UC Personality: Rian Kerrane

Acknowledged around the world as well as in the United States, Associate Professor and Area Head for the Sculpture Program Rian Kerrane brings natural artistry and professional experience to CU Denver's Visual Arts program.

 Kerrane began pursuing art with what she calls "a natural inclination to pick things up, manipulate, study, paint and draw." Born a creative, Kerrane earned her BA in Fine Arts from the University of Ulster at Belfast in her native Ireland, and an MFA from the University of New Orleans.

When she moved to the United States in 1994, Kerrane gained new ideas and began working with metal more exclusively. Kerrane discovered a connection to the simplistic freedom of the American Dream. "I really admire the blue-collar work ethic of the pioneering West and U.S. Own a welder and weld. Less weight of tradition, more space to maneuver," said Kerrane.

Kerrane currently teaches Iron Casting, Performance Art, and Advanced Sculpture, and is vice president of the Western Cast Iron Art Alliance. WCIAA is a group of artists in western states whose mission is to "educate, demonstrate, and exhibit cast iron art in the region," according to their website.

Interestingly, Kerrane describes her work and lifestyle as scientific rather than artistic. "I often refer to my collecting instincts as the primordial need to learn and title myself a ‘contemporary archaeologist.' My accrued detritus are usually affixed to paper for scrutiny as pseudoscientific discoveries," said Kerrane.

Much of Kerrane's recent work reflects motifs of identity and individuality. She recently returned from sabbatical in Ireland, where she spent a month printmaking in Donegal, Ireland. The resulting body of work, Heirlooms, now hangs in the Wandesford Quay Gallery in Cork.

Like any artist or academic, gathering research is a way of life for Kerrane. While at home, she collected material related to her ongoing motifs. "My work continues to incorporate a personal content that explores identity. While home I recorded all of my six siblings' handwriting and voices to generate future research on the topic of similarity and individualism," said Kerrane.

In 2010, Kerrane helped organize a performance art event in the River North Arts District of Denver. It was an ongoing effort in which UCD students invited the community to be part of the process of iron pouring. Denver citizens carved molds and gathered in crowds to watch as their creations were brought to life. The event was successful in establishing RiNo as an art district as well as in community outreach and participation.

Although Kerrane's work explores individuality, her preferred medium, cast iron, is inherently collaborative. Kerrane said, "With sculpture, collaboration comes naturally. Sculpture is the most community-driven of the arts. It's heavy. Also foundry work involves others, so it's very communal. I really enjoy the camaraderie of the studio and the iron world."

As Kerrane continues to define the themes of individuality in her work, she is forever polishing her own identity as a remarkable artist, professor, and contemporary archaeologist.