March 1 - April 9, 2004
- Reception: Tuesday, March 16, 6 -8 p.m., Gallery Lounge
- Gallery Talk by co-curators Chris Berti and Laura O'Donnell
The Parkland Art Gallery hosted the 9th Biennial Ceramics Invitational, curated by Chris Berti and Laura O'Donnell and featured the work of nine contemporary ceramic artists. This exhibit focused on functional ceramics, with a specific look at the rich decorative surface that clay provides.
Participating artists included Sam Chung, Michigan; Julia Galloway, New York; John Glick, Michigan; Michael Hunt, North Carolina; Ron Meyers, Georgia; Lisa Orr, Texas; Liz Quackenbush, Pennsylvania; Michael Simon, Georgia; and Melinda Willis, Illinois. Having a limited number of exhibiting artists provides audiences an opportunity to see a body of work by each artist, allowing a more comprehensive view of each artist's personal style.
Berti and O'Donnell, who teach ceramics at Parkland, kept their students and the role of the Art Gallery as a teaching vehicle in mind as they developed this year's show. They chose to highlight functional ceramic works while demonstrating the variety of personal expressions that can be accomplished through surface design. The artists they invited all create functional pieces yet vary in their approach to, and the aesthetic embellishment of, their work. Each artist has achieved true personal voice in his or her artwork and has been able to create surface decorations and patterns that relate to the ceramic ware's functional use. Their body of work reveals the equal importance they place on function and the aesthetic experience one has with the artwork. The results of their efforts are objects that can be both enjoyed and admired, whether in use or on display.
Several activities were coordinated to run in conjunction with this exhibit:
- Chris Berti gave a wheel throwing demonstration
- Parkland Student ceramic work was on exhibit
- Ceramics, “For Arts Sake" videos were shown on campus