In February 2024, Tooth + Nail opened its doors to the public as a ceramics studio and event space for workshops, classes, screenings, and more. From opening day until December 2025, it also operated as a gallery for local artists. My show—Erotic City—was the inaugural exhibition. The work was made on location while the space while it was still being built out so, embracing the industrial mess of sawdust and plaster dust, I used durable and hearty materials mostly found in hardware stores and on the side of the road.

My goal was to showcase what a nontraditional gallery housed inside a working artist studio could do, so my approach was to create multimedia sculptures and host workshops in tandem with the show’s themes (censorship, sex-forward images, transness, and working class artists). The themes were in direct response to the censorship I faced as a resident artist at Mitchell Street Arts in Milwaukee during the summer 2023 rollout of their event space and residency program (you can learn more about censorship in the Milwaukee art scene here). Events included a ceramic chain making class, xxx-rated valentine card making, costumed opening and closing receptions, and an artist talk with Q&A (filmed and edited by Delaney Doersch with assistance from Carter Uslabar).

I strived to create a fully accessible show. With my background in disability justice, and struggling to find thoughtful, inclusive spaces while still steeped in the pandemic, I partnered with local mask blocks to get resources for attendees. Every gathering was COVID-safe, with KN95 masks required and provided, air purifiers running in the space, and attendants available for the freight elevators as an alternative to stairs. This kicked off an important element to my future life in Milwaukee as an event coordinator—bringing safe gatherings to Milwaukee to eliminate as many barriers as possible for attendees and collaborators alike.

All photos are courtesy of Emily Dalske