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CONTEMPORARY CRAFTS PRESS RELEASE |
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 10, 2008
Contact:Joy Reed Belt
405/842-6336
DrBelt@aol.com
CONTEMPORARY CRAFTS FEATURED AT JRB ART AT THE ELMS
Richard Burkett, Andy Cooperman, Arline Fisch, and Wendy Maruyama to Headline
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – JRB Art at The Elms will feature an exhibition and sale of contemporary crafts by world class artists in a variety of styles and mediums during the month of May. Guest curated by Charleen Weidell and Barbara Broadwell, the exhibit opens with a reception from 6-10 p.m. on Friday, May 2, and continues through May 31st at JRB Art at The Elms, 2810 North Walker in Oklahoma City.
Contemporary craft artists use traditional craft techniques and materials such as wood, glass, clay, textiles and metal to create works that either serve or allude to a functional or utilitarian purpose, but which have been elevated to fine art through aesthetics and grace. This includes glass blowing, studio pottery, metal work, and weaving.
For the JRB show, co-curators Charleen Weidell and Barbara Broadwell have drawn from their backgrounds in fine art and academia to tap a gifted and accomplished group of national craft artists to provide an eclectic array of works.
The Chair of the Art Department and head of the Metals program at the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond, Weidell is a Metalsmith and Assistant Professor of Art. She has also taught at Metropolitan State College of Denver, San Diego State University and Design Institute San Diego. Grand Prize winner of the Society of American Silversmiths 2000 National Student Silver Design Competition, Weidell’s work has been featured in numerous exhibitions, several publications and a number of collections. Her Tart Server piece is included in the Victoria & Albert Museum collection in London, England. Weidell recently completed the UCO Presidential Medallion that will be worn for the first time at the University’s May 2008 commencement ceremonies.
Barbara Broadwell is a mixed media sculptor and two-dimensional artist. Her work is often a complex layering of varied imagery, including found objects, wood, metal, and clay, accented with surface drawings. She has a BFA in Sculpture from Sonoma State University and an MFA in ceramics from San Diego State University. Barbara has taught drawing, foundation design and ceramics at San Diego State University, Southwestern College, and Metropolitan State College of Denver and is currently teaching at the University of Central Oklahoma. Barbara’s work in sculpture and drawing has been exhibited and collected on the international, national and local levels. She is the recipient of numerous awards.
In describing her inspiration for the show, Charleen Weidell stated “I’m intrigued by the notion of craft. Its history is woven in and out of cultures and modern art history. We find ourselves today in a quandary over, not only the definition of craft and its relationship to fine art, but our identity as artists. This dialog is not restricted to public opinion, but seems to be more of a question within the art community. It is my hope the exhibition, Contemporary Crafts, will demonstrate the fusion of craft materials and processes with fine art concepts and further the discussion, ‘Where is contemporary craft today?’”
Artists featured in the Contemporary Crafts exhibition include:
Richard Burkett
Richard Burkett describes his art as hovering between pottery and sculpture. The pitchers, cups, vases and bowls he sculpts are graceful, even exotic, yet they remain functional, drawing on Burkett’s 10 years as a studio potter in central Indiana. His work has been included the Santa Fe Clay Gallery show entitled “Cups, Cups, Cups” and in the book “500 Pitchers” from Lark Books, selections for which were juried from an international group of 4,000 entries. One of two San Diego State ceramics professors, Burkett has developed a specialty in ceramic glazes, and is internationally known as the author of the HyperGlaze ceramics database and glaze calculation software, rated one of the best ceramics software programs in the world. In his own work, he sometimes employs the Chinese and Japanese traditions of wood-firing, where the glaze is formed by ash melting and sticking to the pieces in the kiln. The fire requires constant stoking during this process, which extends over several days.
Andy Cooperman
Andy Cooperman is a metalsmith, writer, and teacher who lives in Seattle, Washington. His work is featured in galleries nationwide, including Mobilia, Patina, and deNovo. In addition to one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces, Andy also works with clients as a custom jeweler and commission metalsmith. "I remember as a boy opening an Edmund Scientific catalogue to the page featuring paramecium cultures," says Cooperman. "The text described an entire world — invisible to the unaided eye . . . The notion that a complex and dense universe . . . could exist, unseen and literally at my fingertips, galvanized my curiosity. What else had I misunderstood, overlooked, or dismissed as simple? My view of the world shifted. And it's through this lens of curiosity that I most enjoy peering. It is my aim, through my work, to offer a good reason for others to enter into the investigative process. The scale of jewelry is particularly well suited to this pursuit, allowing me to build dense and portable microcosms that draw one near, engendering intimate interactions."
Arline Fisch
Having practiced her craft for more than 50 years, Arline Fisch of San Diego, CA is one of the most respected jewelry makers in the field. Her work melds jewelry, sculpture, and clothing, and she incorporates the structure of textiles and fiber craft into metal-based pieces that are often inspired by ancient cultures and the natural world. Fisch is the recipient of numerous honors, including an honorary doctorate from Skidmore, a gold medal from the American Craft Council, the Lifetime Achievement Award in Crafts from the National Museum of Women in the Arts, and multiple Fulbright fellowships to travel to Uruguay, Vienna, and Denmark.
Wendy Maruyama
Wendy Maruyama, Professor of Art in the School of Art, Design and Art History at San Diego State University, is an acclaimed contemporary furniture designer and maker whose work has been featured in leading collections, exhibitions and publications in the United States and abroad. Her international reputation has been fortified by 10 solo exhibitions since 1990 and more than six dozen showings in the last 25 years. Maruyama's pieces are in the Museum of Craft and Design in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Mint Museum of Art in North Carolina, the Mingei International Museum in San Diego, the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery in Australia and in nearly 40 private collections.
Additional participants include:
Reina Mia Brill, New York - knitted mesh wire figures
Cynthia Eid, Massachusetts - silver jewelry and hollowware
Mia Hall, Arkansas - furniture
Anne Hallam, Colorado – metalsmith
David Huang, Michigan - metalsmith
Matt Hutton, Maine - woodworking
Inger Blix Kvammen, Norway - jewelry
Kathleen Royster Lamb, Colorado - ceramics
Linda Litteral, California - ceramics
JRB Art at The Elms, the former home of Nan Sheets which was built in 1920, is located at 2810 North Walker and is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., and Sunday 1:00-5:00 p.m. The Gallery website is www.jrbartgallery.com, e-mail address is jrb@coxinet.net and phone number is 405/528-6336.
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© Joy Reed Belt 2010
All prices subject to change without notice - not responsible for errors. Availability, price and shipping charges can be confirmed by e-mail or phone prior to purchase. |
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