Contemporary Ceramics / Stremmel Gallery, Reno, Nevada
September 20 – October 20, 2012
Opening reception: Thursday, September 20, 5.30 – 7.30 pm.
Stremmel Gallery will host an opening reception for “Contemporary Ceramics,” an exhibition of work by 18 contemporary ceramic artists hailing from the western United States, Thursday, September 20, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. This eclectic and wide-ranging group represents a dynamic and diverse approach to the tradition of functional and non-functional ceramics.
Montana ceramicist Rudy Autio is best known for his figurative ceramic vessels. He was a founding resident artist of the Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts in Helena, Montana.
Reno-based artist Rebekah Bogard employs fictional animals in her artwork as a means of exploring the narrative and history of her life. She has received numerous awards, including being named an “Emerging Artist” by both the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts and Ceramics Monthly Magazine.
A familiar face to Stremmel Gallery, Robert Brady’s unique style and imagery represents the morphing of a personal lexicon of graphic symbols with color, revealing a whimsical sense of humor, energetic process and primitive mixture of materials. His work has been featured in galleries and museums across the country.
Josh DeWeese’s inspiration stems from how pots can be used as a means of bringing art into our lives. His pottery serves a multitude of purposes: comfortable to use, enjoyable to look at, and interesting to think about.
An artist whose history with clay spans more than 30 years, Robert Harrison creates birdhouses with Oriental elements. Focusing on architectural concepts, his pieces are more intimate, allowing for an intensified level of exploration.
Susie Ketchum creates detailed, hand-painted ceramics illustrated with iconic and abstract designs. Like Mexican folk art, her images are playful, with underlying themes of life and death.
Montana-based artist Steven Young Lee’s work investigates the process of recognition – how as individuals, we draw realities based on experiences and our environment. He plays on preconceptions related to numbers, superstitions, symbolism, and identity that are universal, yet particular to specific cultures.
An Auto disciple, Beth Lo’s ceramic work revolves primarily around issues of family and her Asian-American background. Elements of cultural blending, Westernization, language, and translation are heavy influences in her pieces.
A graduate of Churchill County High School, John Mason’s work explores the physical properties of clay and, what he refers to as, “its extreme plasticity.” He is recognized for his focus and steady investigation of mathematical concepts relating to rotation, symmetry, and modules. Mason’s project, The Peavine Installation 1979, has been featured at the University of Nevada, Reno.
Internationally renowned ceramicist Jim Melchert has been an integral part of the Bay Area’s artistic evolution over the last five decades. His current process focuses on ceramic tiles: breaking, drawing, then reassembling them and painting the new constructions with glaze.
Richard Notkin juxtaposes a number of images, creating a narrative within his pieces. He is best known for his socio-critical works and his reinterpretations of Yixing teapots. Notkin uses the basic form and exacting details to create pieces with political implications.
Fred Reid is no stranger to the northern Nevada art scene. His work often embodies the shape of the Silver State, and it has been featured at the University of Nevada, where he taught for 40 years.
Explosions of rich thick patterning often characterize Annabeth Rosen’s work. Her art is most commonly the result of compiling many small organic sculptures of clay to create a much larger, more energetic, and dynamic composition.
Reno-based artist Michael Sarich has inspired viewers, students, and colleagues for years with his steadfast and passionate career dedicated to the investigation of mark-making. Influenced by outsider art, graffiti and tattoo flash, the raw nature of Sarich’s ceramics represents a complex relationship between personal and universal imagery.
Sandy Simon draws inspiration from the Japanese folk tradition Mingei, which embraces simplicity, utility, and timeless beauty in everyday things. While her pots have changed and evolved over the years, her pieces remain constant in their intimacy of scale, meticulous craftsmanship, and thoughtful design. Plying, pressing, and pinching the walls of his work, Michael Todd creates what he calls, “a three- dimensional painting” through clay. His vessels are named after a woman he has either known or admired.
Patti Warashina’s work touches on a number of themes, ranging from feminism to car culture. Be it a visual spoof on contemporary concerns or a satirical commentary, her cleverly worded titles emphasize her personal perspective.
Larry Williamson draws inspiration from what he describes as “the landscape of the harshly beautiful Great Basin desert.” His work—sometimes small, sometimes as tall as a man—is a fabrication of his mind and his materials.
Gallery hours: Monday – Friday, 9 am – 5.30 pm. Saturday, 10 am – 3 pm.
CONTACT
Parker Stremmel
info@stremmelgallery.com
Tel. 775.786.0558
Stremmel Gallery
1400 South Virginia Street
Reno
Nevada 89502
United States
www.stremmelgallery.com
Above: Beth Lo, Swim, 2012, Ceramic.
