emerging artist: Elysia Shumka

by | May 7, 2017 | emerging artist

Artist’s Statement:
I work with ceramics to create work inspired by biology. “Microcosms (Mounds I-VII)” is a sculptural installation that formally explores the unseen and often un-noticed environment around us. I wanted to draw attention to the small and beautiful aspects of natural life while also giving the patterns and textures of biology my own creative interpretation. I drew inspiration from things like termite mounds, stalactites, flowers, pinecones, shells, bee hives and leaves.
I found through research and observation that if you choose to look close enough, you’ll notice that nature is organized into meticulous mathematical and visual systems. Most of these systems can be vindicated by a grid. Grids and repetitive motifs come up a lot in my work (past and present) and I think it’s because I enjoy the dominant effect the grid has on the eyes.
The overall installation of my seven “Mounds” was configured in order to create an alternative environment within a formal gallery space. I used speciality lighting and reflective surfaces both below the pieces and surrounding the space in order to better immerse the viewer.
My work is currently showing at the University of Manitoba’s BFA Graduation Exhibition.
“Microcosms (Mounds I-VII)” 2016-2017 and it’s NASCAD Paper porcelain with white Terra sig once fired to cone 3.

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call for entry: Zanesville Prize for Contemporary Ceramics

by | Apr 23, 2017 | call for entry

Appalachian Hills of Ohio Territory, The Muskingum County Community Foundation, Seilers’ Studio & Gallery and the Artist Colony of Zanesville, with support from the Ohio Arts Council, Mayco, and the Pioneer School Zanesville Clay Center, present the Zanesville Prize for Contemporary Ceramics, the largest best of show prize in ceramics in the Western Hemisphere.
The 2017 Zanesville Prize Best-of-Show award will be $20,000. An additional $11,000 in prizes will be awarded to other successful competitors. This event is the third of a competition for the Zanesville Prize that is now held every two years.
Jurors will select up to 100 entries into the exhibit from the images of works that will be submitted worldwide to the competition. From those finalists the jurors will choose the Zanesville Prize recipient and the other award recipients.
For view the Call for Entries and to submit, visit zanesvilleprize.org.
The Best-of-Show Prize of $20,000, the largest in the Western Hemisphere for contemporary studio ceramics, along with $11,000 in additional prizes, will be awarded in October 2017.
For a $45 entry fee, ceramists may submit two images each of three (3) different works completed within the past two years.
New for 2017:
There will be four categories of entries; each will receive a “Best of” award except for the Best of Show Zanesville Prize winner, which will be selected from the four category winners:
  • Functional
  • Sculptural
  • Vessel
  • Mixed Media
We anticipate accepting up to 100 entries into the exhibit.
The three jurors are:

  • Mary Jo Bole, past professor of art at The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
    maryjobole.com
  • Leslie Ferrin, director of FerrinContemporary and Project Art, North Adams, Massachusetts
    ferrincontemporary.com

For more information, and to see the galleries of 2014 and 2015 Zanesville Prize finalists, visit zanesvilleprize.org.

 
The deadline for submission is July 17, 2017.
Go to  zanesvilleprize.org for more information and to submit.
The 2017 Zanesville Prize for Contemporary Ceramics show will be held at

Seilers’ Studio from October 8, 2017 through November 18, 2017.
The Zanesville Museum of Art will exhibit the top award winners and the People’s Choice award from November 22, 2017 to January 13, 2018.
During the public viewing of the show (October 8, 2017 through November 18, 2017) all finalist entries will be offered for sale with the commissions used to support the Zanesville Prize competition in 2019.
For more information and to submit, visit zanesvilleprize.org.

Entwined: Bethany Krull and Jesse Walp @ Indigo Art

by | Apr 23, 2017 | Uncategorized

ENTWINED

“We met twelve years ago in art school and since that time, our lives and our artistic practices have ebbed and flowed and intertwined.  Over the years we have often had the opportunity to make sculpture side by side in shared studios, and this closeness led us to create work that, at times, has been both conceptually and formally tied with our respective works each containing influences of the other’s. The relatively new role we now share as parents has brought us together in a much more profound way, where in both life and art, we are not just influencing each other, but truly collaborating.

Jesse Walp

“The aim for my sculpture has always been for it to feel as if imbued with life, like it has grown into existence of its own volition.  These forms suggest plant growth and also borrow from the animal realm with outstretched stems, plump clusters, and layered segments.  As I create these pieces, I am inspired by thoughts of the internal energies and processes that bring natural forms into being, and hope these works promote exploration and elicit discovery.  As a man who spent his childhood in a home built deep in the woods, I feel an urgent need to foster in my children an understanding of how compelling, beautiful and complex nature is, especially because their early years are being spent in a house, on a postage stamp yard, within a concrete landscape.  Though squeezed within the confines of the built environment, the dandelions pushing up through the cracks in the sidewalk, the rolly pollies underneath the rock in the backyard, and the decaying log in the park still play a very significant role in their understanding of the natural world.”

Bethany Krull

“The influence of motherhood has made its mark on my work, and the animal figure has become much more personally symbolic to me since I have had children. The hungry baby bird, and the furless and helpless newborn mouse perfectly embody this season of my life, where nurturing and protection are paramount.  Explorations of the beauty, vulnerability and fragility of the natural world, and our species influence on its degradation go hand in hand with a desire to shelter my children and to ensure their blissful ignorance as they are threatened by countless dangers.  Concerns about the morality of our politics, the health of our environment, and our own species’ ultimate survival are amplified when they are seen as a reflection in the eyes of our children.”

Show is up April 21 – May 27 @ Indigo Art in Buffalo NY