Craft Show Artists 2009

Lois R. Aronow — Brooklyn, NY   |   loisaronow.com

My work is a reflection of my love of form, function, color and relationship. In addition to unique and functional design, my pride as a craftsperson is to offer a high level of technical excellence. The beady-ness (called "reticulation") is a result of careful glaze formulation, application and firing. I use porcelain for its whiteness, strength and its tendency to warp a bit during firing. It has a life of it's own in the kiln, which furthers my ideals of the handmade item. My work is made for everyday use. My eclectic influences include Eva Zeisel, Antoni gaudi, Fiesta ware, Marimekko, and the 3" shag carpet (chartreuse!) in our 70s family living room.

Natalie A. Blake — Brattleboro, VT   |   natalieblake.com

The concept of the vessel as the safeguard of the space inside is prevalent in all my work. I've been working with the lidded vessel for the past fourteen years; what brings me back to the thrown vessel time after time is the possibility of capturing the poise and vibrancy of clay as it expands outwards on the wheel. I'm interested in giving voice to subconscious experiences through free drawing, while the curves of the thrown piece influence the movement of the pencil over soft clay.. My vessels are hand thrown in porcelain, covered in black or bronze slip and carved in sgrafitto technique. Matt glazes are layered over the slip and fired in oxidation. Lids are hand built in porcelain, dipped in a bronze glaze and fired in oxidation.

Leora M. Brecher — Wyncote, PA   |   leorabrecher.com

The natural world, both grand and intimate, inspires my ceramic vision and journey. Years photographing nature in its myriad forms and collecting shells, stones and driftwood continue to deepen my fascination with all that surrounds us. For my current work I've chosen white clay that allows me to explore more fully the contrasting qualities of light and shadow. Each piece is built in stages, coil by coil, allowing me to re-evaluate the energy and movement of the piece as it takes form. Coiling enables me to create a bone-like structure through which the piece's energy and movement can freely flow while remaining grounded. The coiling is followed by carving, which further enhances the structure of the piece and brings greater clarity to its undulating form. Finally, I burnish each piece to bring a stone-like smoothness to the surface reminiscent of stones and wood weathered by the sea.

Robert L. Briscoe — Harris, MN   |   minnesotapotters.com

I want my pots to engage people where they live, and play a part in their savoring of life. My pots are directly about food and flowers, cooking and display. My forms are spare. I employ heavy surface textures, weighty bases, and substantial rims and attachments. I focus on the foot and the rim of a form as the defining elements. They are intentionally rough and crude to aid in this definition. I use asymmetrical elements throughout to impart vitality and plasticity to the fired works.

David K. Bryce — North Egremont, MA      flycreekstudio.com

Interest in Asian antiquity and medieval sculpture forms a fusion of both Eastern and Western traditions. Gestural use of clay slabs help create a metaphor for the drapery surrounding these active characters.

Sandra Byers — Rock Springs, WI

I create these small nature inspired translucent porcelain vessels using a variety of techniques. I begin some forms on the potter's wheel and then alter by handbuilding, cutting, and incising. I have been exploring some newer forms which I create by handbuilding, pinching, and carving. I enjoy seeing how forms gradually come into being and trying to allow that to happen. I use microcrystalline matt glazes on the colored pieces and a simple white matt on the interior of the white ones. In porcelain, I am trying to catch the delicacy as well as the strength of nature's details. These pieces come to life in the sunlight.

Fong Choo — Louisville, KY   |   fongchoo.com

These miniature teapots are initially created with the use of a pottery wheel and hand built techniques. To achieve deep, jewel-like glazes, the airbrush is used to spray high fired glazes as a base and accent coats. Then multiple layers of low fired type glazes are brushed either all over or on the shoulders of the work. Then these pieces are fired in a kiln several hundred degrees higher than a normal firing. This "over fire", although EXTREMELY risky, creates the over melting of the low fire glazes flowing over the high fire glazes. Unfortunately, many don't make it through to the final firing process because of the fluidity of the glazes. It is the unpredictable nature of this process that keeps the art form exciting and endearing. Each piece is a survivor in its own way - a successful, tangible manifestation during this long, nurturing process.

Angela Cunningham — Somerville, MA   |   cunninghamceramics.com

I make objects that beg to be touched. Through exquisite detailing, sensuous surfaces, and provocative imagery, my pieces draw viewers near, desiring to caress and explore. I want people to irresistibly be drawn to touch my pieces as though they are running their hands down someone's back and, through this, to elicit feelings of tenderness, intimacy, and desire. I strive to evoke a sense of delight through crafting tantalizing and playful details. The imagery in my pieces is drawn largely from forms in nature. I am inspired by the seductive textures, elegant lines, and fertile energy of flowers. Fruits and vegetables fascinate me with their tantalizing colors, dense seed structure, and grotesque beauty. The human body enters here and there — the curve of a hip, the softness of belly.

Lucy V. Dierks — Norfolk, VA   |   lucyvdierks.com

My pieces express my delight with nature and like nature; I want them to reflect a harmony of form, surface, and purpose. I strive to make small intimate pieces whose design and texture invite you to hold them. The contradictory aspects of birds intrigue me. I find the exquisite detail of their claws and the patterning of their feathers very satisfying. I perch them on my pieces to encourage contemplation and conversation. Currently I work in porcelain. I throw my pieces, then alter, impress, and sprig them. I use original glazes which I multilayer. I fire to cone 7 in an electric kiln.

Alexandra N. Geller — Florence, MA   |   alexandrageller.com

Colorful, functional dinnerware and ceramics for the table and your home. The pottery is crafted of stoneware clay fired to roughly 2,200 degrees. Hand-built and wheel-thrown, the ceramics are created using non-toxic, lead-free, food-safe glazes. The pottery is dishwasher safe as well as microwaveable, and oven-proof. Variations reflect the singulare character of each piece.

Nathan & Amanda Grubich — Ludington, MI     

Nathan Grubich and Amanda St. Hilaire-Grubich create soda-fired ceramics that bridge the gap between sculpture and function. Having background studies in biology, oceanography and anthropology their work references found objects and artifacts found amidst nature. The intrigue and interest in nature and the contemporary world creates a correlation between art and artifact. The symbiotic relationship between Grubich and St. Hilaire-Grubich in the studio provides the balance between form and surface texture. Both artists interchangeably use forms and textures created by one another to create a unified body of work.

Bryan Hopkins — Buffalo, NY   |   www.hopkinspottery.com

Following in the lineage of "fine china" I produce objects for domestic service, adding my own sense of affect and defect. The work is heavily indebted to the implicit qualities of the material used in its creation – Porcelain. Indeed, when you think of porcelain, you first consider its physical qualities (strength, fragility, translucence), then porcelain's class association and cultural significance. The work's primary use is that of a functional object, and all the pieces perform as they should. However, the degree of functionality is in question. For example, the cups are translucent, allowing light to break down a difference of interior and exterior space, and also forcing one to consider how the cup is used, or risk destroying the cup. And it is this contemplative state that allows the simple cup to be elevated to near ceremonial object- an important part of the daily ritual of drinking.

Ani D. Kasten — Takoma Park, MD   |   anikastenceramics.com

The potter's wheel provides the foundation for all of my ceramic work. I create small groups of sculptural vessels that explore the meeting point between natural and man-made worlds. The forms integrate these divergent sensibilities into a composed landscape, such as a stand of bamboo-like, truncated cylinders, perforated with windows to look like corroded skyscrapers, or a simple form such as a sphere, marked on its surface with an off-center, wandering imprint, like bird tracks in the sand. The pieces are often segmented, asymmetrical, weathered--combining natural movement and an apparent state of organic deterioration invoking the cycle of life, death, decay. They investigate the nature of change, the compiling of memory, and a feeling of loss — the recognition of temporal beauty bound with grief. As creative expressions of form, movement and texture, my work embodies a modern, minimal aesthetic while reminding one of a natural or ancient object exposed to the rigors of time.

Lori E. Katz — Springfield, VA   |   lorikatz.com

My current work explores the controlled inlay and patterning of black and white stoneware and is concerned with the simplicity of shape and contrast, the play of dark against light, the pull of empty space against the inclination to fill it up. I am intrigued by line and texture and placement, and am focused on creating pieces that stand either alone or as integral parts of a larger whole.

Elizabeth A. Kendall — Vienna, VA   |   EKClay.com

Drawing upon a family tradition of handwork, I use the tools and techniques of the sewing room to create functional forms that explore the tension and interplay of opposites: softness and strength, light and dark, symmetry and variation. My fabrics are black stoneware and white porcelain. My one-of-a-kind vessels are fired to cone 6 in oxidation. Each piece begins as a thin flat slab hand rolled with inlayed porcelain elements. They are subsequently folded, pleated, bent and stretched to form intimate vessels. Unglazed, they offer a rich surface of random marks and imperfections that intrigue the eye and hand.

Cliff C. Lee — Stevens, PA   |   cliffleeporcelain.com

I work on a potter's wheel with translucent porcelain. I will then carve, apply, alter or sculpt the porcelain to obtain the desired form. I use a gas kiln to high-fire monochrome reduction glazes.

Daniel A. Levy — New York, NY   |   daniellevyporcelain

I am interested in creating forms that combine functionality, utility and a quiet beauty. Foremost in trying to achieve this, is the use of porcelain for its innate strength and visual purity. It allows me to create thin, graceful, yet incredibly durable objects. I produce all of my work using the process of slip casting. For decorating purposes, multiple layers of colored slips are sprayed onto the cast greenware forms and abraded to create an undulating, mottled surface with fine texture. Often, an application of a metallic luster is used to accent the rims of the forms and highlight the textured surfaces.

Marge Margulies — Guerneville, CA   |   margemarguliespottery.com

Thrown and altered forms, combined into fluid centerpiece compositions, emphasizing subtle color relationships.

Francine T. Ozereko — Pelham, MA   |   ozereko.com

From the smooth, white, translucent elegance of porcelain to the sturdy, forgiving, reliability of earthenware, for me there is no better medium than clay. Forms hold images, images fit forms and are kept relatively simple to accommodate whatever imagery may appear. Imagery is mostly intuitive, autobiographical, or drawn from art and ceramic history. The sgraffito technique, while labor intensive, produces a carved graphic clarity with a depth that I try to match with glaze.

Romulus Craft: Ikuzi Teraki & Jeanne Bisson — Washington, VT
romuluscraft.com

Utilitarian porcelain tableware and sculptural vase forms and wall pieces. Innovative oxide slips and clear glaze application allows beauty to also be a function of our creations. The work is thrown, slab or handbuilt. The concept behind the work is to be useful as well as to challenge. We create drama in color, texture, form and weight.

Justin Rothshank — Pittsburgh, PA   |   rothshank.com

The durability of laser decals has allowed me to develop my own version of ceramic decoupage by layering decals and multi-firing many of my pieces. I use china paints and lusters as an additional layering material. Social justice, nonviolence, simple living, and voluntary service have always been pillars of my personal belief system. I look for images and text that represent or contrast leaders and critical thinking in these arenas. I have an ongoing internal struggle to discern how my personal passion as an artist can co-exist within these beliefs. I feel obligated to comment on the world around me, and work towards positive social change whenever I can. Religion, politics, and art can bring up very serious or taboo topics in our daily lives. I feel strongly that speaking about our differences, discussing serious issues, and striving to communicate with each other is our responsibility. Humor plays a large roll in my aesthetic, and my personal goals for many of my pieces.

Akira Satake — Swannanoa, NC   |   akirasatake.com

"For me, the beauty of functional pottery — whether a dish, cup, or a vase — lies in its simplicity, and how eloquently it complements what it contains". One of Akira's distinctive techniques involves brushing a Kohiki (porcelain white slip) glaze on to the clay and then stretching the clay to invest a textural energy that goes beyond surface decoration.

Chandra Stubbs — Sawyer, MI   |   chandrastubbs.com

Using traditional stoneware and high fire paper clay, I create one of a kind pieces that reflect issues in my life and my observances of the world around me. As a third generation potter it has been an interesting journey to find my place in the art world and leave the world of production pottery behind. All elements are hand made and are either thrown, slab formed, or sculpted. Raw ash is layered on top of Shino glazes and gas fired in reduction to cone 10. My pieces are accented and assembled with felt, copper and stainless wire, rope, metal bolts, nuts, washers, acrylic, resin, and in some cases found objects. All bases are made of recycled materials.

Will Swanson — Harris, MN   |   willswanson.com

I work in stoneware and in porcelain creating dinnerware, baking and serving dishes, vases and other useful pots for the kitchen and table. I try to make pots with lasting appeal that can be discovered through the simple aesthetic pleasures of everyday use.

Xuti — Ithaca, NY   |   bitterbamboostudio.com

My ceramic sculpture draws inspiration from ancient Chinese scholarly traditions. Art in this context is the expression of one's aspiration, like poetry. For its flexibility, hollow culm, and ability to withstand cold (symbols of resilience, humbleness and endurance, respectively), bamboo has long been personified as possessing these gentlemanly virtues. While ancient literati painters favored bamboo for esteemed human qualities, and depicted it in monochrome ink to express their understated aesthetic, I prefer to capture bamboo in a visceral yet ruined state to reflect our own existence. Dry trees and decayed trunks, likewise, are powerful reminders of the frailty of our environment. My works are hand-pinched and carved stoneware; some are coated with plant-based stain.