job opportunity – The Clay Studio

The Clay Studio is looking for a summer grad intern to complete a
10-week paid Fels internship that will involve updating the records for
our permanent collection. We’ll be photographing, researching and
tagging works that have entered the collection since 2006–mainly from
International Guest Artists and Clay Studio Residents.

The Clay Studio is a non-profit educational arts organization dedicated to the promotion and development of the ceramic
arts and the work of new clay artists. As Philadelphia’s only arts
organization dedicated exclusively to the ceramic arts, our mission is
to provide diverse audiences with a unique learning environment in which
to experience the ceramic arts.

The Clay Studio seeks a
graduate intern to research, inventory and catalog our relatively small
permanent collection of ceramic artwork for uploading onto The Clay
Studio’s database and website. Responsibilities will include producing
condition reports for each art object, tagging and photographing each
piece, conducting research on the artist, provenance and significance of
each work, and transporting research files and images into The Clay
Studio’s database for publishing online. This project will help The Clay
Studio develop an accurate catalog of the permanent collection and will
develop an online educational tool for sharing the collection with the
public.

The successful applicant will be a graduate student
interested in the arts, archives, and research. A general knowledge of
the field of ceramic art is preferred but not required. Strong
organizational skills and intellectual curiosity are ultimately the most
important factors in the success of the project. To apply, please
submit a one page cover letter and resume to Garth Johnson at
[email protected] with “Fels Intern Application” in the subject
line.

This 10-week internship is to be completed in summer
2014. The Samuel S. Fels Fund has provided a $6000 stipend for the
successful completion of the project.

www.theclaystudio.org

call for entry: SPOON ME! @Medalta


This year we thought we’d switch things up. It all started in September 2013 with our SExSE invitational residency (South East Alberta by South East Asia) and the talented Vipoo Srivilasa.
Vipoo challenged all of our residents to a spoon competition and we
were all hooked. The spoons created during this competition travelled
with Vipoo’s work to the Ceramic Top 40 exhibition at Red Star Studios
and are now off to Boston with his project OBJECT:SPOON.

As all this was happening we started seeing spoons everywhere. With
this object – that has gone in and out of fashion – making a serious
comeback in studio ceramics, we decided to extend the challenge to our
international invitational exhibition. Spoons are the New Cup!

DETAILS & IMPORTANT DATES

  • Application Deadline: Monday, June 30, 2014
  • Exhibition: September 1 – November 29, 2014
  • Email Notification Begins July 15th, 2014
  • Accepted Work Due August 15th, 2014
  • Up to five entries accepted
  • Submission Fee: $20.00 (CAD)
  • All artists payments & sold/unsold work will be shipped in December 2014
  • Opening reception TBA

So this year send us your SPOONS, your ladles, your scoops and your
servers. If a spoon is the feature of an object such as a soup tureen or
a larger set, send us your soup tureens and sets too. We want to see
what you come up with.

Not working in ceramics? No problem – this year we are opening it up
to our friends in other craft mediums too … clay, metal, glass, wood
& fibre.

We are very happy to be working again with the talented Musing About Mud
blogger and Canadian ceramic rockstar, Carole Epp. She will have the
hard task of Juror, narrowing down the entries and selecting the prize
winners.

Speaking of Prizes! Last year we partnered up with Medicine Hat
College, and together we gave away a free month long residency at
Medalta with accommodation to the Grand Prize winner KyoungHwa Oh. We can’t wait to have her in the studios this June … she makes some pretty great spoons too.

This year we will have purchases prizes for the Medalta contemporary
collection and several selected artists will be featured on the Musing
About Mud blog. For last years featured artists & Carole’s fabulous
coverage of the previous years show click here.

We’re cooking up even more prizes this year, we’ll update you here as
soon as they’re cemented.. but we’re definitely offering a June 2015
residency at Medalta as our grand prize!

The entry can be done completely online below by uploading your images and information.

JUROR

Carole Epp is likely best known for her work on Musing About Mud,
(www.musingaboutmud.blogspot.com) an online resource of ceramic related
content. She is a graduate of the Australian National University,
produces two distinct lines of functional and sculptural ceramics,
exhibits internationally, and at the end of the day is a mother to two
charming young boys.

ELIGIBILITY

The exhibition is open to all international artists. Work can be
either functional or sculptural so long as it addresses the idea of “the
spoon”. Please submit only original work that has been completed in the
last two years.

You can submit up to five entries, with the $20 (CAD entry fee).
Entries could include 5 separate spoons, or any of the entries can be a
set.  If the entry is to be juried as a set, please put set in one
photo, all sets will be priced as a set and sold together.

Front and back views are not required, but if you feel it’s necessary
to properly convey your piece using a front and back view then using a
side by side shot as one of the entries/uploads is recommended.

Work must not exceed 2 feet in width.

All work must be properly prepared for exhibition, be durable enough
to survive shipping and display, and come with exhibition/assemblage
instructions and hardware if applicable.

Medalta reserves the right to reject any work that is not suitably
prepared for exhibition or that differs from the original submission.
Medalta reserves the right to use images and photographs of accepted
works for the purposes of promotional materials, including postcards,
calendars, local media as well as online promotion.

SHIPMENT OF WORK

All artwork must arrive at Medalta no later than August 15th. Artists
are responsible for all shipping and insurance costs to the gallery.

SALES

  • All entries must be for sale, (priced in Canadian Dollars).
  • Medalta will receive a commission of 40% on all sales.
  • All work will be available online.

AWARDS & PRIZES

GRAND PRIZE! One lucky artist will win one month in Medalta’s June 2015 residency!
We’re cooking up even more prizes this year, we’ll update you here (and Facebook & Twitter) as soon as we have more to report. So check back often!
Purchases Prizes will be awarded for Medalta’s Contemporary Ceramics collection.
Several of the selected artists will be featured on the Musing About Mud blog.
Awards will be determined by the juror and announced at the opening reception. Artists do not need to be present to win.

Visit their website to apply.
medalta.org/spoonme

Any questions regarding this show can be directed to Medalta’s fabulous Exhibitions & Collections Curator …
Jenna Stanton
[email protected]
Curator, Exhibitions & Collections
Medalta
Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada

residency opportunity – Workshop (Calgary)

The Workshop is a community based creative initiative
located in Altador. It is a small open space that allows for multipurpose
programming. Ranging from children’s art classes to cultural focused adult
workshops the space attempts to be responsive to the community’s needs.
Although the focus is primary local the Workshop strives to be relevant within
the larger contemporary arts and crafts community.  In addition to educational programming the Workshop
has created a ceramic residency program that will allow for an artist to have
studio and facility access. The Workshop is also scheduling regular short term exhibitions.
It will exhibit progressive cultural based material and ideas. Ultimately, the
Workshop is a creative community center that is designed to both reflect and
inform its social context.

Ceramic Residency Program

The workshop is looking for a ceramic artist to fill its first residency program.
The selected artist will have free access to studio space and ceramic facilities.
In exchange for access they will help run the kiln and assist with technical question during certain workshops.
In addition, the artist will have the opportunity to teach workshops and class throughout the duration of the residency.

Interested applicants should submit the following via email:

CV
Statement of interest
Images of work
Link to website

Contact
Phone: 403.401.7890
E-mail: [email protected]
4814 16th Street SW
Calgary AB

emerging artist: Jennifer Hansen Gard


My interest lies in medicinal herbs and plants that directly
affect the body. I am interested in using the ceramic vessel the explore
ethnobotony, which is defined as the study of “the relationship between people
and plants including various aspects of how plants are used for food . . . and
medicine” (Rai, Acharya, & Rios, 2011). As an artist I am questioning what
is the role of the plant in today’s society? What connects plants and people? I
am working to explore the relationship between plants and people through the
ceramic vessel.
I have set out to better understand specific plants through
researching the growing, harvest, and consumption. I supplement my ceramics
studio practice with a growing practice that includes an Herb Garden and greenhouse growing. I considered specific plant
needs for example companion planting and root structure in designing and
building growing containers. I used my hands to transform the clay through pushing,
pinching, and pulling creating vessels of containment.
 
At the same time I am growing, harvesting, and creating vessels
specific for the herbs I am also integrating vessels into my daily life. I
recently created a dish set that I used for every meal for a 30 days period. I
was thinking about the throw away culture we live in and how disconnected it is
from the growing practice that I am so deeply involved in. I question shouldn’t
what we eat and drink from have more value than trash? I performed the 30 Days
Project Part II later called The Dish Set
Challenge I
through the month of November with a dish set that includes a
cup, bowl, and plate. I used it for every meal recording through photos and
updates on my blog. In December, I create The
Dish Set Challenge II
with my husband Forrest where we used a connected dish
set plate, bowl and cup for every meal for one week. You can view both projects
at  gardclaystudios.blogspot.com

The work displayed in Coeval
as a product of my growing practice and includes turmeric, cayenne, and
moonseeds held in balance with a social practice. The Dish Set Challenge III will take place during the duration of
the exhibition from January 10th through February 7th,
2014. The project involves the help of five participants Belenda
Flucker, Aurelio Diaz, Keith Karchella. Violeta Chinni, and Jenny Lucas
Kaufman. These five participants and myself will be competing a 28 day Dish Set Challenge. The participants
will be presented with a handmade dish set made specifically for them. They
will eat and drink from it every day during the course of the exhibition. Each
day the participants will post on a group blog recording meals and reflecting
as they experience the project. The project
will commence at the opening reception with a meal that I prepare from 100%
local food I have collected from farms surrounding Mansfield. You can view the
projects daily progress at