Vitrify Alcorso Ceramic Award 2012

Ben Richardson. Instill 2 – Light and shade. Woodfired stoneware 2010.

The Award

The Vitrify Alcorso Ceramic Award is a $10,000 annual prize for ceramic art. Established in 2011, the award is open to artists nationally and is non-acquisitive. Four artists are selected from the entries received to develop work for a group exhibition of ceramic art at a commercial gallery. From these four artists, one is selected to receive the prize money. Selection of finalists and the judging of the award is made by a panel of expert judges. Vitrify is presented by the Alcorso Foundation, a not-for profit cultural organisation with its home in Tasmania. For more information about the Foundation and its initiatives, please visit the website www.alcorso.org.au. Vitrify 2012 will be hosted by the JamFactory in Adelaide. The exhibition of finalists’ work will open on Friday, September 7 2012 and continue until October 19 2012. Applications to enter open on Friday August 12 2011 and close 5pm Friday October 7 2011. Judges for the 2012 award will be Professor Noel Frankham, Head of the Hobart School of Art; Prue Venables, highly regarded ceramicist and Creative Director of the Ceramics Studio at the JamFactory; and Robert Reason, Curator of European and Australian Decorative Arts, the Art Gallery of South Australia.Please visit their website for all the details.

Upcoming NCECA deadlines

Seattle Exhibitions and Programming – 2012

Emerging Artists: DEADLINE August 30, 2011

The NCECA Emerging Artist program is intended to give early career artists, who show exceptional promise, the opportunity to present their work to an international audience at the NCECA Annual Conference. http://www.nceca.net/static/exhibitions_emerging_info.php National Student Juried Exhibition: DEADLINE September 29, 2011

The NCECA 2012 NSJE is open to all full-time undergraduate, graduate and post-baccalaureate students (as defined by their home institution) enrolled in the United States of America. Eligible students must be working at the time of submittal towards a degree or be a post-baccalaureate in art. http://www.nceca.net/static/NSJE2012.php Topical Discussions/NCECA Connections: DEADLINE October 3, 2011

NCECA is seeking a diverse group of discussion leaders from its membership; Students (Undergraduate, Post-Bacc, Graduate), Studio Artists, Educators (K-12, Community College, University), Gallerists, Curators, etc. are all encouraged to apply! Topical Discussions and NCECA Connections are the break-out sessions on Thursday and Friday afternoons during conference. http://www.nceca.net/static/conference_topics.php Weather or Not: DEADLINE October 1, 2011

Seattle artist and Host Committee Member, Charlie Bigger is excited to announce Weather or Not, a site-specific, outdoor installation opportunity at South Lake Union Park in Seattle to coincide with the 2012 conference. Weather-Or-Not presents an opportunity for students and teachers to explore the EDGY artistic avenue of collaborative installations affected by time and weather. E-mail a one-page description of your project to [email protected]. Additional information and collaborative proposal requirements are detailed in Charlie’s downloadable letter here: http://nceca.net/static/documents/Weather-or-Not.doc. Charlie shares that his excitement and imagination around this event is sparked by two elements. “The first is the theme…the theme for NCECA 2012…”On The Edge” immediately grabbed my attention and fired up my imagination. Secondly, being interested in the history of the studio movement in Ceramics, a concern among my peers in the ceramics world deals with a perception that younger clay workers seem to be less numerous than a few years back. I am looking forward to being able, through NCECA, to provide this great venue to share and explore new ideas, and experiments with up and coming young ceramics students that might not otherwise realize that NCECA is also for them, not just established studio artists of my generation.” On-Site Conference Liaison, Marge Levy writes that through Weather-Or-Not, “we hope to capture the inclinations of those who are in a period of their artistic lives where they are thinking about process, objects, ephemeral notions, and having fun with it all and with each other. ”

Houston Exhibitions – 2013

Concurrent, Independent Exhibitions: DEADLINE November 4, 2011

NCECA will act as a jury and an intermediary in selecting exhibitions that will enhance the conference experience and bring high quality ceramic exhibitions to the hosting community. The On-site Liaisons will identify host venues and work with them in selecting exhibitions suited to the mission and audience and facilities.

http://www.nceca.net/static/conference_concurrent_info.php

Awards and Board Nominations – 2012

2012 Awards: DEADLINE September 30, 2011 The membership of the NCECA Nominations Committee has been recently re-constituted for 2012 to include President-Elect, Patsy Cox (Chair); Director-at-Large, Sam Chung; Past-President

Robert Harrison and Fellow of the Council, Susan Filley. Nominations for Fellows of the Council, Honorary Members, Excellence in Teaching and Outstanding Achievement are now being accepted. The deadline for receipt of nominations packets is September 30, 2011 for awards to be presented at the 2012 Conference in Seattle.

Visit: http://www.nceca.net/static/about_awards.php to view the details on submission materials, awards descriptions and eligibility requirements. Board Terms to begin in 2012 The NCECA Nominations Committee is also responsible for identifying qualified candidates for positions on the Board of Directors. By September 30, 2011, the Nominations Committee anticipates identifying two qualified candidates each for the role of President-Elect and Director-at-Large positions on the Board of Directors. Read more about the responsibilities and requirements of these roles at: http://nceca.net/static/about_board_candidates.php. Board candidates for nominations will be considered by the Board of Directors at its October 2011 meeting in Houston. Information about the Board’s Nominees will be posted on NCECA’s website following this meeting. Additional nominations for one Director-at-Large position and one Student Director-at-Large position will also be accepted at the First Members’ Business Meeting tentatively scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Thursday, March 29 during the 2012 conference in Seattle. Following brief speeches by the candidates, elections will take place at the Second Members’ Business meeting on Saturday, March 31, 2012, the final day of the Seattle conference (time TBD).

China Kaolin Grand Prix for International Ceramic Art

In order to propagate the profound Chinese ceramic culture, to promote international exchanges in ceramics and to urge forward the prosperity and development of the ceramic art, the 2011 (1ST) China Kaolin Grand Prix for International Ceramic Art, which has been approved by both the Ministry of Culture of the People’s Republic of China and the China National Light Industry Council, will be held from Oct. 18 to Oct. 22 at the Great China Museum, Jingdezhen. The Organizing Committee most warmly welcome artists from all over the world and those involved in the domestic ceramic industry to participate at this Grand Prix. Here follows some necessary information: (1) Endorsing Organization: Ministry of Culture of the People’s Republic of China (2) Hosting Organization: China National Light Industry Council (3) Co-sponsoring Organizations: Chinese Arts and Crafts Institute, China Ceramics Industrial Association and International Academy of Ceramics (IAC) with the UNESCO (4) Organizers: Chinese National Academy of Arts, Department of Culture of Jiangxi Province, and Jingdezhen Municipal People’s Government (5) Jury committee: The jury committee consists of well-known Chinese and overseas professors, ceramic artists, experts and scholars (overseas members account for no less than 1/3). The selection of committee members will be co-determined by the endorsing, hosting, co-sponsoring and sponsoring organizations. Besides, each member may put a work for independent exhibition which will not compete for awards. (6) Awards: The awards are divided into two categories: awards for art ceramics and awards for industrial ceramics. In each category, an Outstanding Award and a Gold (Silver, Bronze) Award will be given, subject to the final decisions of the jury committee. All the artists whose works enter the second round (pass the preliminary screening) will be granted a certificate and all the artists whose works enter the final round will be presented a monetary award and a certificate. Amounts of (pre-tax) awards are as follows: ① Outstanding Award (ONE): 20,000$ ② Gold Award (ONE): 10,000$ ③ Silver Award (TWO): 8,000$ (per winner) ④ Bronze Award (THREE): 5,000$ (per winner) ⑤ Special Award (SIX): 5,000$ (per winner) ⑥ Honorable Mention Award (TWO HUNDRED): 300 $ (per winner) (7) This exhibition charges no fees whatsoever. By submitting images of their works (by post or email) and a completed application form (by post, email or fax), participants can enter the first round for preliminary screening; those artists whose works are selected after the preliminary screening will be notified in good time by the Organizing Committee and should send their works to the Organizing Committee Office as soon as possible. (8) Application: Ceramic-producing regions and universities can apply via local governments or university organizers. Individuals can also apply by contacting the Organizing Committee Office directly. Applicants can either download application forms on the official website (see back cover) or request application forms from the Organizing Committee Office. (9) Requirements: 1. For preliminary screening, participants should send images (300 dpi in jpg format) of their works (by post or email) and a completed application form (by post, email or fax) to the Organizing Committee Office. Those whose works do not pass the preliminary screening will not get the images of their works returned and will not be notified otherwise. 2. Participants whose works have passed preliminary screening should send their works to the Organizing Committee Office upon being notified by email or phone (shipping costs will be assumed by the participants themselves). According to the Organizing Committee, participants whose works do not make it to the final round will get their works returned to them, or, if willing, can donate their works to the Jingdezhen Ceramics Museum and will be thus issued certificates for collection by the Organizing Committee. 3. The deadline is August 15, 2011 (postmark, email or fax date). 4. Multi-angle (front, back and side) images that can accurately reflect the works is a prerequisite. The maximum dimension of the work should be limited to 150 cm and the weight 150 kg. Participants should prepare a safe and convenient packing case for their works; any damages incurred in transportation will be borne by the participants themselves.  (10) Instructions: 1. Participants who are expected to send their works should determine the insured value of their works; insurance expenses will be borne by themselves. 2. All nominated and award-winning works will be archived at the Jingdezhen Ceramics Museum and a certificate for collection will be thus issued by the Organizing Committee of the 2011 (1ST) China Kaolin Grand Prix for International Ceramic Art. 3. The organizers have the right to study, photograph, videotape, publish and publicize the works. 4. Any participants whose works are suspected of plagiarism will be denied the qualification for competition or exhibition; the legal obligation incurred herein will be enforced against the very author himself.  5. All participants whose works pass the preliminary screening will be granted a certificate by the Organizing Committee of the 2011 (1ST) China Kaolin Grand Prix for International Ceramic Art. 6. Certificates and awards will be granted to authors of the nominated and award-winning works by the Organizing Committee of the 2011 (1ST) China Kaolin Grand Prix for International Ceramic Art. (11) Contact Us: Address: the Executive Committee Office of China Jingdezhen International Ceramic Fair, No.1 Shihong Road, Jingdezhen City, China Post code: 333000 Telephone: 0798—8561961 Fax: 0798—8562779 Persons for contact: Jiang Tao /Ye Qian Email: [email protected] [email protected] Download forms on websites: www.chinaicf.cn www.chinaciqi.com

Job Posting – Bison Australia in Canberra

Bison Australia is looking for an enthusiastic team member for our production studio in Canberra ACT. We are an established national company who make thrown, slip cast, and pressed forms in our collection. We are seeking someone who would enjoy the challenge of a full-time position as a production assistant. Duties would cover glazing, packing kilns, maintaining stock control and associated responsibilities. This could be a great introduction to a career in ceramics and the opportunity to work with an Australian designed and owned brand. If you feel this would be of interest to you please send an email to [email protected] attention Brian. Brian TunksCreative Director/DesignerBison AustraliaT: +61 2 6257 7255F: +61 2 6257 7004www.bisonhome.com