Guild Gallery is pleased to present Grasp the Mountains Then Let Them Go, the second solo exhibition by French Basque Country - based artist Ludmilla Balkis, known for her minimalist sculptures that explore the tension between stillness and movement, nature and the built environment. This latest body of work reimagines one of her most technically demanding forms, ‘Hodei’ — a wide mouth unfurling from a slender cylindrical base — in an all - white palette achieved through bold experiments with glazes and textures derived from foraged natural materials. These sculptures push the limits of structure and materiality, redefining what ceramics can achieve.

“Where Stasis, Balkis’s first exhibition at the gallery, explored balance between motion and idleness, Grasp the Mountains Then Let Them Go reaches further, testing the outermost edges of what clay can do,” says Robin Standefer, Guild Gallery founder and curator. “With extraordinary patience and an intimate understanding of her material, Balkis pushes her signature forms to their absolute limits and the results are truly singular within contemporary ceramics.”

From nearly uniform columnar bases, Balkis’ new sculptures expand into sweeping, fluid canopies, twisting and bending as if swaying with the wind. The forms echo the ancient Pyrenean forests in the mountains surrounding her Basque Country home and studio, where she takes daily hikes seeking oneness with the land and gathering materials. In tribute to this landscape, clay is unearthed, sticks become sculpting tools, and stones are crushed and pressed into her work.

For her latest Guild Gallery exhibition, Balkis also incorporated local ferns, hay, and fig tree branches, dried and reduced to create the layered pale glazes that define the collection’s distinctive palette.  Balkis has developed a precise, highly disciplined approach to working with clay. With each sculpture, she asks herself: How far can I go before it collapses? Centimeter by centimeter, she coaxes the material to dry in phases to prevent structural failure.

Ludmilla Balkis: Grasp the Mountains, Then Let Them Go opens to the public on April 24, 2025. For more information, visit guildgallery.com.