattoos or the skin color, the Jimenez sculptures address something that is lacking in the history of ceramics and fill that void. The comfort that the Jimenez twins have gained from each other, being able to share an exact history, makes them the perfect artistic vessel for sharing that comfort with others.
Left: Glazed Tile, 2023
Right: Glazed Tile Overlay, 2024
Often, the final works the twins make are unglazed, retaining that rough matte surface seen in earthenware or terracotta works, using the natural color of the clay to represent black and brown skin tones. Seeing the work displayed on the walls of the Jimenez’s studio, the choice to display some tiles on the brick wall emphasized a connection to raw material. The contrast of the tile pieces against the wall and the works displayed on the brick itself brings the materiality of the clay to the traditional gallery white wall, using classic fine art presentation to display the works while maintaining their roots in natural materials.
The Jimenez twins have created an archival snapshot of modern culture through ceramics, and when the figures outlast this generation, they will define a cultural era previously un-captured in earthenware figurines.
The Jimenez twins have carved out a special space as their own and it is the intersection of ancient clay work and the modern landscape of joy, queerness, and sisterhood.
The final act the twins shared with me before our studio visit came to an end was loading up the kiln to fire the next set of works. They were set to fire several small figures and a large unglazed head that would eventually be a full figure in a larger scale than anything else in the studio.
Left: work in progress, 2024
As they lowered the large head into the kiln together it became a moment of unity, a display of truly creating pieces together being a part of their studio practice and that sisterhood defined their work as much as the material of the clay itself.
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