transformation 9: contemporary works in ceramics

S O C I E T Y F O R C O N T E M P O R A R Y C R A F T

CONTEMPORARY WORKS IN CERAMICSThe Elizabeth R. Raphael Founder’s Prize Exhibition

TRANSFORMATION

Front cover:Lauren Mabry, Cylinder, 2014Red earthenware, slips, glaze, 6" ! 8" ! 8"

Inside front cover and spine:Linda Swanson, Cypreus Lumen, 2013, detailCrystalline glazed porcelain, painted aluminum22" diameter x 51/2"

Transformation 9: Contemporary Works in Ceramics, the 2013 Elizabeth R. Raphael

Founder’s Prize was made possible by Alexandra and Catherine Raphael, the

Elizabeth R. Raphael Fund of the Pittsburgh Foundation, the Allegheny Regional Asset

District, The Fine Foundation and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.

Our mother’s passion for art influenced everything she did in her life.

She was committed to bringing art to her community. She was particularlyinterested in supporting emerging artists. The Society for Contemporary Craft reflects this commitment.

Our mother passed her interest andenthusiasm for the arts along to us andimpacted our life choices significantly.

This award allows us to honor her andshare her legacy.

Alexandra RaphaelCathy Raphael

Contemporary Works in CeramicsThe Elizabeth R. RaphaelFounder’s Prize Exhibition

April 25–November 1, 2014

Society for Contemporary Craft2100 Smallman StreetPittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222www.contemporarycraft.org412.261.7003

TRANSFORMATION NINE

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Since 1997, when the Elizabeth R. Raphael Founder’s Prize exhibition series was launched to recognize excellence in contemporary craft, each of the ninebiennial shows has focused on the theme of transformation. This theme wasinitially suggested by Elizabeth Raphael’s daughters—Alex Raphael, CathyRaphael, and the late Margaret Raphael. They felt it was an appropriate themefor this series created in honor of their mother, a woman who believed passionately in the transformative effect art could have on our lives. Raphael’slifelong ambition was to provide opportunities for Pittsburghers to be exposedto great art by artists whose work they wouldn’t have the opportunity to see otherwise.

Although transformation wasn’t initially intended to be the theme for all subsequent Raphael Prize exhibitions, it soon became clear that it could providea flexible framework for the series over time that would remain fresh and opento interpretation across different media. Since our mission at ContemporaryCraft is to engage the public in creative experiences across all craft media, wework within a very large field and thus are challenged to stay current with newartists and trends emerging in all media. The Raphael Prize series has enabledus to dive deeply into one specific medium with each biennial show and thusexpand our reach. Through these shows we have documented a series ofimportant visual conversations that reflect new directions and current concernsthat have taken place within the craft field over the past two decades.

While our initial intention was to create a Raphael Prize series that would makea significant difference in the life of each winner, helping to launch an emergingartist or move an established artist’s career in a new direction, we didn’t realizehow much it would also transform our organization.

Through nine biennial exhibitions, we have showcased the work of 280+ finalistsrepresenting the highest levels of excellence and innovation in contemporarycraft. We have dramatically expanded our network and discovered excitingopportunities for additional programming (not only the finalists selected foreach exhibition but many other talented artists who entered these competitions).We have been honored to work with 18 guest jurors (exemplary artists, curators, directors, and other thought leaders in the field) who shared theirexpertise, their passion, and their rigorous standards through lively debatesthat pushed us to reach consensus on work that was exceptional and meriteddesignation as a prize winner. Additionally, the growing number of internationalartists selected as Raphael Prize finalists has taken us beyond the boundaries of the American craft movement to participate increasingly in global conversations about craft. These secondary benefits of hosting the RaphaelPrize series have truly benefitted our organization and our staff, and informedour artistic direction.

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We are deeply grateful to the Raphaels for having the vision to see what thepotential impact of the Raphael Prize could be and for so generously funding it over the years. When a donor steps forward and commits to a new idea, you never know where it will lead or how it might change the course of anorganization’s future. What the Raphaels have made possible has truly honoredtheir mother’s legacy in the field of craft and has brought about transformationon many levels. We are indebted to them for this gift.

I would also like to thank all of our jurors for their generous commitment oftime and effort, and particularly catalogue contributors Josh Green and JaeWon Lee for their essays. Josh’s informative catalogue essay provides excellentinsights into current trends and concerns in contemporary ceramics that areevident in this year’s exhibition, and Jae Won Lee’s heartfelt and compassionatereflection on the jurying process is a gift to anyone who has ever dared applyfor a juried exhibition.

In closing, I want to recognize the dedication and professionalism of our staffand volunteers at Contemporary Craft who worked for over a year to bring thisshow to fruition. I gratefully acknowledge their contributions, especiallyDirector of Exhibitions Kate Lydon for her leadership, fine installation, andunflagging commitment to excellence at every step along the way; ExhibitionsApprentice Natalie Sweet for her assistance across all phases of exhibitiondevelopment; and our long-time Raphael Prize volunteer Suzie Scott, whohelped organize the jurying process and made a special trip back to Pittsburghto help with the initial jurying session. We were also fortunate to work onceagain with Paul Schifino, who has created yet another elegant design in ourseries of Raphael Prize publications.

Transformation 9: Contemporary Works in Ceramics, the 2013 Elizabeth R.Raphael Founder's Prize was made possible by Alexandra Raphael andCatherine Raphael, with additional support from the Elizabeth R. Raphael Fundof the Pittsburgh Foundation, the Allegheny Regional Asset District, The FineFoundation and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts.

Janet L. McCallExecutive Director

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The art world we have come to know in the modern to contemporary era is afluid one. Like a volume of water, its shape invariably transforms to correspondwith whatever construction or void it fills. As soon as we imagine we knowwhat art’s limits, meaning or purpose might be, it will immediately take thatform. As we move beyond initial sensory experiences using our minds to construct conceptual frameworks for analysis, synthesis and judgment, ourunderstanding of art’s scope and meaning can attune our perception of previously unnoticed currents. We make continual adjustments to influencesflowing within. While creative achievement is sometimes celebrated throughcompetitive reviews like the Raphael Founder’s Prize in Ceramics, the imagining,inquiry and labor out of which the work is born remains focused on the intrinsicjoy and struggle of making.

Many of us have a first artistic encounter with clay in early childhood. Thematerial is so widely available. The fact that it exerts little resistance to humantouch makes it an extraordinarily accessible medium through which to exploreform, shape, texture and volume in three dimensions. Clay’s receptive capacityalso connects us to the earth and to one another like no other form of artisticpractice. These qualities of accessibility sometimes lead to blind alleys of artistic inquiry. The material’s complexity and nuance can absorb decades, simply working to grasp, build on or rediscover what came before. Seducedfirst with clay’s receptivity to touch, the challenge of art is to wed knowing waysof the hand to social, conceptual and expressive aspirations.

The sensory experience of art can be immediately gratifying, but it is only a first important stage of an unfolding correspondence with a creator’s work andmission. Following initial captivation by color, texture and form, it is throughsustained looking, thinking and assessment that we enter more fully into thework. Ceramics is both an art form and a technology. For thousands of yearshumankind has fashioned useful, decorative and ritualistic articles from plasticearth. Subsumed in the heat of fiery chambers, raw earth materials becomedurable ceramic objects that survive the batter of everyday use and natural disasters to persist beyond the dangling thread ends of generations. The elemental mysteries of these materials, and the knowing hands that transformthem into durable objects embody legacies of nuanced tradition critical to our understanding of who we are.

The works we encountered in consideration of Transformations 9:Contemporary Works in Ceramics demonstrate that artists are re-imagining the ceramic medium as a continuing discourse within the broader realm ofartistic expression. They are also reflective of other trends affecting art’s perception and role in society. In art history and criticism, the notion of thepainterly is a term applied to works that display visually open form and evidence of gestural process. This sense of open form was apparent in theworks of the artists that we singled out for awards and honors. The works ofLinda Swanson, Lauren Mabry, Lee Somers, and Lauren Gallaspy share a senseof experimentation and freedom in their use of material and its formal

CLAY CRAFTS THE MOMENT

FLASH OF TRANSFORMATION:

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precedents. Moreover, their methods and inquiry embody fluent understandingof ceramic processes while opening new ways of looking at the material as avehicle for ideas and expression. Rather than eschew ceramic history in searchof untethered innovation, they are diving deep into the medium’s correspondencewith a broader art-world and a culture marked by concerns for environmentalfragility, the fleeting nature of time and continual reinvention of identity in a complex world.

This is not to say that other works did not make strong impressions. The adjudication of the Raphael Founder’s Prize is somewhat unique in two respects.The first is that it involves a two-stage review with artists first submitting anarray of digital images and a work statement. Following this, finalists arerequired to create and share new actual works. An additional unique feature isthat artists are asked to respond to the theme of transformation. Each review of work demanded difficult decisions about what to include and ultimately whatworks to single out for special honor. The jury team approached this challengefrom different backgrounds and perspectives. Shared respect, communicationand dedication to the process of consideration were essential and valued. All the artists submitting work deserve commendation for responding to so rigorous a challenge.

While history’s artifacts may seem immutable, craft is a living sensibility andcontinues to evolve. Lewis Hyde wrote, “the material world speaks back to us constantly, by its resistance, by its ambiguity, and by the way it changesas circumstances change…”

Once understood through a vernacular of objects (vessels), utility, and purpose,craft is undergoing re-examination as an attitude about being in the world.Respectful of skill, time and mindfulness required to advance it, craft is responsive to the natural world of materials. It understands that masteryengages intimate correspondences of hand, eye and mind. Craft invites us towork autonomously in relation to tradition and guides us to align our conceptsand labor with awareness of the earth’s limited resources. Craft is relational,teaching us that objects and environments inform our social interactions, aspirations and concepts of identity. Writing on craftsmanship, Richard Sennettuses the term “corporeal anticipation” to describe the embodied awarenessthat enables a creator to be one step ahead of where her material wants toflow. This sense of intuitive responsiveness is evident throughout the work of the Raphael Founder’s Prize finalists. It binds work to play, the wellspring of imagination, cooperation and invention.

Joshua Green

Executive Director of the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA), Joshua Green studied ceramics at Bennington

College and Cranbrook Academy of Art. His writings on clay, art, education and community have appeared in American Craft, Ceramics:

Art and Perception, Studies in Art Education (NAEA) and publications of NCECA, the National Endowment for the Arts, and UNESCO.

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JANUARY 8, 2013 SHOULD I DO IT?

I am considering serving as external juror for the Raphael Founder’s Prize and Exhibition. I can participate in this selection process as a practicing artistwho knows what it is like to be a maker, then an exhibitor. What goes on inbetween? As juror, I can be in that limbo space between the private and thepublic, to notice strengths and weaknesses on other artists’ behalf. I found theSociety for Contemporary Craft (SCC) fascinating from my first visit to Pittsburghduring the 2008 NCECA. Pittsburgh left on me an indelible impression and thecity hosted NCECA wonderfully after a sudden shift from New Orleans due todisastrous hurricane Katrina. Learning about the Raphael Founder’s event, I am humbled to be asked to serve as a juror. To honor Elizabeth Raphael, thelate SCC Founder, her three daughters made this event possible with their generosity and passion.

AUGUST 12, 2013 IN & OUT

I recall a burger joint in California called In and Out. As the name indicates itwas speedy to get your quality burger. One of the most daunting jury tasks is to judge other fellow artists’ long artistic endeavors with such a short timespan of only a few hours. A diverse range of artistic expressions and technicalapproaches were assembled in this competition. Continual development in thefield of contemporary ceramics toward outstanding artistic standards and technical mastery make the jurying process complex. The jury panel raised initial questions to make decisions; is this work in or out, why? We viewed anddiscussed all the entries, but most of the time, it was quick and agreeable todecide ‘in and out’ for the first round, to my dismay. What makes the ‘in’ category out of various styles and diverse approaches of ceramics practice?How do jurors come to a decision despite differing viewpoints and opinions?Six of us were polite in listening to and accommodating different viewpointsand tried to be fair and thoughtful, but the jury process is actually subjectiveand seemingly unkind. Selecting work sharpens my critical opinions. Somedeliberations were followed by votes to a democratic arrival in selecting 31 artists.

AUGUST 13, 2013 ACCEPTANCE VS. REJECTION

Leaving Pittsburgh, I felt relieved to have the first part of the job done, but alsofelt like a villain for rejecting those who didn’t make the list of 31. I applaud allthe artists’ courage and hopefulness for entering this competition. A lot of us,artists, often enter the juried shows, quite reluctantly for various reasons.Waiting is no fun. Rejection hits hard. I know how discouraging it is, or evenhurtful to the core, to be rejected and I felt the disappointment of those whomust have felt that they failed. I have been there. Nobody seems to know wehave been working so hard. We don’t want to enter art competitions any more.We can’t deal with rejections any longer. Enough is enough! I encourage all the artists who entered this competition to stay in the studio, keep exploring,testing, succeeding, and persevering through the rejection to keep makingmore. Being artists is not about wining or losing, but rejection is part of ourlives. We simply keep moving forward. In the very same sanctuary of our studio, we continue our creative journeys with faith in our own work.

SOME GIBBERISH ON THE ROAD...

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MARCH 1, 2014 HOW FAR CAN WE GO?

While driving back home in another blizzard in March in Michigan, I was pondering what comment I should write down on my role as an external juror.I’m heavily burdened by the uncertain safety of driving in the dark as well as by the jury task of selecting of prizewinners on February 22. I was shaken as thefinal result might differ if I weren’t on the jury panel.

Honestly, when I embarked on my artist’s career path, I thought, if the work is good, then that good work naturally deserves recognition. People would recognize that quality of your work, but in reality? Not really. So not onlyyoung, emerging artists, but also established ones enter for juried shows andcompetitions for exhibiting their works in public. Art making is so serious and difficult that often I question how far I can go. But why do I still keep struggling with the beginner’s seriousness of creative life, in solitude, inanonymity, without much reward? Why? Because I can’t think of anything else I want to do. We are called to make things. We’ll see how far we can go.

MARCH 5, 2014 ALL THE WAY...“Surely all art is the result of one’s having been in danger, of having

gone through an experience all the way to the end, where no one can go any further. The further one goes, the more private, the more personal, the more singular an experience becomes, and the thing one is making is, finally, the necessary, irrepressible, and, as nearly as possible, definitive utterance of this singularity.” Rainer Maria Rilke

Now, which work merits a prize? For my part, as I humbly firm up and embrace my 3H philosophy, I approach others’ artwork with the philosophy ofHeart-Hand-Head. I expect that visual impact shakes my head to think hard andthe compelling quality stirs something in my heart. It should do something forme-I should be smitten, moved, or disturbed. They should inspire me, so I wantto return to my studio again, as a total novice, renewed. My head is clear, myheart pounding, and my hands busy… There is nothing new under the sun, butstill I need to see the uniqueness and subjectivity that arrived in a new territory.I am drawn to work that manifests authenticity and sincerity.

I congratulate the artists whose work was selected to the Transformationexhibition and especially those four prize-winning artists. Ceramic art is thematerial evidence, the most humanistic, honest, and humble kind (another 3H combo)… The selected works evidence artists’ hard work of trials and errors,developing and deepening concepts, and pushing all the way. Then materialtransformation occurs when an artist recognizes the harmony, to which viewersare aspired to hope again in their lives as human beings.

It was my honor to serve as external juror with Joshua Green and I would liketo thank Kate, Janet, and their staff for their hard work in organizing for thecompetition and preparing for the upcoming exhibition in April. I believe SCCwill make this year’s Transformation 9 exhibition another excellent showcase of contemporary ceramics.

Jae Won Lee

Jae Won Lee is Professor of Art at Michigan State University in East Lansing and has been visiting artist, educator, and artist-in-resi-

dence at many universities, museums, and residency programs. Her porcelain and mixed media work has been included in many col-

lections and widely exhibited nationally and internationally.

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10 TOM BARTEL12 SUSAN BEINER14 BRIAN BOLDON16 PATTIE CHALMERS18 ANDRÉA KEYS CONNELL20 THADDEUS (TJ) ERDAHL22 HEATHER MAE ERICKSON24 MICHELLE ERICKSON26 LAUREN GALLASPY28 GERIT GRIMM30 CHUCK JOHNSON32 ALEXA KUS34 MARTINA LANTIN36 CALVIN MA38 LAUREN MABRY40 JONATHAN MESS42 ANDREA MOON44 JULIE MOON46 PETER MORGAN48 ERICA NICKOL50 SARA PARENT-RAMOS52 JESSICA PUTNAM-PHILLIPS54 KEVIN SNIPES56 LEE SOMERS58 MILES SPADONE60 LINDA SWANSON62 RYAN TAKABA64 IAN F. THOMAS66 SHALENE VALENZUELA68 VALERIE ZIMANY70 LILLY ZUCKERMAN

THE ARTISTS

Fertility Figure

My work is constructed to refer to the body and to stylized surrogates for

the body, such as dolls, toys, and figurines. The questions that arise from

this cultural mishmash fuel my creative practice.

I use the human condition as a point of departure. Themes relating to gender,

rites of passage, fertility and mortality are constant “threads” within my

creative practice. The concepts of mask, disguise and transformation are

fundamental to my concerns.

TO

MB

ART

EL

10

S O U R C E : Decorated skeleton, Chiesa di San Cristoforo, Siena, Italy

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Fertility Figure, 2013

Ceramic, mixed media

40" ! 20" ! 18"

Photo: Steve Paszt

Unintended Consequences

As we continue to negatively impact our environment and deplete the

earth’s natural resources plant structures are adapting, releasing energy

of color and becoming sterile.

In trying to balance these changes, we are attempting to control the

characteristics of plant life by promoting hybrids and germinating new species

in laboratory environments. The results of these plant experiments performed

in artificial environments and reproduced repeatedly for commercial needs,

is the creation of a flora rich in color but artificial and sterile. Plants’ loss of

pigment foreshadows future disruption of our ecosystem.

SUSA

NB

EIN

ER

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S O U R C E : Looking Out the Window, concept sketch for Unintended Consequences

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UnintendedConsequences, 2014

Wall PiecePorcelain, foam, wood42" x 30" x 10"

Floor PieceStoneware, porcelain, foam43" ! 11" ! 11"

Photo: Susan Beiner

to move like liquid

Our relationship with technology is primal, it is how we access and

navigate the world, extend ourselves beyond the limitations of our bodies,

create meaning, and share ideas. Physical material transformation

embedded in the human record reveals our intimacy and inseparability

with technology as a pre-condition for creating our “World.”

The synthesis that I create between digital images and clay suspends the

viewer between what appears to be incompatible technologies as

electronic imagery fuses into form in space. I use the physical materiality

of clay and the ephemeral aspects of digital media to tap into our biological

virtual selves, our internal framing, our inner sense of where we are in

our bodies in the world.

BRIA

NB

OLD

ON

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S O U R C E : Concept sketch for to move like liquid

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to move like liquid, 2014

Stoneware, digital ceramic prints, stainless steel

24" ! 120" ! 120" (installation variable)

Photo: Amy Baur

Stumpland

As a sculptor I create narrative tableaux rendering solid accounts that

dance between the familiar and the unfathomable. By depicting a reduced

distance between fact and fiction a new perspective from memory

enhanced by imagination is revealed in an expanded pictorial space.

Stories from a parent, a teacher, a movie, a dream—bits and pieces

exaggerated or diminished—are collaged together in an order that

corresponds to my memories. Emotion and honesty are the glue of the

assemblage. The stories I depict are false and true, a merging of

experience with imaginings, drifting together into semi-fictional vignettes.

What results is a reflection on a family history, a layer of fancy, a

misremembered fact and then the collision of ideas into something new.

PAT

TIE

CH

ALM

ERS

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S O U R C E : Concept image for Stumpland

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Stumpland, 2013

Clay, mixed media

81" ! 36" ! 36"

photo: Pattie Chalmers

Don’t Forget We’re Connected

Don’t Forget We’re Connected deals with the transformative power of

relationships over time. Transformations are often considered abrupt, with

a clearly defined before and after. The transformative power of a

relationship is different if that transformation occurs over time.

Two figures are connected, one growing from another’s windswept hair.

The figure on the bottom appears distant, unaffected, and oblivious to

unstable conditions. The top figure, in an undefined stage of development,

is vulnerable, unsteady, and exposed. The hair that connects them is

evocative of wet clay. This shared malleability suggests that, though who we

become is our responsibility, our transformations are never ours alone.

AN

DR

ÉA

KE

YS

CO

NN

ELL

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S O U R C E : Concept sketches for Don’t Forget We’re Connected

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Don’t Forget We’reConnected, 2014

Terracotta, oil paint, stains,india ink, acrylic paint

60" ! 22" ! 23"

Photo: André�a Keys Connell

King for a Day, Queen for the Night

King for a Day, Queen for the Night is a narrative bust depicting an aging

drag queen. Her cracked weathered skin is a testimony to layers of

makeup, that create a veneer, hiding his true identity. Her pink hair, rigidly

cut off at the ends is a glimpse into the structures underneath the facade.

He is purposefully lacking much of the glamour and glitz associated with

many drag queens, exposing the fading light of her youth.

I am intrigued by the subculture surrounding drag queens; the double life,

the secretiveness, and the concealment of identity. Masters at camouflage,

they purposefully over-expose themselves through flamboyant

showmanship and pride, theatrical makeup and costuming. Some lead

double lives, while others exist primarily in drag. Visually and emotionally,

their transformation is full of heightened drama as it exploits, almost

via caricature, very specific and extreme feminine stereotypes.

TH

AD

DE

US

(TJ)

ERD

AH

L

20

S O U R C E : Concept sketch for King for a Day, Queen for the Night

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King for a Day, Queen forthe Night, 2013

Ceramics, glaze, slip, underglaze, acrylic paint, fake eye lashes

34" ! 24" ! 23"

Photo: Thaddeus (TJ) Erdahl

Pick Mix/All Sorts CollectionComposition No.1

Our knowledge of the objects used in the dining ritual, and their assigned

functions, born of historical usage and innate familiarity, is limiting and lacks

creativity and vision. I explore the possibility of changing the way we treat

the vital ritual of dining. By designing functional tableware, I seek to direct the

eye, hand and mouth to treat food differently.

At the forefront of a trend where both industry and design play roles in

studio art practice, my work raises awareness of the situation and sparks

contemplation before merely devouring the elements. I question function

by combining the common and understood methods of use, and proposing

new formats.

HE

ATH

ER

MA

EER

ICK

SO

N

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S O U R C E : Candy composition

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Pick Mix / All Sorts CollectionComposition No.1, 2014

Porcelain

(installation variable)

Photo: Wes Magyar

Rake’s Progress: The Orgy Scene

Through my practice as a contemporary artist, I rediscover lost ceramic

techniques and consider the social, political and environmental context of

ceramic history during the age of colonialism.

For the subject of this work, Rake’s Progress: The Orgy Scene, I have

chosen to portray a curiously captivating character created by the 18th century

satirist William Hogarth. An orgy of ceramic history, the portrait bust is

writhe with Ming porcelain dragon tattoos, grotto conglomerations of shell

dishes, life cast shells collected along the River Thames and octopi from

London’s famed Billingsgate fish market.

MIC

HE

LL

EER

ICK

SO

N

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S O U R C E : A Rake’s Progress: The Orgy, engravingfrom William Hogarth’s 1735 painting series (detail)

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Rake’s Progress:The Orgy Scene, 2014

Porcelain

15" ! 6" ! 8"

Photo: Robert Hunter

Giving Up the Ghost

The things that I love and the things that I fear refuse to balance out. They

scrap like cats, cloak and conceal like kudzu, terrify and delight like a large,

shaky lake or a dog swimming hard towards a floating ball.

My work is about imbalance: the vulnerability of living things, and the

sometimes violent, sometimes pleasurable, almost always complex

consequences that occur when bodies and objects in the world come into

contact with one another.

I use ornamentation, obsessive mark making, and imagery as a kind

of devotional or transformational act, a way to render interior spaces and

intense psychological experiences physically. For me, clay is a covert

material, a wilderness in which animals of association hide, a co-operative

contradiction both molecularly and metaphorically.

LA

UR

EN

GA

LLA

SPY

S O U R C E : Concept sketch for Giving Up the Ghost

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Honorable Mention

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Giving Up the Ghost, 2014

Porcelain, glaze, china paint

16" ! 9" ! 7"

photo: Lauren Gallaspy

GE

RIT

GR

IMM

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S O U R C E : The Farnese Bull (AD 222–235), Farnese Collection,Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli, Naples, Italy

PHOTO: Marie-Lan Nguyen, ©Creative Commons, The Farnese Bull,http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Farnese_Bull_MAN_Napoli_Inv6002_n07.jpg

Looting of the Farnese Bull

On my last trip to Italy I was so blown away by the artwork I saw that

I created a series of sculptures that reinterpreted my favorite masterworks

from the history of European art and exhibited them in my installation

Triumphzug (Triumphal procession) at the Northern Clay Center.

For instance a tree I created, one of the 30 pieces in the show, was inspired

by the fresco from Andrea di Bonaiuto in the Spanish Chapel of Santa Maria

Novella. Looting of the Farnese Bull is inspired by the Farnese Bull

sculpture now on view in Naples, one of the most impressive sculptures

I have ever seen.

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Looting of the Farnese Bull, 2013

Stoneware

23" ! 33" ! 13"

Photo: Gerit Grimm

CH

UC

KJO

HN

SO

N

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S O U R C E : Concept images for Goat

Goat

This work is part of an ongoing series that references ideas of social mobility,

institutionalized religion, cultural conflict, and especially our declining

environment. I combine these broad concepts with my more formal interest

in three-dimensional forms including Gothic architecture, industrial objects,

and endangered animals. Basically, I am interested in exploring contemporary

issues by creating narratives using imagery with metaphorical possibilities.

In this piece, the goat is sculpted in a rough and organic fashion emphasizing

its temporary and vulnerable qualities. Contrasting the goat are the

hard-edged and linear portions of the sculpture including the accordion

imposed on the animal’s back.

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Goat, 2014

Unglazed clay

36" ! 30" ! 10"

Photo: Chuck Johnson

Everything I need to say,everything you need to hear

Shifting between the familiar and the unrecognizable, that which is

considered solid and certain is redefined. Often presenting risks and

opportunities for disaster, this shifting state of the unknown creates doubt,

confusion and frustration. Even so, rearrangement and alternative

interpretations are essential for transformation. The uncertainty they create

allows meanings of the indistinguishable to become infinite.

AL

EX

AK

US

32

S O U R C E : Concept sketch for Everything I need to say,everything you need to hear

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Everything I need to say,everything you need to hear,2013

Porcelain, found wood

45" ! 85" ! 2"

Photo: Alexa Kus

MA

RT

INA

LAN

TIN

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S O U R C E : Map of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania overlaidwith concept sketches for where we meet

where we meet

I strive to create work that synthesizes historical modes of display and

contemporary design sensibility. This installation exemplifies my continued

exploration of the interface between the functional and the decorative.

Drawn from a map of the center of Pittsburgh, the lines of asphalt and water

delineate the heart of the city. Repeated, these lines become the wallpaper

motif that, in turn frame and display plates ready for use. This interaction

fosters the mutable relationship between usable object, display, and

viewer that forms the core inquiry of my work.

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where we meet, 2014

Thrown and altered earthenware,slip, glaze, digital print

Installation: 96" ! 72" ! 1""

Plates: 13" diameter ! 1""

photo: Martina Lantin

Not Out There

I utilize action figures in my sculptural work to explore personal struggles

with social anxiety. As an adult, I face difficulties in the social environment.

Even as a child I was reserved and apprehensive, so I turned to toys to

keep me entertained. I believe the tactile activity of playing with them

coupled with my active imagination helped establish this passion for the

action figure early on. There was something about picking up your favorite

character and creating adventures that captivated me. It felt only natural

to tap into this childlike sense of storytelling through my artwork.

CA

LVIN

MA

36

S O U R C E : Concept sketch for Not Out There

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Not Out There, 2014

Ceramic, glaze, stain, glass

15" ! 11" ! 11"

Photo: Calvin Ma

Curved PlaneI make painterly, abstract, ceramic art. I’m a calculated risk-taker with

a keen attraction to color, movement, and material. Primarily my work

communicates directly through its formal and aesthetic qualities, but it may

also be understood in relationship to Post-Minimalist and Process Art.

Ultimately, my work is a synthesis of intuitive, expressive surfaces and

elemental forms. The intricately glazed surfaces sometimes look weathered

and aged, but at the same time colorfully lush and wet. There is a sense of

immediacy to the mark making, and at moments a sense of play.

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S O U R C E : Process image for Curved Plane

LA

UR

EN

MA

BR

Y Merit Award

Curved Plane, 2013

Red earthenware, slips, glaze,burned resin

24" ! 60" ! 15"

Photo: Lauren Mabry

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Reclaim No.9

My artwork is characterized by experimental abstraction. Using reclaimed

ceramic materials and referencing natural landforms, I constantly push my

materials and processes into new territory. Conventional wisdom says never to

make solid clay objects, but I have learned how to break that rule. I created

Reclaim No.9 by slowly pouring layers of colored casting slip and reclaimed

materials from Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts—slop clay, cast-aside

glazes, discarded, and broken work—into a manipulated cardboard box mold.

This sculpture delivers a monumental impact on a restrained scale, bridging

painting and sculpture in three-dimensional abstract expressionism.

JON

ATH

AN

MES

S

S O U R C E : Reclaimed ceramic material

40

41

Reclaim No.9, 2013

Various reclaimed ceramic materials fromWatershed Center for the Ceramic Arts

16" ! 11" ! 10"

Photo: Kate Mess

Between

In my practice I create sculptures that confront personal transitions and

challenge structure. I use multiple clay parts to create volume, form, and

balance. Through the raw surfaces and physicality of the material, I obsessively

preserve stability and the importance of structure in my everyday life.

I constantly strive to maintain a balance between feelings of calmness and

apprehension. My forms visually demonstrate the contrast between a state of

control and one of unsteadiness. Slight bends or subtle gestures in the clay

are intended to express a timid strength. I use the negative space to question

emptiness and fulfillment.

AN

DR

EA

MO

ON

42

S O U R C E : Concept sketch for Between

43

Between, 2014

Glazed stoneware

27" ! 18" ! 16"

Photo: Andrea Moon

Cornucopia

My work focuses on the notion of excess and explores aspects of materialism

and relationships between form and surface and bodies and culture.

An amorphous and bloated form, Cornucopia embodies the idea of abundance

and accumulation, and its brightly colored, horror vacui surface addresses

the fear of empty space.

As with most artists and creators, the transformation of materials is inherent

to the process of creation. For me this process of making relies heavily on play

and invention, and is what motivates my practice.

JUL

IEM

OO

N

44

S O U R C E : Concept images for Cornucopia

45

Cornucopia, 2014

Stoneware, glazes, enamel,plastic fruit

30" ! 18" ! 13"

Photo: Hiroe Hanazono

The Awful Waffle Walrus Surprise

The Awful Waffle Walrus Surprise is the most recent iteration of my

sculptural series in which I combine food and animals to create landscape.

These works seek to transform the known and familiar into the grandiose and

absurd. This is achieved by juxtaposing dissimilar objects, and shifts

in scale, to generate an expanding and contracting spatial experience. This

continues my exploration of how representations affect our perception

of the world. Sure, few people have experienced an iceberg up close and

personal, but undoubtedly whipped cream topping a waffle would make

an excellent environment for a walrus.

PET

ER

MO

RG

AN

46

S O U R C E : Concept sketch for The Awful Waffle Walrus Surprise

47

The Awful WaffleWalrus Surprise, 2014

Low-fire ceramic

16"" ! 24" ! 25"

Photo: Peter Morgan

The Tie that Binds

Porcelain is an ideal material to express movement, tension, and emotion

in my sculptures. During the different stages of working with clay,

transformations occur which allow me to stop a moment. An impression

becomes permanent. A slump that occurs when the kiln reaches

temperature freezes time. Through this process, the work captures physical

and ethereal elements, transforming material into gesture; a trace

preserves the energy present during the moment of creation.

ER

ICA

NIC

KO

L

48

S O U R C E : Concept sketch for The Tie that Binds

49

The Tie that Binds, 2014

Ceramic, steel, wood

63" ! 34" ! 11"

Photo: Joseph Nickol

Amassing Presence

When I was a child I spent many summers in Rome, the place where my

mother grew up before immigrating to America from Italy in the 1970s. During

those summers, on walks with my grandmother, I noticed medieval churches

covered in baroque adornments wedged in between fading ’70s apartments.

Since childhood, I have traveled extensively witnessing firsthand how the

accumulation of everyday debris can lend a physical presence to history. In my

work I draw upon this awareness recombining recognizable architectural and

historical imagery. In this manner, the layering of visual information becomes

a stand-in for the temporally fleeting passage of human events.

SAR

APA

REN

T-R

AM

OS

50

Neo-Baroque - Through the gratuitous use of accumulated objects, the vulgar is lent elegance.

S O U R C E : Concept sketch for Amassing Presence

51

Amassing Presence, 2013

Nichrome wire, porcelain, glaze

36" ! 12" ! 12"

Photo: Mike Fleming

Polly, Poppy and Delilah

Reflecting on my own military experience, my work explores the juxtaposition

of US service women in combat with the domestic and decorative nature

of heirloom ceramic tableware. Playing on the notion of “serving” I create

objects associated with dining ritual, and use military iconography with

traditional elements of transferware patterns to depict military women serving

their country. Through non-traditional imagery I seek to challenge the

entrenched ideas of domesticity and gender roles while exposing the social

and cultural issues faced by military women.

JESS

ICA

PUTN

AM

-PH

ILLI

PS

S O U R C E : Transferware platter

52

53

Polly, Poppy and Delilah, 2014

Porcelain with mishima inlay, slip,underglaze, glaze

42" ! 17" ! 1"

Photo: Jessica Putnam-Phillips

Thug

I think of myself primarily as a storyteller. I use ceramic forms ornamented with

animated narrative drawings, and am fascinated by the concept of otherness.

With this in mind, my work explores human conflicts on a personal level and

the ways in which the fringes of society are consumed by popular culture.

KE

VIN

SN

IPES

S O U R C E : Lisbon street art featuring artists,Os Gêmeos and Blu

54

55

Thug, 2014

Porcelain, underglaze,glaze, oxide wash

9"" ! 4" ! 3"

Photo: Kevin Snipes

Scape IV

My process is a coupling of fleeting notions and physical realities. Collage

is a key strategy in both the physical and conceptual organization of my work.

Drawing from a variety of sources, ongoing acts of sampling, collecting

and cataloging lead to a critical mass of components. Weaving a matrix

of relations between these parts, I find compositional epiphanies—parallels

to aesthetic experiences etched in my memory. Within the framework

of landscape, my work explores ceramics as material metaphor for the

intersection of natural and cultural processes. Fragmentary glimpses of place

and time underscore the temporality of our present location.

LE

ES

OM

ERS

56

S O U R C E : Concept image for Scape IV

Honorable Mention

57

Scape IV, 2014

Roof tile, earthenware, shards

41" ! 26" ! 5"Photo: Lee Somers

Mytosis

I am interested in the essence of form through reduction. Void of

decoration, the surface of my work is expressed like skin over ribs, where

rigid meets languid. The work strives to suspend an emerging moment,

the point when impression and inflation clash. My work captures a tactile

image of materials moving in opposition—like the instant before an object

rips through taut plastic, water sheds off your hand, or bone protrudes

through elastic skin—moments in transformation. This work expresses the

conflicting space in-between.MIL

ES

SPA

DO

NE

58

S O U R C E : Concept image for Mytosis

59

Mytosis, 2014

Ceramic, tinted shellac, lacquer

16"" ! 6" ! 4"

Photo: Jay York

Cypreus Lumen

Despite our ability to scientifically explain the natural world, there is still

a certain mystery to how matter changes form, seeming at first to be one thing,

then becoming another. Light things become dark, soft things become hard,

solid things begin to flow. Such transformations open onto questions of our

own being and becoming and how we find ourselves in a world of flux.

Processes of change, formation and dissolution are caught in this crystalline

glazed surface a flow of molten colorants frozen into an optically ambivalent

and luminous moment, recalling geology as well as biology to elicit material

affinities between the body and the world around us.LIN

DA

SW

AN

SO

N

60

S O U R C E : Concept image for Cypreus Lumen

The Elizabeth R. Raphael Founder’s Prize Winner

61

Cypreus Lumen, 2013

22" diameter ! 5""

Crystalline glazed porcelain,painted aluminum

Photo: Linda Swanson

49 to a new

In Buddhist ritual, the spirit moves to a new place every seven days.

On the 49th day, a service is held to mark the spirit’s new resting place.

Every morning my grandmother visits my deceased grandfather through daily

prayer at an altar in her bedroom. One of the adornments is an arrangement

of flowers she clips from her garden. I am interested in aspects of daily

ritual, specifically in relation to a flower and a vase, the cutting, assembling,

and connecting of the mums to complete a composition and the sorting of stem

sizes to regulate its flow of water. This process of transformation engages

themes of longing, waiting, and return.

RYA

NTA

KA

BA

62

S O U R C E : Shrine to the artist’s family

63

49 to a new, 2014 (two views)

Porcelain, 49 mums, water, steel,neodymium magnets

12" ! 18" ! 2"

Photo: Ryan Takaba

Persistence

Ceramic material is by nature transformative. In traditional practice, clay

is worked from a moist state to a fired object. With Persistence

I have chosen to begin at the end with a commercial plate. Through

compulsion, persistence and patience I have reworked the object

offering a new ideological context, removed from its mass produced

similitude and repositioned as an individualized art object.

IAN

F.T

HO

MA

S

64

S O U R C E : Concept sketch for Persistence

65

Persistence, 2013

Industrial porcelain

9" ! 6" ! 1"

Photo: Ian Thomas

Cinched In

Upon first glance, my work is a form of trompe l’oeil with a twist. Using

clay to transform a common item, I toy with the notion that things are not what

they initially seem to be. I explore women’s issues that speak to perception,

how they’ve been recognized historically and how they’re understood in society

today. Issues addressing self-perception and expectations reach beyond

feminist concerns. It’s a question of how we all attempt to transform ourselves

in ways to attain impossible ideals based on what others define we should be.

SHA

LE

NE

VALE

NZU

ELA

66

S O U R C E : Concept sketch for Cinched In

67

Cinched In, 2013

Porcelain

16" ! 11" ! 9"

Photo: Shalene Valenzuela

Chigiri-e (Moonwalker)

I visually examine complex relationships between the East and West, nature

and technology, and intimate and public worlds through the lens of my

American background and extended education in Japan. Borrowed and

appropriated images from the histories of art, nature, and society transform

my surfaces, and I develop forms that suggest symbolic intersections between

these different cultures. Distantly familiar archetypes from 1970s electronics

and design, traditional textile patterns, vintage enameled china, and manga or

graffiti overlap to create seemingly improbable combinations. By clashing

colors, patterns, and imagery I force relationships or question compatibility,

and parallel a feeling of wandering out of place at just the right time.

VAL

ER

IEZI

MA

NY

68

S O U R C E : Concept sketch for Chigiri-e (Moonwalker)

69

Chigiri-e (Moonwalker), 2014

Wheel thrown & slip-cast porcelain,glazes, silkscreen and vintagedecals, Kutani raised overglazeenamels, gold, white gold

13" ! 12" ! 11"

Photo: Valerie Zimany

Flow

I seek to translate the emotional senses of curiosity, sincerity, and generosity

into tangible form. Clay has the ability to be both tactile yet intelligent. I work to

create and invite contemplative moments, where experiences of the physical

hand and intellectual mind can coexist.

Starting with a solid block, I methodically pinch the form. Encompassing many

changes of state, from the uncomplicated lump heavy with potential, through

precarious and fluid chaos, ending with the form.

Pinched clay has a remarkably clear and straightforward trace of touch,

from maker to user my moment of touch can be experienced by others today

or in thousands of years.LIL

LYZU

CK

ERM

AN

70

S O U R C E : Process image for Flow

71

Flow, 2013

Earthenware

5" ! 14" ! 12"Photo: Lilly Zuckerman

72

TOM BARTEL

Born: Cleveland, OH, 1969

Lives: Athens, OH

Education

M.F.A., Ceramics, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, 1996

B.F.A., Ceramics, Kent State University, Kent, OH, 1993

Selected Exhibitions

2013NCECA Biennial, Houston Center for ContemporaryCraft, Houston, TX (catalogue)

The Figure/Sculptor in Ceramics, NassauischeSparkasse Talent Award, Keramikmuseum,Westerwald, Germany

2008Group Exhibition, Nostic Pallace, Prague, CzechRepublic

2007Group Exhibition, International Museum of Ceramics,Bechyne, Czech Republic

Selected Grants and Awards

2011 Individual Artist Fellowship, The Ohio ArtCouncil, Columbus, OH

2004 Individual Artist Fellowship, The Kentucky ArtsCouncil, Frankfort, KY

Selected Collections

FuLe International Ceramic Art Museum, Shaanxi,China

International Museum of Ceramics, Bechyne, CzechRepublic

Jingdezhen Ceramic Art Museum, Jingdezhen, China

New Taipei City Yingge Ceramics Museum, Taiwan,China

The Mutter Museum, The College of Physicians ofPhiladelphia, Philadelphia, PA

tombartel.net

SUSAN BEINER

Born: Newark, NJ, 1962

Lives: Phoenix, AZ

Education

M.F.A., Ceramics, University of Michigan, School ofArt, Ann Arbor, MI, 1993

B.F.A, Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of theArts, New Brunswick, NJ, 1985


2013Organic Dissolution, solo exhibition, The Art League,Houston TX, (catalogue)

2012Ceramica Multiplex 2012, Herzer Palace of the CityMuseum of Varazdin, Varazdin, Croatia (traveling)

201121st Vallauris Biennale Internationale, MagnelliMuseum, Ceramics Museum of Vallauris, Vallauris,France (catalogue)

Alchemy, From Dust to Form, Harn Museum of Art,Gainsville, FL

Earth Matters, The Galleries at Moore College of Artand Design, Philadelphia, PA, (catalogue)

2009The Familiar Unknown, Blue Star Contemporary ArtCenter, San Antonio, TX

2008Shared Journeys: Chinese/American Ceramic Art,Jingdezhen Ceramic Institute, Jingdezhen, China

Synthetic Reality, Installation, Ceramics ResearchCenter, Tempe, AZ

Selected Publications

“The Familiar Unknown.” Sculpture Magazine,October 2010: 77-78. Print.

Buck, Andrew. “Organic Dissolution.” CeramicsMonthly, March 2012: 44-46. Print.

Cooper, Emmanuel. Contemporary Ceramics. London,England: Thames and Hudson Ltd., 2008.


Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA

Keramiekmuseum Princessehof, Leeuwarden,Netherlands

susanbeinerceramics.com

BRIAN BOLDON

Born: Milwaukee, WI 1958

Lives: Minneapolis, MN

Education

M.F.A., Rhode Island School of Design. Providence,RI, 1988

B.S., Art, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison,WI, 1982


2014Red River Reciprocity: Contemporary Ceramics inMinnesota and North Dakota, Plains Museum of Art,Fargo, ND

2013Brian Boldon 2012 McKnight Fellow, Northern ClayCenter, Minneapolis, MN

Clay Prints, Fort Wayne Museum of Art, Fort Wayne, IN

The Shape of Wind, public art commission, OmnitransRapid Transit Station, San Bernardino, CA

This Promises Water, public art commission, Ralph Carr Colorado Judicial Center, Denver, CO

Trainscape, public art commission, Union DepotCarriage Way Tunnel, St Paul, MN

2012Push Play: 2012 NCECA Invitational, Bellevue ArtsMuseum, Bellevue, WA

2011Craft Meets Technology, Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft, Louisville, KY

The New Materiality: Digital Dialogues at theBoundaries of Contemporary Craft, Milwaukee ArtMuseum, Milwaukee, WI

Tidal Forces: The Next Wave, NCECA Biennial, TampaMuseum of Art, Tampa, FL


Brown, Glen R. “Brian Boldon. Digital Technology, theBody and Experience.” Ceramics: Art and Perception,Issue 83, 2011: 8–12.

Riddle, Mason. “Brian Boldon 2012 McKnight Fellow.”Four McKnight Artists. Minneapolis, MN: NorthernClay Center, 2013.

brianboldon.com

PATTIE CHALMERS

Born: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, 1965

Lives: Carbondale, IL

Education

M.F.A., University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN,2001

B.F.A., University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba,Canada, 1993

B.A., University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba,Canada, 1986


2014McKnight Fellowship Exhibition, Northern ClayCenter, Minneapolis, MN

2013Closely Becomes Wonderful, Gallery 13, Minneapolis, MN

2012Bill O'Donnell + Pattie Chalmers, McClean County Art Center, Bloomington, IL

201167th Scripps Ceramic Annual, Williamson Gallery,Scripps College, Claremont, CA

Intimations of Candor and Culpability, Pavel Amromin& Pattie Chalmers, Red Lodge Clay Center, RedLodge, MT

2010Transcending the Figure, Invitational Exhibition, theDairy Barn Arts Center, Athens, OH (catalogue)

2008Voices, NCECA Invitational Exhibition, Society forContemporary Craft, Pittsburgh, PA (catalogue)


Garcia, Edith. Ceramics and the Human Figure.London, UK: A & C Black Publishing, 2013.

Seckler, Judy. “Clay’s Good Humour.” Ceramics Artand Perception, Issue 87, 2012: 13-17. Print.


2012 McKnight Artist Residencies for Ceramic ArtistsAward, Northern Clay Center, Minneapolis, MN


The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA

Kamm Teapot Foundation, Sparta, NC

pattiechalmers.com

ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES

73

ANDRÉA KEYS CONNELL

Born: Manassas, VA, 1980

Lives: Richmond, VA

Education

M.F.A., Ohio University, Athens, OH, 2009

Postbaccalaureate, Louisiana State University, BatonRouge, LA, 2004

B.F.A., Maryland Institute College of Art, Baltimore,MD, 2000


2013NCECA Biennial, Houston Center for ContemporaryCraft, Houston, TX (catalogue)

2012Andréa Keys Connell: Gently Down the Stream, soloexhibition, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA

Somewhere, Urban Institute for Contemporary Art, In Space Gallery, Grand Rapids, MI

2011Figurative Association: Celebrating the Human Formin Clay, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts,Gatlinburg, TN

Matters of Size: Ceramic Figurines, Fuller CraftMuseum, Brockton, MA

The Pursuit of Hercules, solo exhibition, Page BondGallery, Richmond, VA

2010Third Generation, solo exhibition, Florida HolocaustMuseum, Tampa, FL

Transcending the Figure: Contemporary Ceramics,The Dairy Barn, Athens, OH, (catalogue)

Portraiture Beyond Likeness, Wayne Art Center,Wayne, PA, (catalogue)

Un-Home-Like, solo exhibition, The Sculpture Center,Cleveland, OH

2009Andréa Keys Ceramic Sculptures, solo exhibition,Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft, Louisville, KY

andreakeys.com

THADDEUS (TJ) ERDAHL

Born: La Porte City, Iowa, 1977

Lives: Princeton, NJ

Education

M.F.A., University of Florida, Gainesville FL, 2009

B.A., University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA, 2004

A.A., Hawkeye Community Collage, Waterloo, IA, 2001


2013Don’t Box Me In, Signature Contemporary Craft,Atlanta, GA

Hirotsune Tashima and TJ Erdahl, Obsidian Gallery,Tuscon, AZ

2012Mounted, Red Lodge Clay Center, Red Lodge, MT

Show of Heads, NCECA, Seattle Design Center,Seattle, WA

2011FRESH FIGURINES: A New Look at A Historic ArtForm, Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, MA

The Figure Has Soul, Lacoste Gallery, Concord, MA

2010Crafting Contemporary Art: Studio Craft inAppalachia, Slocumb Galleries, East Tennessee StateUniversity, Johnson City, TN

Figurative Association: The Human Form in Clay,Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN

National Ceramics Invitational Exhibition, The Mimiand Ian Rolland Art and Visual CommunicationCenter, School of Creative Arts, University of SaintFrancis, Fort Wayne, IN


Hearst Center for the Arts, Cedar Falls, IA

University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA

Waterloo Center for the Arts, Waterloo, IA


Garcia, Edith. Ceramics and the Human Figure.Cleveland, OH: American Ceramic Society, 2012.

Martin, Brigitte. Humor in Craft. Atglen, PA: SchifferPublishing, 2011.

tjerdahl.blogspot.com

HEATHER MAE ERICKSON

Born: Wilmington, DE, 1977

Lives: Boulder, CO

Education

M.F.A., Ceramics, Cranbrook Academy of Arts,Bloomfield Hills, MI, 2004

B.F.A., Crafts-Ceramics, Art Education, University ofthe Arts, Philadelphia, PA, 2000


2012Prototype, Red Lodge Clay Center, Red Lodge, MT

Rituals of the Maker, solo exhibition, Robert C. TurnerTeaching Fellowship, Cohn Gallery, Alfred, NY

2011Ceramics: Post-Digital Design, The AmericanMuseum of Ceramic Art, Los Angeles, CA

Extreme Dirt, Denver Art Museum, Denver, CO


Archie Bray Foundation, Helena, MT

The Museum of Arts and Design, New York, NY

Guldagergaard-International Ceramic ResearchCenter, Skælskør, Denmark

heathermaeerickson.com

MICHELLE ERICKSON

Born: Hampton, VA, 1960

Lives: Hampton, VA

Education

B.F.A., The College of William and Mary,Williamsburg, VA, 1982


2013Animal Stories, The Gardiner Museum, Toronto,Canada

In Dialogue With The Baroque, Galerie Handwerk,Schleissheim Palace, Oberschleissheim, Germany

New Blue and White, Museum of Fine Arts Boston,Boston, MA

2012Covet, Ferrin Gallery, Sculptural Objects andFunctional Art, Park Avenue Armory, New York, NY

Here & Now, Selection of New Acquisitions, SeattleArt Museum, Seattle, WA


2013 Artist Fellowship Award, Virginia Museum ofFine Arts, Richmond, VA

2013 Visiting Artist, Influence and History: Blue andWhite Chinese Ceramics, Arthur M. Sackler Museum,Cambridge, MA

2012 Artist in Residence, The Victoria & AlbertMuseum, London, England


Erickson, Michelle. “Spotlight: History Lesson.”Ceramics Monthly. September 2012. Print.

Pasori, Cedar. “Portfolio Review: Ceramic ArtistMichelle Erickson…” Complex Magazine Art &Design. April 2013.


The Carnegie Museum of Art, Pittsburgh, PA

The Museum of Arts and Design, New York, NY

Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, WA

Victoria & Albert Museum, London, England

The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, VA

michelleericksonceramics.com

LAUREN GALLASPY

Born: Livingston, TN, 1982

Lives: Salt Lake City, UT

Education

M.F.A., New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University, Alfred, NY, 2007

B.F.A., University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 2005

Emory University, Atlanta GA, 2001


2013NCECA Emerging Artist Exhibition, Houston ExpoCenter, Houston, TX

New Work on Clay and Paper, Blue Spiral Gallery,Asheville, NC

Restless II: A Mix, Cavin-Morris Gallery, New York, NY

Science as Muse, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA

2012Lauren Gallaspy: New Work, AKAR Gallery, Iowa City, IA

Fragile, Seattle Design Center, Seattle, WA

2011Contemporary Ceramics Exhibition, The Museum ofContemporary Art of Georgia, Atlanta, GA


2013 Emerging Artist Award, NCECA, Erie, CO

2013 Painters and Sculptors Grant, Joan MitchellFoundation, New York, NY

2010 Emerging Artist, Ceramics Monthly Magazine,Westerville, OH


Kopp, Linda. The Best of 500 Ceramics. Asheville, NC:Lark Books, 2012.

West, Christina. “Lauren Gallaspy’s Workmanship ofRisk.” Ceramics Art and Perception, No. 90, 2012:54–57. Print.


Porter-Price Collection of Figurative Ceramics,Mobile, AL

laurengallaspy.com

74

GERIT GRIMM

Born: Halle, Germany, 1973

Lives: Madison, WI

Education

M.F.A., New York State College of Ceramics at AlfredUniversity, Alfred, NY, 2004

M.A., University of Michigan School of Art & Design,Ann Arbor, MI, 2002

Diploma (M.F.A.), Burg Giebichenstein—University ofArt and Design, Halle, Germany 2001


2014Flow, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI

2013Alabama Clay Conference, Birmingham Museum ofArt, Birmingham, AL

Ceramic Top 40, Red Star Studios inside Belger CraneYard Studios, Kansas City, Missouri

Triumphzug, solo exhibition, Northern Clay Center,Minneapolis, MN

2012Beyond the Figurine, Contemporary Inspirations fromthe Museum’s Collection, solo exhibition, Long BeachMuseum of Art, Long Beach, CA

201167th Scripps Ceramic Annual: Making Fun,Williamson Gallery, Scripps College, Claremont, CA

Lirum Larum Loeffelstiel and other MiraculousStories, solo exhibition, Greenwich House Pottery,New York, NY

2010Fantasia in Clay, solo exhibition, Spokane FallsCommunity College, Spokane, WA

Hermaphrodites: Living in Two Worlds, WexlerGallery, Philadelphia, PA

2009Devine Decadence, solo exhibition, Lux Center for the Arts, Lincoln, NE


Jingdezhen Ceramics Museum, Jingdezhen, China

John Michael Kohler Arts Center, Sheboygen, WI

Oregon School of Arts & Crafts, Portland, Oregon,

Burg Giebichenstein – University of Art and Design,Halle, Germany

geritgrimm.com

CHUCK JOHNSON

Born: Beloit, WI, 1959

Lives: Venango, PA

Education

M.F.A., Studio Ceramics, University of Wisconsin,Madison, 1989

B.A., Studio Art, University of Wisconsin, Whitewater, 1982


201343rd Annual Ceramics Invitational, Crossman Gallery,University of Wisconsin, Whitewater, WI

Associated Artists of Pittsburgh Annual, CarnegieMuseum of Art, Pittsburgh, PA

2012Erie Spring Show, Erie Art Museum, Erie, PA

2011398 Exhibition, Meadville Council on the Arts,Heeshen Gallery, Meadville, PA

Associated Artists of Pittsburgh Annual, Society forContemporary Craft, Pittsburgh, PA

Erie Spring Show, Erie Art Museum, Erie, PA

2010National Invitational, Manchester Craftman’s Guild,Pittsburgh, PA


1999 Fellowship in Crafts, Pennsylvania Council onthe Arts, Harrisburg, PA

1994 Artist in Residence, Kohler Company, Kohler, WI


John Michael Kohler Art Center, Sheboygan, WI

McDonalds Corporation, Chicago, IL

Racine Art Museum, Racine, WI

ALEXA KUS

Born: St. Johns, MI, 1990

Lives: St. Johns, MI

Education

B.F.A., Ceramics; B.A., Organizational Communication;Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI, 2013


2013ArtPrize, Western Michigan University-Grand Rapids,Grand Rapids, MI

In-Between & Incomplete, solo exhibition, RichmondCenter for Visual Arts, Western Michigan University,Kalamazoo, MI

In Circles, Saniwax Gallery, Park Trades Center,Kalamazoo, MI

Multiemergence, DeVries Student Gallery, RichmondCenter for Visual Arts, Western Michigan University,Kalamazoo, MI

Print | Works, Juried Group Exhibition, DeVriesStudent Gallery, Richmond Center for Visual Arts,Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI

Re/Trans, South Kohrman Hall, Western MichiganUniversity, Kalamazoo, MI

2012Gwen Frostic School of Art/Western MichiganUniversity Trace + Gestures La EspIRA Espora –Rapaces/Traces, Palace of Culture, Granada,Nicaragua

Tangled in the Empty Spaces, solo exhibition, SouthKohrman Hall, Western Michigan University,Kalamazoo, MI


2013, 2012 Robert and Eleanor DeVries AnnualStudent Art Award, Gwen Frostic School of Art,Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, MI

2012 Angie Gayman Carmer Art Scholarship, GwenFrostic School of Art, Western Michigan University,Kalamazoo, MI

2012, 2011 School of Art Enrichment Grant, GwenFrostic School of Art, Western Michigan University,Kalamazoo, MI

alexakus.com

MARTINA LANTIN

Born: Montreal, Canada, 1974

Lives: Marlboro, Vermont

Education

M.F.A., Craft, Nova Scotia College of Art and Design,Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 2009

Erhvervs Uddannelses Center Syd, Sonderborg,Denmark, 1998

B.A., Art, Earlham College, Richmond IN, 1996

Studio Art Center International, Florence, Italy, 1995


2013Affiliation through Sequence, solo exhibition, FocusGallery, Penland, NC

Disaster Relief and Resiliance; Crimson LaurelGallery, Bakersville, NC

Further On, Whitefish Pottery, Whitefish, MT

2012International Cup Show, The Clay Studio of Missoula,Missoula, MT

Rendered Motives, Charlie Cummings Gallery,Gainsville, FL

2011Passage & Four Eyes, solo exhibition, BrattleboroMuseum and Art Center, Brattleboro, VT


2010 Individual Artist Fellowship, Tennessee ArtsCommission, Nashville, TN

2008 Beuys Memorial Scholarship, Nova ScotiaCollege of Art and Design, Halifax, Nova Scotia,Canada


Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN

The Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Halifax, Nova Scotia,Canada


Schultz, Katey. “Adding to the Story.” CeramicsMonthly, February 2014. Print.

Lark Crafts. 500 Prints on Clay. Asheville, NC: LarkBooks, 2013.

mlceramics.com

CALVIN MA

Born: San Francisco, CA, 1984

Lives: San Francisco, CA

Education

M.F.A., Sculpture, Academy of Art University, SanFrancisco, CA, 2012

B.A., Industrial Arts, San Francisco State University,San Francisco, CA, 2007


2013Affordable Art Fair, Abmeyer + Wood Fine Art, SeattleCenter Exhibition Hall, Seattle, WA

America’s ClayFest, Blue Line Arts Gallery, Roseville, CA

The Association of Clay and Glass Artists ofCalifornia National Clay & Glass Exhibition, City ofBrea Art Gallery, Brea, CA

Calvin Ma Homebodies, solo exhibition, RoscoeCeramic Gallery, Oakland, CA

SOFA Chicago, Navy Pier, Abmeyer + Wood Fine Art,Chicago, IL

20122nd Annual Workhouse Clay National, McGuireWoods Gallery, Lorton, VA

California Clay Competition, The Artery, Davis, CA

Calvin Ma Blending In, solo exhibition, The CanneryGallery, San Francisco, CA


2013 First Place, The Association of Clay and GlassArtists of California National Clay & Glass Exhibition,City of Brea Art Gallery, Brea, CA

2012 Best of Show, 2nd Annual Workhouse ClayNational, The Lorton Arts Foundation, Lorton, VA

2012 Clay Planet Award, California Clay Competition,The Artery, Davis, CA

Select Collections

Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento, CA

calvinmasculpts.com

75

LAUREN MABRY

Born: Cincinnati, OH, 1985

Lives: Philadelphia, PA

Education

M.F.A., Ceramics, University of Nebraska-Lincoln,Lincoln, NE, 2012

Post Baccalaureate, Ceramics, Colorado StateUniversity, Fort Collins, CO, 2008

B.F.A., Ceramics, Kansas City Art Institute, KansasCity, MO, 2007

Study Abroad, International Ceramics Studio,Kecskemèt, Hungary, 2006


2014

Flow, Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee, WI

2013Lauren Mabry at Heidmann Art Salon, solo exhibition,Heidmann Art Salon, Kansas City, MO

NCECA Biennial, Houston Center for ContemporaryCraft, Houston, TX (catalogue)

Running, solo exhibition, The Bemis Center forContemporary Art, Omaha, NE

Top 40: Leslie Ferrin, Red Star Studios inside BelgerCrane Yard Studios, Kansas City, MO

2012

Lauren Mabry—Cylinders, solo exhibition, NermanMuseum of Contemporary Art, Overland Park, KS

Transcendent Materiality, M.F.A. Thesis Exhibition,Eisentrager-Howard Gallery at University ofNebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE


2014Emerging Artist Award, NCECA, Erie, CO

2012Rudy Autio Grant for Creative Initiatives, The ArchieBray Foundation for Ceramic Arts, Helena, MT


The Archie Bray Foundation for Ceramic Arts, Helena, MT

Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, OverlandPark, KS

The Sheldon Museum of Art, Lincoln, NE

laurenmabry.com

JONATHAN MESS

Born: Columbus, OH, 1975

Lives: Jefferson, ME

Education

M.F.A., Ceramics, State University of New York atNew Paltz, New Paltz, NY, 2008

B.F.A. University of Montana-Missoula, Missoula, MT, 1998


2014Jonathan Mess: Reclaim, Jane Hartsook Gallery,Greenwich House Pottery, New York, NY

The Futures: The Next Generation of CeramicTrailblazers, Vessels Gallery, Boston, MA

2013Touch The Earth, Museum of Art, University of NewHampshire, Durham, NH

2012Center for Maine Contemporary Art BiennialExhibition 2012, Center for Maine Contemporary Art,Rockport, ME

2011Fertile Ground, Santa Fe Clay, Santa Fe, NM

Rooted In Place, Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft,Louisville, KY


2013 Grant, Ruth & Harold Chenven Foundation, New York, NY

2013 Emerging Artist Grant, St. Botolph ClubFoundation, Boston, MA

2004 Maine Arts Commission for Spreads, Governor’sConference on the Creative Economy, The Bates Mill,Lewiston, ME


Kany, Daniel, “Treat yourself to a fine Mess at a fineyoung gallery space,” Portland Press Herald/MaineSunday Telegram. March 24, 2013. Print.

Kany, Daniel, “Everyone should see this show,”Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram.February 27, 2011. Print.

Keyes, Bob. “Artist’s run of the mill is anything but,”Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram,May 2, 2004. Print.

jonathanmess.com

ANDREA MOON

Born: Oregon, OH, 1980

Lives: Red Lodge, MT

Education

M.F.A., Ceramics, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, 2009

B.F.A., 3-D Studies, Bowling Green State University,Bowling Green, OH, 2002


2013Conversance: A Sculptural Ceramics Exhibition, The Frontier Space, Missoula, MT

Going Big, Betz Gallery, Houston, TX

2012Celebrating 20: Building and Maintaining aCommunity Exhibition, Arrowmont School of Art andCraft, Sandra Blain Galleries, Gatlinburg, TN

Inspite of Ourselves, Red Lodge Clay Center, LoftGallery, Red Lodge, MT

Linear Perceptions, Valley City State University,Valley City, ND

2011Clay Come Lately, Associated Students of MontanaState University Exit Gallery, Montana StateUniversity-Bozeman, MT

Craftsmanship: Concept: Innovation, Red Lodge ClayCenter, Red Lodge, MT

2010Assemble: New Work by Andrea Moon, InghamChapman Gallery, University of New Mexico, Gallup,NM

Intricate Spaces, Brazos Gallery, Richland College,Dallas, TX


Bliecher, Stephen. Introduction to 3-D Foundations.London, UK: Laurence King Publishing, July 2013.

Mills, Maureen. Surface Design for Ceramics.Asheville, NC: Lark Books, 2008.

andreamoon.com

JULIE MOON

Born: Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 1973


Education


B.F.A., Ontario College of Art and Design, Toronto,Ontario, Canada, 2005


2014Bring Down the Mountain, solo exhibition, The ClayStudio, Philadelphia, PA

This is Not a Toy, co-curated by Pharrell Williams,Design Exchange, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

2012Lavish and Lush, Seattle Design Center, Seattle, WA(traveling)

RBC People’s Choice Emerging Artist AwardExhibition, The Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art,Toronto, Ontario, Canada

2011Annual Awards Exhibition, Ontario Craft CouncilGallery, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

New work, solo exhibition, Katzman Kamen Gallery,Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Pretty, Strange, solo exhibition, Narwhal Art Projects,Toronto, Ontario, Canada

2010DIY: A Revolution in Handicrafts, Society forContemporary Craft, Pittsburgh, PA

Pretty Please, MFA Thesis Exhibition, Fosdick NelsonGallery, Alfred, NY (traveling)

2009Man’s Ruin, Art Gallery of Mississauga, Mississauga,Ontario, Canada

Pulse Art Fair with Narwhal Art Projects, Miami, FL

Terra Nova, Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery,Waterloo, Ontario, Canada

juliemoon.ca

PETER MORGAN

Born: Abingdon, VA, 1978


Education


B.F.A., Ceramics, California College of Arts & Crafts,Oakland, CA, 2003

B.A., Fine Art, Roanoke College, Salem, VA, 2000


2013Animalia, Schein-Joseph International Museum ofCeramic Art, Alfred, NY

2012All Aboard, Evelyn Shapiro Foundation FellowshipExhibition, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA

Color Me Bad, William King Museum, Abingdon, VA

201167th Scripps Ceramic Annual: Making Fun, WilliamsGallery, Scripps College, Claremont, CA

Other Possible Titles, Grizzly Grizzly, Philadelphia, PA

2010Mish-Mash Strikes Back: Contemporary Ceramic Art,Noyes Museum of Art, Oceanville, NJ

Pretty Young Things, Lacoste Gallery, Concord, MA

Something’s Fishy, solo exhibition, The Arts Depot,Abingdon, VA

2009POP Craft, The Society of Arts and Crafts, Boston,MA


2012 Evelyn Shapiro Foundation Fellowship, The ClayStudio, Philadelphia, PA

2009, 2008 Summer Resident, Archie Bray Foundation,Helena, MT


Newhall, Edith. “Railroad, White and Blue.”Philadelphia Inquirer, October 14, 2012. Print.

Seckler, Judy. “Clay’s Good Humor.” Ceramics Artand Perception. Issue #87, 2012. Print.

petergmorgan.com

76

ERICA NICKOL

Born: Fort Thomas, KY, 1981

Lives: Pittsburgh, PA

Education

M.F.A., Ceramics, The University of the Arts,Philadelphia, PA, 2011

B.Arch., University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN,2005


2013Flat Floor Fiesta, solo exhibition, The Union Project,Pittsburgh, PA

2012Baum Gallery, M.F.A. Biennial, solo exhibition, BaumGallery, Conway, AR

The Space Between: M.F.A. Thesis Exhibit, BorowskyGallery, Philadelphia, PA

2011M.F.A. Juried Exhibition, First Street Gallery, NewYork, NY

2010Future Excavations, 224 Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

Works in Progress, Aronson Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

20092D or Not 2D, Aronson Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

Works in Progress, Rosenwald Wolf Gallery,Philadelphia, PA


2013 Artist in Residence, The Union Project,Pittsburgh, PA

2012 Visiting Artist, University of Central Arkansas,Conway, AR

ericanickol.com

SARA PARENT-RAMOS

Born: Washington, DC, 1982

Lives: Austin, TX

Education

M.F.A. Ceramics, New York State College of Ceramicsat Alfred University, Alfred, NY, 2013

M.Ed., Framingham State University, Framingham,MA, 2005

B.A. Psychology, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore,PA, 2003


2013NCECA National Student Juried Exhibition, GlassellSchool of Art, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX

2012Contemporary Clay Biennial, The Art Center ofWestern Colorado, Grand Junction, CO

201154th Annual Chautauqua Exhibition of ContemporaryArt, Logan Galleries, Chautauqua, NY

2006Filippo Scimeca E Suoi Studenti Di Brera, AriannaSatori Gallery, Mantua, Italy


2013 Thayer Fellowship Program/Patricia Kerr RossAward, State University of New York at Albany,Albany, NY

2013 Marge Brown Kalodner Award, The Clay Studio,Philadelphia, PA

2013 Cite Residency Fellowship, Cite International desArts, Paris, France

2013, 2011 Bernstein Fellowship, New York StateCollege of Ceramics at Alfred University, Alfred, NY

2012 Graduate Student Fellowship, NCECA: 46thAnnual Conference, Seattle, WA

2011 The Ruggiero Morigi/Vincenzo Palumbo Award,Italian Cultural Society, Washington, DC

2005–2006 William J. Fulbright InternationalEducational Exchange Scholarship, UniversitàMilano-Bicocca, Milano, Italy

saraparentramos.com

JESSICA PUTNAM-PHILLIPS

Born: Hanover, NH, 1973

Lives: Arlington, VT

Education

M.F.A., Visual Arts, Art Institute of Boston at LesleyUniversity, Boston, MA, 2013

B.A., Studio Art, University of North Carolina,Wilmington, NC, 2006


2013AIB MFA Graduate Exhibition, Lesley University,Boston, MA

Boston Young Contemporaries, CommonwealthGallery, Boston, MA

New England Collective IV, Galatea Gallery, Boston, MA

2012100 for 100 2012, Better Bennington Corporation,Bennington VT

Hot Pots, Fresh Paint III, North Adams Artists’ CoOpGallery, North Adams, MA

20111st Annual Membership Exhibition, Schacht GallerySaratoga Clay Arts Center, Saratoga, NY

Clay, Buttondown Gallery, Glens Falls, NY

Sacred Vessels and Vantages, North Adams Artists’CoOp Gallery, North Adams, MA

Summer in New England, solo exhibition, CanfieldGallery, Arlington, VT

2010100th Anniversary of the Scarab Vase Exhibition,Everson Museum, Syracuse, NY

Carved Vase Juried Exhibit, Clayscapes Gallery,Syracuse, NY

Panache, Southern Vermont Art Center, Manchester, VT


2013 Artist-in-Residence, Saratoga Clay Arts Center,Saratoga, NY

jessicaputnamphillips.com

KEVIN SNIPES

Born: Philadelphia, PA, 1963

Lives: Cleveland, OH

Education

M.F.A., Ceramics, University of Florida, School of Artand Art History, Gainesville, FL, 2003

B.F.A., Ceramics with Drawing Minor, ClevelandInstitute of Art, Cleveland, OH, 1994


2013Kevin Snipes: When in Rome, C.R.E.T.A. Rome, RomeItaly

2012Kevin Snipes, solo exhibition, Duane Reed Gallery, St. Louis, MO

2011Childhood Lost: Current Work by Kevin Snipes, solo exhibition, The Society of Arts and Crafts, Boston, MA

2010Kevin Snipes Constructed: A Handbuilt Review, solo exhibition, MudFire, Decatur, GA

2009Color Blind: Kevin Snipes, solo exhibition, Plinth,Denver, CO

Recent Ceramics: Kevin Snipes, solo exhibition,AKAR, Iowa City, IA

“What-Evaah!” Kevin Snipes, Taunt FellowshipExhibition, Archie Bray Foundation, Helena, MT, (catalogue)

2008China Shared Journey’s: American Art in China,Jingdezhen Ceramic Institute, Jingdezhen, China(traveling exhibition)

Voices, NCECA Invitational, Society for ContemporaryCraft, Pittsburgh, PA

Selected Grants & Awards

2008 Taunt Fellowship, Long Term Artist Residency,Archie Bray Foundation, Helena, MT

2006 Individual Excellence Award, Ohio Arts Council,Columbus, OH

2005 Guest Artist in Residence, The Clay Studio,Philadelphia, PA

kevinsnipes.com

LEE SOMERS

Born: Durango, CO, 1977

Lives: Montevallo, AL

Education

M.F.A., Ceramics, New York State College ofCeramics at Alfred University, Alfred, NY, 2006

B.F.A., Ceramics & Glass, Alfred University School ofArt & Design, Alfred, NY, 1999


2013New Faculty Exhibit, University of Montevallo Art Gallery, Montevallo, AL

Some Places I’ve Been, solo exhibition, University ofNorth Alabama Art Gallery, Florence, AL

2012Rescue and Redemption, Fort Collins Lincoln Center,Fort Collins, CO

Tiempo Colorado-ART 342 Residents’ Exhibition,Rendition Gallery, Fort Collins, CO

To Wander Out of Place, Seattle, Design Center,Seattle, WA

2011Ceramic Experiments with Contemporary Nomads,Shanghai Duolun Museum of Modern Art, Shanghai,China

2010Conversations, Collaborations and Coincidences,Snyderman Works Gallery, Philadelphia, PA

2008–2009Sanlun Yishu, Interactive Public Art Project, Beijing, China

2008China-China, Shanghai Craft Museum, Shanghai, China


2012 Artist in Residence, Art 342, Fort Collins, CO

2008 Grant, Sanlun Yishu Project, Blackrock ArtsFoundation, San Francisco, CA

77

MILES SPADONE

Born: Kennebunk, ME, 1987

Lives: Portland, ME

Education

B.F.A., Ceramics and Furniture Design, Maine Collegeof Art, Portland, ME, 2013

Selected Exhibitions:

2013Boomerang, June Fitzpatrick Gallery, Portland, ME

Open, Corey Daniels Gallery, Wells, ME

Solo Show, Engine Gallery, Biddeford, ME

2012B.F.A. Show, Maine College of Art, Portland, ME

Ceramic Showcase, Maine College of Art, Portland,ME

Free For All, Space Gallery, Portland, ME

Merit Show, Maine College of Art, Portland, ME

2011B.F.A. Show, Maine College of Art, Portland, ME

Navigation (Chime), North Dakota Museum of Art,Grand Forks, ND

Up and Comers, Oregon College of Art and Craft,Portland, OR

LINDA SWANSON

Born: Los Angeles, CA, 1967

Lives: Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Education

M.F.A., Ceramics, New York State College ofCeramics at Alfred University, Alfred, NY, 2005

B.F.A., Ceramics, California State University, LongBeach, CA, 2002

Training in Ceramics, Tekisui Bijutsukan Workshop,Ashiya, Japan, 1990–1994

B.A., Art History, University of California, SantaBarbara, CA, 1990


2014Flow, installation, Milwaukee Art Museum,Milwaukee, WI

2013Elemental, installation, The Northern Clay Center,Minneapolis, MN

New Directions, Lacoste Gallery, Concord, MA

SOFA Chicago, Lacoste Gallery, Navy Pier, Chicago, IL

2012Earth & Alchemy, Massart, Boston, MA

Resolutions, solo exhibition, Luce Gallery at CornellCollege, Mt Vernon, IA

2011InFormation, solo exhibition, McClure Gallery,Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Prima Materia, solo exhibition, Florida Aquarium,Tampa, FL

INFESTATION, public installation, Parcs CanadaLachine Canal National Historic Site, Montreal,Quebec, Canada

2007Reorientations, solo exhibition, Galerie Maria Lund,Paris, France


2013Emerging Artist Award, NCECA, Erie, CO


2014Frangos, Naomi “Palpable Vision: The Work ofContemporary Ceramic Artist Linda Swanson.”Ceramics Art & Perception, March 2014, No. 95. Print.

lindaswansonstudio.com

RYAN TAKABA

Born: Honolulu, HI, 1976

Lives: San Antonio, TX

Education

M.F.A., Crafts/Ceramics, Kent State University, Kent, OH, 2005

B.F.A., Ceramics, University of Hawai`i, Honolulu, HI, 2000


2011Commonplace: Ryan Takaba & Barbara Smith,Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, Houston, TX

Fresh Figurines: A New Look at an Historic Form,Fuller Craft Museum, Brockton, MA

2010Bellwether 2010, Bellevue, WA

Earth Matters, NCECA Invitational, Moore College ofArt, Philadelphia, PA (catalogue)

Relative Distances, University of Texas-San Antonio,San Antonio, TX (catalogue)

Ryan Takaba: New Work, The Clay Studio,Philadelphia, PA


2010 Emerging Artist, Ceramics Monthly, Westerville, OH

2009 Chalk it Up Featured Artist, Artpace, San Antonio, TX

2007 Teaching Assistant, Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Deer Isle, ME

Selected Publications“Economic Impact and Significance.” San Antonio

Creative Industry 2011 Report. 5. Print

Foritano, Jim. “The Figure Explored: ContemporaryCeramic Sculpture.” Art Scope: New England’sCulture Magazine. Sept/Oct 2006: 30. Print.

“Ryan Takaba, Emerging Artist 2010.” CeramicsMonthly. May 2010: 40. Print.

ryantakaba.com

IAN F. THOMAS

Born: Butler, PA, 1976

Lives: Slippery Rock, PA

Education

M.F.A., Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, 2006

B.F.A., Slippery Rock University, Slippery Rock, PA, 1999

Academy of Bratislava, Slovakia, 1997


2013Filtered Permeability, Barr Gallery, Indiana UniversitySoutheast, New Albany, IN

Milk Money, solo exhibition, 4Most Gallery, Universityof Florida, Gainesville, FL

2012Push Play, NCECA Invitational, Bellevue ArtsMuseum, Seattle, WA

Sculpture in So Many Words, Nasher SculptureCenter, Dallas, TX

Translatory Motion, Pottery Workshop Gallery,Jingdezhen, Shanghai, China

Yesterday’s Tomorrow, Spring Street Gallery,Houston, TX

2011Co-Modify, Nave Museum, Victoria, TX

Response with Ben Lewis, Tjaden Gallery, CornellUniversity, Ithaca, NY

The ReUse and Resist Project, #24 Bialik Square, TelAviv, Israel


Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas, TX

The Pottery Workshop, Jingdezhen, China


500 Prints on Clay: An Inspiring Collection of ImageTransfer Work. Asheville, NC: Lark Crafts, 2013.

Copeland, Colette. “Incidental Transformations,”Ceramics: Art and Perception. No.91, 2013. Print.

ianfthomas.com

SHALENE VALENZUELA

Born: Santa Barbara, CA, 1972

Lives: Missoula, MT

Education

M.F.A., Ceramics, California College of Arts & Crafts,Oakland, CA, 1997

B.A., Art Practice, University of California at Berkeley,Berkeley, CA, 1994


2014Alterations, solo exhibition, Texas Women’sUniversity, Denton, TX

2013Top 40: Leslie Ferrin, Red Star Studios inside BelgerCrane Yard Studios, Kansas City, MO

Herstory, Reed Smith Gallery, The Clay Studio,Philadelphia, PA

2012Finding Place, Seattle Design Center, Seattle, WA

Following Patterns, solo exhibition, Missoula ArtMuseum, Missoula, MT

2011A Recipe for Disaster, solo exhibition, Plinth, Denver,CO

No Place Like Home, solo exhibition, Paris GibsonSquare Museum, Great Falls, MT

Tidal Forces: The Next Wave, NCECA BiennialExhibition, Tampa Museum of Art, Tampa, FL

2009Shalene Valenzuela: New Work, John NatsoulasCenter for the Arts, Davis, CA

2008Trying to Blend In, solo exhibition, The Clay Studio ofMissoula, Missoula, MT

2007(Dys)Functional, solo exhibition, Tinlark Gallery, LosAngeles, CA

Selected Awards

2013 Recipient Artist's Innovation Award in Ceramics,Montana Arts Council, Helena, MT

shalene.com

78

VALERIE ZIMANY

Born: Morristown, NJ, 1973

Lives: Central, SC

Education

M.F.A., Crafts/Ceramics, Kanazawa College of Art,Kanazawa, Japan, 2002

B.F.A., Crafts/Ceramics, University of the Arts,Philadelphia, PA, 1995


2013Earth Moves: Shifts in Ceramic Art and Design,NCECA Juried Exhibition, Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities, Arvada, CO

Valerie Zimany: Porcelain Fever, solo exhibition,Gallery M2, Houston, TX

2012To Wander Out of Place: Artists and Asia, SeattleDesign Center, Seattle, WA

20119th International Ceramics Competition Mino,International Ceramics Park, Tajimi, Japan

20095th World Ceramic Biennale Korea (CEBIKO), IcheonWorld Ceramic Center, Icheon, Korea

2007Mergence and Abundance: Alternating Personalitiesin Clay, two-person exhibition, Front Street Gallery,Urban Institute of Contemporary Art, Grand Rapids, MI


2011 Fulbright Hays Faculty Research Abroad Grantawarded for Porcelain Fever: Contemporary KutaniPractitioners and Processes, U.S. Department ofEducation, Kanazawa College of Art, Kanazawa,Japan

2008 Emerging Artist, Ceramics Monthly, Westerville, OH


Dillingham, Dawn, ed. 500 Prints on Clay. Ashville,NC: Lark Publishing, 2013.

Seckler, Judy. “To Wander Out of Place: Artists andAsia.” Ceramics Art & Perception. March 2013. Print.


American Museum of Ceramic Art, Pomona, CA

Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts, Helena, MT

Icheon World Ceramic Museum, Icheon, Korea

valeriezimany.com

LILLY ZUCKERMAN

Born: Pittsburgh, PA, 1987�

Lives: Missoula, MT

Education

B.F.A., Fine Arts, Ceramics, The Pennsylvania StateUniversity, University Park, PA, 2010


2013Duets, The Clay Arts Center, Port Chester, NY

Gesturing into Consciousness, College of Arts andArchitecture’s 50th Anniversary Alumni Exhibition,Edwin W. Zoller Gallery, The Pennsylvania StateUniversity, University Park, PA

Object Focus the Bowl Part 2 Engage + Use, TheMuseum of Contemporary Craft, Portland, OR

Red Lodge Clay Center Juried National II, Red LodgeClay Center, Red Lodge, MT

2012Pots at Rest, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA

Winter Crop, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA

Uncommon Ground, Trax Gallery, Berkley, CA

Art-Stream, Nomadic Gallery, Seattle, WA

2011Artists to the Edge and Resident Artist Exhibition,Warehouse Gallery, The Archie Bray Foundation,Helena, MT


“Emerging Artists.” Ceramics Monthly. Volume 60,Number 5, May 2012. Print.

Hulch, Kevin. The Art of Contemporary Pottery. Iola,WI: Krause Publications, 2013. PDF e-book.

Marquis, Andrea. “Pots at Rest.” Ceramics Monthly.January 2013, 54-58. Print.

Loder, Claire. The New Ceramics: Sculpting andHandbuilding. London, UK: A&C Black Publishers,2013.

lillyzuckerman.com

We acknowledge with appreciation the following staff and volunteers for their contributions to Transformation 9: Contemporary Works in Ceramics:

Janet McCallExecutive Director

Kate LydonDirector of Exhibitions

Natalie Sweet Exhibitions Apprentice

Rachel SaulEducation Coordinator

Samantha SkeltonStudio Apprentice

Norah GuignonMarketing Manager

Stephanie Selya2013 Fine Intern

Meghan HippleStore Intern

Pamela QuatchakDirector of Development

Sara RyanDevelopment Assistant-Individual Giving

Yu-San ChengExecutive Assistant/Financial Coordinator

Megan CrowellStore Sales Manager

Marguerette SokolSales Associate

Andrew SokolSales Associate

ISBN 978-0-9960989-0-8

Design: Paul Schifino, schifinodesign.com

Printing: Print Tech, printtechofwpa.com

Society for Contemporary Craft

2100 Smallman Street

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222

www.comtemporarycraft.org

412.261.7003

transformation 9: contemporary works in ceramics

Documents

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raphael fund

catherine raphael

ceramicsthe elizabeth

late margaret raphael

craft media

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