Dennis grew up on a wheat farm in Walla Walla, Washington and attended Washington State University where he earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.
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| Best of Show 1993 Dennis Meiners |
Showing posts with label MoCC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MoCC. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
14 Weeks and Counting
The year is 1993 and a major change took place for Ceramic Showcase; the newly built Oregon Convention Center became the new "home" of Ceramic Showcase and to this day continues to be held there. With the move to the convention center, the show was able to expand, more members could participate and attendance and profits grew. And the Best of Show winner in 1993 was Dennis Meiners.
Dennis grew up on a wheat farm in Walla Walla, Washington and attended Washington State University where he earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.
"The act of making things is a magical privilege for which I have made and will make many sacrifices. I have found that the objects that result from the act of making are secondary to being in the process of bringing those objects into existence. Whether the act of making results in a coffee cup, a sculpture, a drawing or a poem, the immersion in the process is a journey through an imaginative landscape where possibility reigns supreme and taking advantage of what is there is a chimerical game. I have compared this experience to riding a horse at night. The objective is to trust the horse, not fall off, and be awake to see where I have arrived when the light returns."
Dennis grew up on a wheat farm in Walla Walla, Washington and attended Washington State University where he earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.
Friday, January 27, 2012
15 Weeks and Counting
Well, I just squeaked in - with two days to go - this week's story is ready!
In 1992 the Oregon Potters Association starting taking on new projects. The OPA launched a project making mural tiles with homeless teenagers in Portland. We also began publishing a well-received annual map to potters holiday studio sales in Oregon. By the end of the year, membership had soared to almost 300 people.
I didn't have much information about Best of Show winner of 1992, Ellen Fager, and it took a considerable amount of time to track her down. Ellen is no longer a member of the OPA and as I learned, does not reside in the Pacific NW any longer. Ellen graciously agreed to write her thoughts and I held the presses, anxious to learn more about her and what inspired her work.
In 1992 the Oregon Potters Association starting taking on new projects. The OPA launched a project making mural tiles with homeless teenagers in Portland. We also began publishing a well-received annual map to potters holiday studio sales in Oregon. By the end of the year, membership had soared to almost 300 people.
I didn't have much information about Best of Show winner of 1992, Ellen Fager, and it took a considerable amount of time to track her down. Ellen is no longer a member of the OPA and as I learned, does not reside in the Pacific NW any longer. Ellen graciously agreed to write her thoughts and I held the presses, anxious to learn more about her and what inspired her work.
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| Best of Show 1992 Ellen Fager |
"I was already making the fish teapots when Ed Thompson and I came to Portland in 1987. I had always been drawn to ceramic traditions (pre-Columbian Western Mexican, Iron-Age Iranian) in which function and representation are bound together in perpetual negotiation. After flirting with a variety of creatures, I found in these fish a rich, varied, contemporary (read:saleable) form with which to continue the discussion. A fish effigy that did not pour or store something would have been of no interest to me; at the same time, I would not have been satisfied with a teapot that was simply a "fish". This pot is one very particular species among the unglamorous little bottom-fishes living off the northern Pacific coast; anyone with a good guidebook should be able to identify him. Always a wheel-worker, I built these fishes from thrown sections, and that was important to me, too: underneath all the extravagant elaboration, there remained a core utilitarian craft.
The year after my fish won Best of Show, Ed and I moved back to San Diego. Ed went on to considerable renown in the local clay community, but, after a couple more years of struggle, I dropped out. I had taken the fishes as far as I could go with them, and, with two small children to tend to, I had neither the time nor the focus to develop something new. As the kids grew, I got involved with other things, and, though old potter-friends would prod me sometimes, I felt no inclination towards the work I used to do. It is only in the past year, since Ed's death, that I have returned to the studio, and found clay, after all this time, still ready to resume the conversation where I last left off. Once again, I am throwing, paddling, cutting and pasting, although it is now geometry, rather than the natural world, that is in dialog with use. Clay is the most wonderful material: it waits for you; it is humble and expendable; there is no end to the things you can do with it, up to that point where it quietly, steadfastly, asserts its limitations; it accepts the mark of your hand, and in that mark you see yourself and the path you have travelled.
What could be better than that?"
The year after my fish won Best of Show, Ed and I moved back to San Diego. Ed went on to considerable renown in the local clay community, but, after a couple more years of struggle, I dropped out. I had taken the fishes as far as I could go with them, and, with two small children to tend to, I had neither the time nor the focus to develop something new. As the kids grew, I got involved with other things, and, though old potter-friends would prod me sometimes, I felt no inclination towards the work I used to do. It is only in the past year, since Ed's death, that I have returned to the studio, and found clay, after all this time, still ready to resume the conversation where I last left off. Once again, I am throwing, paddling, cutting and pasting, although it is now geometry, rather than the natural world, that is in dialog with use. Clay is the most wonderful material: it waits for you; it is humble and expendable; there is no end to the things you can do with it, up to that point where it quietly, steadfastly, asserts its limitations; it accepts the mark of your hand, and in that mark you see yourself and the path you have travelled.
What could be better than that?"
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
16 Weeks and Counting
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| Best in Show 1991 Chris Gum |
1952 - 2004
To our great sadness, we have lost our friend and fellow potter, Chris Gum. Chris had been an OPA member for 23 years. He had been on the Board of both the OPA and Ceramic Showcase and had often been the voice of reason (sometimes to our chagrin) amidst chaos. Chris died in his home of unknown natural causes on June 29, 2004.
Chris made beautiful pots, and for many years he dug his clay from local stream banks and collected local feldspars and other materials for his glazes. His work was very careful and methodical. Efficiency was never a concern for him, he would rather be true to his work and its process. Chris's work was well known by potters and art appreciators alike, although Chris never wanted to be a famous person. Chris chose to move through this world quietly and modestly, doing his share of the work without demanding too much of the spotlight.
Chris had a passion for gardening. He probably felt that laundry sorting and truck washing were overrated, but he always took exquisite care of his plants. He was a good listener and never hesitated to express his opinions.
In the late nineties, Chris avoided attending OPA meetings (why deal with petty bureaucracy?) but he almost always came to Portland to visit his friends (the most important part of this group) on the days we held our meetings and thus we could all spend time with him. He was a wonderful friend and his sudden death has affected the entire pottery community in Oregon. We will all miss him terribly.
Thank you to Ellen Currans, Janet Buskirk and Anne Stecker, who provided these words, which were published in the August 2004 OPA member newsletter.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
17 Weeks and Counting
The Year is 1989 and both the OPA and Ceramic Showcase were at a crossroads. The success of Ceramic Showcase became overwhelming and the vision that the OPA had built itself around was being blurred. No one realized at the time that success would come at a price. How could the OPA maintain its vision and dedication to its members while being all consumed of time and energy to hosting a successful show? It was decided that a separate committee would be formed that would take on the challenges of hosting Ceramic Showcase so that the OPA Board could dedicate itself to building the organization and the membership. Thus, the Ceramic Showcase Steering Committee was born. Today that committee has grown to sixty-two members, all volunteering countless hours. It is truly a labor of love and one in which I am proud to say I volunteer wholeheartedly in. But enough about the organization for now - onto our award winner.
Best in Show 1989 award winner Marianna Crawford writes about her wonderful journey in clay and where is has taken her -
"Even though I have not been working in clay for almost 12 years, people still introduce me as a potter, regardless of what else I've been doing with my life. I can't say that I mind this.
In 1989, Ceramic Showcase was held at Montgomery Park. It was the first or second year that I participated in the show. I was a newcomer.
Before that, I had attended PNCA for a couple of years. My teacher, Frank Irby - who still teaches there - was tremendously supportive and influential to me. When it became clear that all I wanted to do was ceramics, he allowed me to use the studio at PNCA to my heart's content. When this gig reached the end of its feasibility, I rented my first little studio space at Thurman Street Pottery.
Frank helped me see that my work was about the inner space contained by a vessel. This simple understanding was like a compass that guided my career as a ceramic artist.
While I was at PNCA, a visiting potter from China came to work in the ceramics studio for an extended period. Apparently he was accustomed to having assistants do his production work. This, on top of the fact that he did not speak English, and a translator had not been provided, made him a sullen, unapproachable presence in the studio. However, I became fascinated with the way that he constructed his pieces. I could see how it was possible to build complex shapes, and my ideas about what I could do with clay suddenly expanded. Even though my work had little in common with his traditional Chinese vessels, the techniques that I gleaned from him catapulted me forward.
The piece that won the award in 1989 was one of the early pieces that evolved out of this new found inspiration. Needless to say, winning the award provided yet more wind under my wings.
One of the things that I love about clay as a medium is how it adapts itself to an almost infinite myriad of artistic expression. We make an impression on the clay, physically and metaphorically, every time we touch it, every time we make contact with it. My particular personality is inclined towards obsessive perfectionism - I fuss, experiment, try and err and try again, work a piece to the brink of disaster, get exhausted, give up, and eventually have a breakthrough, or come to accept what is there. As much as I admire and, at times, yearn to be someone whose work is loose, spontaneous and immediate, that is not who I will ever be. I like to think that everything that goes into my process becomes part of the beauty of the final piece. Inherent in each of my pieces is how it has been carefully shaped, handled, worked, considered, and loved, really. Clay has its rules, but it also seems to make room for all the unique and particular ways that we are.
Oregon Potters Association is a little that way too. It is a generous, democratic, inclusive organization whose members do not withhold their support for one another's success. Over the years, I have seen the Best in Show award given to newcomers, as well as old-timers. No particular style or technique is favored. There are no weird politics about who receives it. It is given by an honest group of potters to one of their own, out of pure and exuberant love of clay. For these reasons and more, it remains one of the greatest honors that I have been given in my life, and I am proud to be counted as a potter, still."
Best in Show 1989 award winner Marianna Crawford writes about her wonderful journey in clay and where is has taken her -
"Even though I have not been working in clay for almost 12 years, people still introduce me as a potter, regardless of what else I've been doing with my life. I can't say that I mind this.
In 1989, Ceramic Showcase was held at Montgomery Park. It was the first or second year that I participated in the show. I was a newcomer.
Before that, I had attended PNCA for a couple of years. My teacher, Frank Irby - who still teaches there - was tremendously supportive and influential to me. When it became clear that all I wanted to do was ceramics, he allowed me to use the studio at PNCA to my heart's content. When this gig reached the end of its feasibility, I rented my first little studio space at Thurman Street Pottery.
Frank helped me see that my work was about the inner space contained by a vessel. This simple understanding was like a compass that guided my career as a ceramic artist.
While I was at PNCA, a visiting potter from China came to work in the ceramics studio for an extended period. Apparently he was accustomed to having assistants do his production work. This, on top of the fact that he did not speak English, and a translator had not been provided, made him a sullen, unapproachable presence in the studio. However, I became fascinated with the way that he constructed his pieces. I could see how it was possible to build complex shapes, and my ideas about what I could do with clay suddenly expanded. Even though my work had little in common with his traditional Chinese vessels, the techniques that I gleaned from him catapulted me forward.
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| Best in Show 1989 Marianna Crawford |
One of the things that I love about clay as a medium is how it adapts itself to an almost infinite myriad of artistic expression. We make an impression on the clay, physically and metaphorically, every time we touch it, every time we make contact with it. My particular personality is inclined towards obsessive perfectionism - I fuss, experiment, try and err and try again, work a piece to the brink of disaster, get exhausted, give up, and eventually have a breakthrough, or come to accept what is there. As much as I admire and, at times, yearn to be someone whose work is loose, spontaneous and immediate, that is not who I will ever be. I like to think that everything that goes into my process becomes part of the beauty of the final piece. Inherent in each of my pieces is how it has been carefully shaped, handled, worked, considered, and loved, really. Clay has its rules, but it also seems to make room for all the unique and particular ways that we are.
Oregon Potters Association is a little that way too. It is a generous, democratic, inclusive organization whose members do not withhold their support for one another's success. Over the years, I have seen the Best in Show award given to newcomers, as well as old-timers. No particular style or technique is favored. There are no weird politics about who receives it. It is given by an honest group of potters to one of their own, out of pure and exuberant love of clay. For these reasons and more, it remains one of the greatest honors that I have been given in my life, and I am proud to be counted as a potter, still."
Monday, December 5, 2011
22 Weeks and Counting
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| 1983 Ceramic Showcase Best in Show award winner Ruri |
In 2012, Ceramic Showcase will be celebrating our 30th Anniversary and to kick off the celebration, we are going to be highlighting the winners of the Best in Show Award.
In 1983, the first winner of Best in Show was Ruri.
About the artist
Since the time I came back from Japan as an apprentice under master potter, Tatsuzo Shimaoka, Mashiko, in 1977, my goal was to focus on establishing my own anagama because I was so intrigued by the whole process of wood firing, and also the transformation of the work when it came out. Although it took me 27 years, I finally made it happen with the help of dedicated friends in 2005.
Now I feel like I am finally starting in the direction of participating intentionally in the alchemy happening inside anagama, where all the natural elements (earth, water, wood, fire and air) and artist’s spirit all come together to give birth to a new life: claywork transformed and transfigured.
Whether it is a clay sculpture or a functional claywork, I have been always trying to express the Unseen through the Seen coming from Nature and all kinds of relationships, reflecting the state of my consciousness at the time. I play with forms and contouring lines and curves, which give positive and negative contrasts with surrounding outer space.
I use a coiling and pinching technique for my clay sculpture, and lots of thrown vessels are so often altered after throwing.
The name of my anagama is FuuKooGama (pronounced foo-koh gah-mah, meaning "wind and light kiln" in Japanese), which expresses itself eloquently the kind of work I continue to search, pursue and explore.Ruri has been a member of the Oregon Potters Association since 1980.
Mark your calendars to see more of Ruri's work at Ceramic Showcase - May 4 - 5 - 6, 2012 at the Oregon Convention Center in Downtown Portland, Oregon.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Upcoming workshop - Social Marketing
Are you new to social media scene? Don't quite know the difference between a tweet and an update? Can't figure out how all of this comes together to help you build your business and get your name out there?
Well, this might be just the answer!
JULY 30 WORKSHOP
Social Marketing 102: How to be Interesting Without Being Overwhelmed
Instructor: Diane Gilleland
11:00 am - 1:30 pm
The Lab at Museum of Contemporary Craft
724 NW Davis St.
Register today ($10 per person, non-refundable, includes light snack, coffee and tea)
Well, this might be just the answer!
JULY 30 WORKSHOP
Social Marketing 102: How to be Interesting Without Being Overwhelmed
Instructor: Diane Gilleland
11:00 am - 1:30 pm
The Lab at Museum of Contemporary Craft
724 NW Davis St.
Register today ($10 per person, non-refundable, includes light snack, coffee and tea)
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Era Messages: Selections by Garth Johnson-MoCC
January 27, 2011 – July 09, 2011
Curated by: Garth Johnson
Museum of Contemporary Craft invites artist, writer and educator Garth Johnson to curate an exhibition drawn from the Museum’s collection. As Johnson’s curatorial debut in a museum environment, Era Messages focuses on works from the 1960s to 1980s that exemplify particular moments in the history of craft. As Johnson explains, “This exhibition seeks to examine work that is timely rather than timeless – craft that is evocative of its era rather than existing in the netherworld of timelessness.”
Garth Johnson is an Assistant Professor at the College of the Redwoods in Eureka, CA. He writes about craft, blogs at ExtremeCraft.com and is the author of 1000 Ideas for Creative Reuse. His DVD, ReVision: Recycled Crafts for Earth-Friendly Living, was released by Eyekiss Films in 2009. His artwork was also recently featured in a solo exhibition at the Clay Studio in Philadelphia, PA.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
MoCC - New Exhibition - David Shaner
NEW EXHIBITION - Land Art: David Shaner
March 10 - August 7
Museum of Contemporary Craft
724 NW Davis St.
Free for Museum members; $3 general public
What is the relationship between craft and the Land Art Movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s? While Robert Smithson's monumental Spiral Jetty (1970) is an example of a heroic and gestural conceptual work in a remote location, David Shaner's work from the early 1960s through the 1990s reveals a concurrent, domestically scaled yet quietly sensual relationship between art and the landscape of the American West.Through works drawn from the artist's estate and the Museum's collection, along with photographs and personal notes taken by the artist, the exhibition reveals how broader cultural interests in conceptual art and the land, ecology and materiality are explored through an artist known as a "potter's potter."
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
MoCC-Circle of Guilds event
The OPA is a member of the Circle of Guilds and this is shaping up to be a great event. If you are free on Friday evening, put this event on your calendar.
I Heart Art: Portland
Connecting Portland’s Vibrant Community of Makers
Hosted by Etsy.com, Portland Etsy Team, Pacific Northwest College of Art and Museum of Contemporary Craft
Friday, February 26, 6:30 pm
Pacific Northwest College of Art, Main Campus Building, Swigert Commons
1241 NW Johnson Street
Free and open to the public
Etsy, PNCA and the Portland Etsy Team host an “I Heart Art" meet and greet at PNCA on Friday, February 26. This public event brings together the PNCA student body, the Portland Etsy Team, members of the Guild Council Program from the Museum of Contemporary Craft, and the thriving local arts and crafts community of Portland.
The event is a great opportunity for Portland-based makers to network and learn more about this burgeoning partnership and future opportunities for professional development. Featuring light food and drink, music, button making, Gocco printing and more.
I Heart Art: Portland
Connecting Portland’s Vibrant Community of Makers
Hosted by Etsy.com, Portland Etsy Team, Pacific Northwest College of Art and Museum of Contemporary Craft
Friday, February 26, 6:30 pm
Pacific Northwest College of Art, Main Campus Building, Swigert Commons
1241 NW Johnson Street
Free and open to the public
Etsy, PNCA and the Portland Etsy Team host an “I Heart Art" meet and greet at PNCA on Friday, February 26. This public event brings together the PNCA student body, the Portland Etsy Team, members of the Guild Council Program from the Museum of Contemporary Craft, and the thriving local arts and crafts community of Portland.
The event is a great opportunity for Portland-based makers to network and learn more about this burgeoning partnership and future opportunities for professional development. Featuring light food and drink, music, button making, Gocco printing and more.
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