Meet the Technicians 

If Experiments Firing Ceramics with Hot Glass celebrated the visceral beauty of process, TECHTalk shifted the focus to the unseen: the labor, expertise, and embodied knowledge of technicians who sustain the machinery of art institutions. In Stella Elkins Tyler Gallery, artists Paolo Mentasti, lydon frank lettuce, and Kedrick McKenzie took center stage, not just as facilitators of others’ work, but as artists, thinkers, and essential forces within the Tyler ecosystem. 

Paolo Mentasti opened the discussion by exploring the relationship between political borders, time, and abstraction, reflecting on how landscapes shape artistic expression. He drew connections between sundials and shifting borders, noting how both measure and define space yet remain subject to change. Material and scale play a crucial role in his work: "Change the scale, and you change the perception," he remarked, emphasizing how his sculptural forms morph under different spatial conditions. Mentasti also discussed how landscapes and architecture inform his creative process, integrating personal memories into his artistic practice. Themes of control over nature and material evolution emerged in his work, particularly in his reflections on erasure and remembrance. When he first arrived in Philadelphia, he was puzzled by the collective urgency to kill the spotted lanternfly. "This invasive species had found a home, yet it was destined to be erased," he noted. This idea resonated with his ongoing exploration of how we document, preserve, or erase histories—both personal and collective—driving his desire to leave a record behind.

McKenzie reflected on California’s industrial and agricultural past, noting, "California has always been a place of reinvention, but also of forgotten histories." He explored themes of labor, material culture, and history, considering how these forces shape both the built environment and personal narratives. He spoke about the significance of a photograph capturing his earliest act of making with his siblings, a moment that, for him, embodies the deep connections between memory, craft, and familial ties. This notion of nostalgia extends into his fascination with Fiesta ware, a mass-produced yet highly collectible ceramic line, whose vibrant colors and streamlined forms tie into broader histories of labor, design, and modernism. He discussed the influence of Spanish architecture and its intersections with craft traditions, emphasizing how these stylistic elements contribute to his understanding of materiality and space.

But beyond aesthetics, McKenzie is captivated by how objects tell their own stories over time. "It’s that experience of artifacts showing their material history that fascinates me. I think a lot about cleanliness and straightforwardness in design—how functional objects can be subverted through material choices, how something meant to be useful can become something else entirely." This transformation of the everyday into something unexpected remained central to his perspective, as he reflected on the ways in which ordinary items accumulate meaning over time. And while his artistic inquiry often looks backward, he wrapped up with a more lighthearted nod to his present: "None of this would be possible without my dog, Cheese."

lydon frank lettuce, on the other hand, introduced an alternative approach through performance and live writing. "Writing is both a muscle and an excavation—carving into the world through words," they explained. Their practice revolves around play, PLEASURE, and language, seeking to challenge social expectations and redefine identity through performative gestures.

Through their various personas—such as Dr. Seymour Vile—they critique and reimagine social constructs, using exaggerated gestures and theatricality to disrupt norms.

"Performance can be very scary, but so important," they remarked, highlighting the role of discomfort and pleasure in their work. As a queer student, they lacked access to comprehensive sex education—something Dr. Seymour Vile now seeks to provide.

"I feel like I’m constantly confronting false binaries—whether in gender, power, or expression," lettuce reflected.  Dr. Vile’s passionately detailed and earnest exploration of quantum physics, galactic collisions, and, most importantly, black holes, seamlessly sets up a powerful metaphor: just as a black hole is at the center of every galaxy, the anus is central to the galaxy of inclusive pleasure education.

Whether wrestling through words and dirt, reimagining identity and fluidity in an ever-shifting exploration that destabilizes fixed roles, or performing an isolated game of tennis in the gallery—evoking repetition, solitude, and echoes of past pleasures—lydon grapples with identity, pleasure, and play, turning the world on its head.

Technicians are the architects of possibility, ensuring that students’ and faculty members’ visions materialize. The panelists spoke candidly about the duality of their roles—both indispensable and, at times, invisible. They dissected the physical and intellectual demands of their work, offering insight into the depth of knowledge that resides in technical labor. Through images, performance and candid talks, the gallery came alive. 

Beyond personal anecdotes, the conversation tapped into larger currents—questions of artistic hierarchy, labor precarity, and the undervaluation of craft in contemporary discourse. The discussion did not dwell in abstraction; it carried weight, resonating with an audience deeply embedded in the institutional dynamics of art education. By the end of the session, one thing was clear: this was not simply a panel. It was a declaration. A call to recognize, to reframe, to reimagine the role of technicians as both makers and intellectual contributors to the field.