Kyle Lypka and Tyler Cross

Roll Up Project is pleased to present work by Oakland artists Kyle Lypka and Tyler Cross. Lypka and Cross have been collaborating on sculptures since 2016, and their ongoing explorations in ceramics have resulted in richly textured works that seem like they could be from the ancient past or the distant future.

Two sculptures fill the Harrison Street window: Wall Fragment, Sympathy (2020) and Chrome Column With Its Own Reflection (2020). Wall Fragment, Sympathy is a gridded wire mesh overlaid with abstract shapes and covered in blue glaze. Feet, a silhouette of a body, a donut, a chalice, and an asterisk cling to the surface of the mesh, as if they are notes or sketches on a gridded page, reminders of a physical life saved for further contemplation. If Wall Fragment, Sympathy is a calming net of memories, Chrome Column With Its Own Reflection is its foil. The column, a timeless symbol of history and culture, actively confronts the viewer and demands to be seen. Glossy white glaze drips and spatters cover the black surface, flecked with yellow, orange and blue. Two oversized eyeballs with celadon irises perch on the column, peering out at the viewer. A batwinged chalice rests on the top.

In the Third Street windows, Lypka and Cross present a single sculpture. Like the familiar image that asks the viewer whether they see an old woman or a young woman, Fruiting + Nutting (2020) presents two perspectives simultaneously: a face with a heart-shaped smile and curling horns peering out at the viewer, and two individual faces turned sideways, locked in a kiss. Fruiting + Nutting seems to shift as the viewer moves around it, implying a conversation about perception and perspective that could extend beyond the boundaries of the sculpture. How has our understanding of the world been shaped by our viewpoints and life experiences?

In the words of gin hart, “Tyler speaks of home. Kyle speaks of existence beyond space and time.” Indeed, the sculptures featured in the windows can be interpreted in many ways. It is possible for two visions to exist in a single object, and the thoughtful negotiation of form, surface, and color unite their perspectives so viewers can appreciate something both familiar and otherworldly.

About the Artists

Kyle Lypka (b. 1987 Philadelphia, PA) and Tyler Cross (b. 1992 Lancaster, CA) met online in 2013.  They live in Oakland, CA and make their work in Pope Valley, CA at Richard Carter’s artist residency.  In 2016 they started making ceramic vases together as a way to spend time with one another.  Kyle had been pursuing figurative sculpture and Tyler was studying design at SFAI.  The vases lead into a collaborative sculpture practice that they each found provided novel possibilities while also solving some of the difficulties of being a lone artist in the studio.

Learn more about their work at part2gallery.com