"Hello?"

"Hey, I have to say this really fast before I lose the courage to do it—I’m gay."

"I love you… (long pause)… and I am so excited to have a gay cousin! Listen, I will give you 24 hours to call and change your mind. But if you don’t, you can’t take it back. You’re gay from now on."

I felt a weight lift. My secret was out in the open—visible, audible, and no longer hidden under layers of shame, fear, and doubt. 

 

Brendan Roddy is interested in examining how moments of shame are experienced and passed down. He uses sculpture, ceramics, and drawing to focus on the interplay between surface, form, and mark-making to explore shame and generational affect through a queer lens. Every mark, symbol, and form in Brendan’s work becomes a record of connection to the self.

 

Brendan embraces play and trial & error as essential components of his creative practice. For him, clay is tactile, rich in its materiality, and embodies ritual. Through a hands-on, practice-led approach, Brendan allows the clay to guide him. He discovers new understandings by experimenting with diverse construction techniques, found materials, and firing processes. Brendan’s work captures the tension between vulnerability and strength—offering a reflection on the traces we leave behind and the stories we share.