movie day: Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists

by | Sep 9, 2020 | Uncategorized

For portfolio purposes only, this is a video walk through of Hearts of Our People: Native Women Artists, an exhibition curated by the Minneapolis Institute of Art. Ana Taylor for Minneapolis Institute of Art // © 2020 Minneapolis Institute of Art

“Women have long been the creative force behind Native art. Presented in close cooperation with top Native women artists and scholars, this first major exhibition of artwork by Native women honors the achievements of over 115 artists from the United States and Canada spanning over 1,000 years. Their triumphs—from pottery, textiles, and painting, to photographic portraits, to a gleaming El Camino—show astonishing innovation and technical mastery.”

 

a site to see: Black Craftspeople Digital Archive

by | Sep 8, 2020 | Uncategorized

“The valued decorative arts, architecture, and handcrafts of the early American South depended on African American hands, a truth highlighted by folklorist John Michael Vlach in the seminal exhibit, “The Afro-American Tradition in Decorative Arts” at the Cleveland Museum of Art in 1978. Yet, some forty years later, too few historians, museum curators, and certainly visitors to the public history institutions of the United States are presented with that truth. The Black Craftspeople Digital Archive (BCDA) seeks to showcase black craftsmanship while bringing to light the stories of black craftspeople.”

blackcraftspeople.org

Lots of online workshops available through Pot LA

by | Aug 28, 2020 | Uncategorized

POT is a full-service pottery studio owned and operated by people of color, a majority of which are women and Los Angeles natives. We are devoted to celebrating the cultures and communities surrounding us through an ancient art form that connects so many of us. We felt a need for a space that felt accessible and empowering for those that felt marginalized in ceramic spaces – namely persons of color, the queer community, and millennials.  Plus, we are huge pottery lovers who admire the craft for all its creative, therapeutic, and cultural elements. 

​We’ve been getting weird since July 2017, and we’ve thus developed a community of kind, radical, funny, and incredibly supportive people. Our staff consists of and is run by our members. We are outsiders to the institution of art, do everything in house, and we have a DIY non-traditional approach to all things. Most of us are POC, many of us are queer, and we are always committed to proliferating radical art and providing a safe space for uncensored creative expression. We aim to provide an alternative to vanilla pottery spaces. 

​Mandy, our founder, is Iranian and wanted to celebrate LA being a hub for so many diasporas seeing as LA is the largest diaspora for Iranians in the world. Her dream was to facilitate a space that builds community and cultivates culture in Los Angeles, while also creating fun fulfilling jobs with living wages for radical POC artists. With Mandy being an avid handbuilder, she enlisted the help of our Studio Manager Ambar to man the wheel (literally) and opened POT. Ambar is an LA-native Salvi woman with a commitment to radical activism, and she is also a self-taught wizard at the wheel.  The two shared a commitment to activism, social politics, laughing, and pottery – which made POT come to fruition organically. 

​Part of POT’s mission is to break down the walls surrounding art spaces in LA and create a beginner’s oriented studio. We recognize that not all of us are raised with the privilege of growing up with the arts, many of us are adults wanting to try new things for the first time – and that’s a beautiful thing. We aim to provide a chill and fun adult atmosphere where people can laugh, dig their hands in, and build up a fire inside through pottery. This is ceramics for activists, meme lovers, abuelas, and everything in-between. 

​POT is committed to being accessible to persons of color and the native Echo Park community. We have numerous practices to ensure we give back to the community.

Please visit our Community page for more information. POT is an inclusive space for everyone. We encourage you all to sit back relax, connect, laugh, and get your hands on some pot…tery. 

Find out more HERE!

100 Years 100 Women @ The Clay Studio

by | Aug 18, 2020 | Uncategorized

August 18th, 2020 is the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th amendment, giving women in the US the right to vote.

Who gained the right to vote when the 19th amendment was ratified on August 18th, 1920? The amendment stated that “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.” It was a partial victory, but who was still excluded? Native Americans, most Asian Americans, and although African Americans were technically included, it was not until the 1965 Voting Rights Act that racial discrimination was prohibited. Even today, many BIPOC citizens still face disenfranchisement.

We are taking advantage of this anniversary to celebrate the work for women’s rights that has been done, while simultaneously acknowledging the work that remains. Statistics show that women earn only about 80% of what men earn, while women of color earn only 65% of what white men earn.[1] The US Congress is only 23% women,[2] and we still have not seen a woman president. The struggle of trans and woman identifying people is still in its infancy. These facts are the tip of the iceberg of remaining disparities that we must continue to dismantle.

Women have fought hard in so many ways, against extreme injustice, to gain a foothold for themselves and others, for their children, and for all children. This work, both public and private, is deserving of celebration and admiration.

We asked 50 artists to each choose two women they admire and honor them by making a modern-day commemorative plate. We welcome all perspectives on this topic, and we embrace a wide definition of women, transgender, and female identifying people. The people each artist chooses can be famous, anonymous, or their own private inspirations. The artists selected reflect the true wide range of cultures and gender identities of people making art in clay. By choosing artists across cultures and gender identities we welcome an illustration of women important to each artist within their varying experiences.

We are excited to present commemorative plates dedicated to women who these artists feel embody the spirit of female empowerment, and who deserve recognition for their contributions to society.

We look forward to walking into a gallery of heroes who will inspire us to keep fighting for justice and equality.

[1] “Racial, gender wage gaps persist in U.S. despite some progress”. Pew Research Center. July 1, 2016. Retrieved November 26, 2016.

[2] Women in the US Congress 2020, Center for American Women and Politics, Rutgers University.

[1] “Racial, gender wage gaps persist in U.S. despite some progress”. Pew Research Center. July 1, 2016. Retrieved November 26, 2016.

[2] Women in the US Congress 2020, Center for American Women and Politics, Rutgers University.

Cover Photo: Sue Tirrell

www.theclaystudio.org/exhibitions/100-years-100-women