Bio
Kole “Kazi” Morrell is a multidisciplinary artist based in Southern California. His work spans painting and sculpture, exploring form, material, and narrative through a contemporary lens. Morrell has exhibited paintings in the Claremont Village Art Walk in Claremont California (2024), a sculptural piece at the Sam and Alfreda Maloof Foundation for Arts and Crafts in Alta Loma (2025-2026). He is also scheduled to participate in a group exhibition at the San Bernardino County Museum in summer 2026. He presented his work in a group thesis show at California State University, San Bernardino titled, “Echoes of Becoming” alongside three other graduating MA students (2026).
Morrell earned his Bachelors of Fine Arts (BFA) in 2022 and his Masters of Art (MA) degree in 2026 from California State University, San Bernardino.
Statement
I work sculpturally, exploring presence, transformation, and emotional weight that is not inherently visible. My forms are recognizable yet unsettled, existing between familiarity and distortion. Meaning is not fixed or declared, it reveals itself slowly through texture, material, and time spent in observation.
I approach making as a form of therapeutic ritual. Through touch, I shape and alter the material, imbuing it with the story of emotions I want to convey to the viewer. I am most connected to the work in its “in-between” states, when the form is still shifting and unresolved. In these moments, it mirrors my own process of change. My work emerges from personal experience shaped by memory, trauma, and personal growth.
I hope to evoke a sense of understanding within the viewer. As they sit with my work, a conversation is taking place that invites stillness and introspection. My pieces are my emotions incarnate, even if they are not inherently obvious. These sculptures are created with the intention of transforming the space they are in, inviting the viewer into my mind to view parts of me I don’t necessarily know how to express otherwise.