by Carole Epp | Jun 2, 2017 | Uncategorized
Society for Contemporary Craft
2100 Smallman St
Pittsburgh, PA 15222
ENTRY DEADLINE: Wednesday, June 14, 2017 (midnight MDT)
If you encounter problems and require technical assistance with submission contact [email protected]
EXHIBITION DATES: March 14–August 18, 2018
ABOUT THE NCECA ANNUAL
The recently refreshed format of the NCECA Annual blends impactful attributes of invitational and open juried models of exhibition development. NCECA’s aspiration for this exhibition is to enable exceptional work to represent clay’s concerns for craft and material expression in concert with meaningful content and conceptual rigor. NCECA remains committed to the belief that relatively under-exposed artists will have opportunities to present their work with that of more established and already recognized emerging creators in the field.
The NCECA Annual is developed through the vision of a single curator/juror who generates an organizing concept for the exhibition and invites five artists whose work will frame curatorial ideas. Additional works and artists for the exhibition will be selected through an open call for submissions. The curator/juror will review these entries and make final selections for the exhibition.
ABOUT THE EXHIBITION’S CURATOR, WINNIE OWENS-HART
Winnie Owens Hart is recognized as an educator, artist, filmmaker, author and critical thinker in matters of clay, art and culture. She taught at Howard University for more than 37 years and has conducted research, exhibited, and presented lectures internationally. Her career in ceramics began very early in life and has continued professionally since the 1970s. She opened her first studio in 1972 in Alexandria, Virginia. As a young art student, she imagined what pot-making and art must be like in Africa and then pursued that vision throughout undergraduate school. While teaching crafts in a Philadelphia public school, she discovered a film that demonstrated some African women hand-building a huge pot. She realized her dream of studying women’s traditional pottery techniques and culture in 1977, when she was selected to represent the United States and exhibit her ceramic work at FESTAC in Lagos, Nigeria. After receiving an NEA Fellowship she returned that summer to work in the village. Eventually she took a job with the federal government of Nigeria teaching ceramics at a nearby university to enable her to continue apprenticing traditional pottery, and was eventually accepted as part of the community’s pottery culture. For the past 10 years she has worked with women in a pottery village in Ghana. A published author, Owens-Hart has curated exhibitions primarily focused on contemporary African American artists and has also produced documentary films, including Style & Technique-Four Pottery Villages and The Traditional Potters of Ghana-The Women of Kuli. Over more than four decades, her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally with work in the collections of the Smithsonian and Kohler, universities and private collections.
Full details here.
by Carole Epp | May 24, 2017 | Uncategorized
What do you get when you mix a bunch of creatives together and form a new collective called The Bright Angle? You get awesome.
You might have come across The Bright Angle through their work on The Democratic Cup:
Image above is a collaboration: image by Michael Corney and Cup designed by East Fork Pottery.
The Democratic Cup is the brainchild of artists Ayumi Horie and Nick Moen.
“The Democratic Cup is a slow activism project that uses handmade cups to encourage people to become active and engaged citizens in our democracy. We encourage person-to-person civil conversations about social and political issues. As a country, we need conversations and connections to reinforce the dignity and inclusivity of all Americans, regardless of race, religion, gender, sexuality, and culture. The Democratic Cup believes that these cups will act as agents of social change by generating positive political discourse.” – from their website.
Or perhaps you follow the work of the individual team members of The Bright Angle:
Shannon Tovey
Laurie Caffery Harris
Evan Cornish-Keefe
Nick Moen
Regardless you should pay attention to this ceramic crew as they are on the cusp of some pretty cool design stuff and you can help out at the ground level to invest in their collective dreams : )
“The goal is to bridge a gap between studio artists and the design marketplace. I believe the best way to execute this is by creating efficient systems of well-designed handmade objects where the production process is taken into consideration when designing the original model. In order to execute the prototypes for our first collaborative collection, we utilized the Asheville Maker’s space, our neighbors at The Refinery, to 3D print models for slip-cast porcelain mold systems. Beyond that, our collaborations in Asheville have involved working with local glassblowers, leather workers, printmakers, photographers, candle makers and other ceramic artists. This is why The Bright Angle is starting in Asheville, because the creative community is full of masters of their craft and in my experience we are all here to grow together.“- Nick Moen
Just check out a few of their innovative designs below:
These fine folks have a kickstarter going and could use your help if you are so inclined.
Find out more here or here.
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by Carole Epp | May 12, 2017 | Uncategorized
Jenn Demke-Lange: The Wild
May 13, 2017 – July 1, 2017
A BFA graduate from the Alberta College of Art + Design with a major in ceramics, Jenn’s visual arts practice focusses on the intersection of traditional ceramics and illustration techniques with the use of new digital technology. In this exhibition of new work, Jenn presents an installation with mural and sculpture animated by a projection, as well as series of ceramic plates whose illustrations explore her identity as both a Canadian and as a mother. She comments: “Recollecting my own personal experiences camping as both a child and in motherhood, this body of work celebrates the experience of wilderness and its ability to de-civilize… While adults easily become tame to civilization, it is the perspective and inherent nature of a child that can re-connect us to the innocence, wonderment and freedom of our child-like wild spirit. The imaginative “How to” illustrations on my plates explore whimsical ways of connecting to the wilderness; reminding us to howl at the moon, roar with laughter and wander with wide eyes.”
Originally from Calgary, Alberta, Jenn Demke-Lange now lives in Medicine Hat with her husband, two children and beagle. Jenn produces handmade ceramic objects from tableware to jewellery (visit her website mikind.ca), in her studio at Medalta, where she also maintains a part-time position as the Residency Programs Studio Coordinator.
Portions of The Wild will travel throughout Alberta in 2017 – 2020 with the Alberta Foundation for the Arts Traveling Exhibition Program, curated by Xanthe Isbister.
Esplanade Arts & Heritage Centre
Community Development, City of Medicine Hat
401 First St. SE, Medicine Hat, AB T1A 8W2
www.esplanade.ca
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by Carole Epp | May 12, 2017 | Uncategorized
image of work by 2017 guest artist: Sandy Harquail
Experience and expertise are two key ingredients of the the Fired Up! ceramics collective. This talented and professional group of clay artists celebrate 33 years of annual exhibitions in 2017.
Opening Gala: Friday May 26, 6-9pm
Saturday/Sunday, May 27,28, 10-5pm
Metchosin Community Hall
4401 William Head Rd
Metchosin, BC V9C 3Y6
Phone: 250-590-5744
Over the past 32 years, there have been a total of 23 members of the Fired Up! group. The current core group consists of people who continue to produce and exhibit exciting and innovative work.
Every year the group picks a theme for the show, this years theme is FRACTAL NATURE: Works exploring the Theory of Chaos
Our Core Members
Our Guest Artists for 2017
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