The 41st Annual Pottery Show & Sale

Robbie Lobell, 2014, Pots on a Blue Table,
flameware claybody thrown and altered, propane-fueled soda vapor, cone 11

From December 4-6, The Art School at Old Church will present the 41st Annual Pottery Show and Sale in the Mikhail Zakin Gallery located within the School at 561 Piermont Road in Demarest, New Jersey. The Annual Pottery Show and Sale began in 1974 as a fundraiser for the Art School at Old Church by long-time friends Karen Karnes and the late Mikhail Zakin, Art School founder. They wanted to bring together their vibrant community of potters with the local community to offer an opportunity to purchase one-of-a-kind works of art while supporting the newly established cultural resource. The show has grown to include 30 national and international artists and offers more than 2,000 pots for sale over its three-day span.  Admission to the Show is a suggested donation of $10, which benefits the Art School. Join collectors and enthusiasts alike at this must-see destination. The sale also offers an opportunity for novice potters to explore the possibilities of contemporary ceramics.

Sunshine Cobb, Cake Stands, 2015, hand built, cone 3

The 2015 show is curated by Karen Karnes in collaboration with artists Bruce Dehnert and Chris Gustin. The curators have invited artists to highlight a wide spectrum of styles from both seasoned and emerging potters presenting a variety of functional and decorative pots. Gustin said that the show “has supported the founder’s vision of Old Church as an arts center that was founded to bring the arts to the community.” Dehnert elaborates on the process of curating according to Karnes’ vision that “those who are invited should be among the best. Karnes has one of the most informed and keenest eyes for pots I have ever been around and her grasp of the field is remarkable and inspiring.”

Bryan Hopkins, Vase, 2015,
porcelain, slip-cast slabs, hand built, cone 10, 11'' 

Attendees can expect to find unique, functional kitchenware like everyday dishware, mugs, servers, and casseroles, as well as sculptural works and decorative objects for the home. Executive Director, Maria Danziger, encourages everyone to participate in this amazing show and sale. She believes that this three-day event provides an opportunity for enthusiasts to meet the artists who created each one-of-a-kind piece. 

Lorna Meaden, Watering Can, 2015

Lorna Meaden, Watering Can, 2015

Artists

Richard Aerni, Rochester, NY

Normandy Alden, West Winfield, NY

Sunshine Cobb, Sacramento, CA

Bruce Dehnert, Layton, NJ

Adam Field, Helena, MT

Julia Galloway, Missoula, MT

Chris Gustin, Dartmouth, MA

Hiroe Hanazono, Philadelphia, PA

Bryan Hopkins, Buffalo, NY

Tom Jaszczak, Helena, MT

Nick Joerling, Penland, NC

Karen Karnes, Morgan, VT

Michael Kline, Bakersville, NC

Justin Lambert, Jupiter, FL

Robbie Lobell, Coupeville, WA

Bruce Dehnert, porcelain, glaze/flashing slip, wood fired    

Andrew Martin, The Netherlands

Lorna Meaden, Durango, CO

Matthew Metz, Alfred Station, NY

Ted Neal, Yorktown, IN

Sean O'Connell, Wilmette, IL

Donna Polseno, Floyd, VA

Liz Quackenbush, State College, PA

Seth Rainville, Dartmouth, MA

Ellen Shankin, Floyd, VA

Mark Shapiro, Worthington, MA

Rob Sieminski, Phillips, ME

Jack Troy, Huntingdon, PA

Karen Karnes, Sculptural Vessel, stoneware, 9x10.75x10.5'', 2010    

Bill Wilkey, Helena, MT

Adero Willard, Florence, MA

Erica Wurtz, Conway, MA

Visit OldChurchPotteryShow.org for more information on participating artists, curators, and show history. Call (201) 767-7160 for directions and further information. 

Follow us on Twitter & Instagram @TheArtSchoolNJ 

#theroadtodemarest #oldchurchpotteryshow

Hours 

Sean O'Connell, Crock Jar, Porcelain, wheel thrown

Sean O'Connell, Crock Jar, Porcelain, wheel thrown

Friday, Dec. 4, 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM 

Saturday, Dec. 5, 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM

Sunday, Dec. 6, 11:00 PM - 4:00 PM

Admission 

Suggested donation $10

Address 

561 Piermont Road, Demarest, NJ 07627  

Parking On-Site & Street 

Adam Field, 2014, Porcelain, wheel thrown with incised pattern, 
   

Technology Becomes Them – Curatorial statement

Technology Becomes Them, on view in the Mikhail Zakin Gallery October 30 – November 21, 2015

Welcome to the neo-human era of art, on view in the Mikhail Zakin Gallery. For many, the latest suite of smart phones changes the way culture is experienced and remembered. Each artist in Technology Becomes Them creates work on a new aesthetic path where technology and humanity meet. The contemporary artists in this show employ traditional techniques and forms to explore the new fabric of reality, woven with ubiquitous technology and ever present internet communication.

Lisa Ficarelli-Halpern, Tech Cherubs (Pink Rust),
Silkscreen, 24x18", 2014, $250 

Lisa Ficarelli-Halpern creates hand-pulled prints reminiscent of Baroque wallpaper. Her contemporary color play and close cropped compositions are the first aesthetic vehicles grounding her work in contemporary visual vocabulary. Curious viewers are rewarded to discover the hidden gestures of cherubs and courtly personages and the banality of their focus: the figures are lost in their smartphones, tablets and laptops. While the figures refer vaguely to a distant time and place, the collision with technology reflects our own inane present-day obsessions.

Michael Burris Johnson mediates painterly observations of nature using the grid. The white rose bush in Patience is simplified into millions of tiny squares. While the imposed structure alienates the viewer from nature, this process also alleviates the strain of mimesis. The juxtaposed colors create a unity of lightly contrasting squares of color data. Standing in front of the work, the viewer is struck first by Johnson’s technique, and next by their own instinct to interpret beauty from a patchwork of color.

Michael Burris Johnson, "Patience", Oil on canvas, 42x84", 2015. Archival prints available for $80

Pat Lay, "54AAA0254C,"
Collaged digital scroll, inkjet 
printed on Japanese kozo paper, 
Tyvek backing, gold paint, 96x48",
2015, $6,500

Pat Lay refers to patterned works in art history and draws out the beauty of the computer matrix. Rather than mediating our experience, computer technology becomes the experience itself. The large scale of Lay’s collaged digital scrolls KB54AAA0468B and 54AAA0254C impose veneration while the pattern and shimmering color transfix the viewer. The paradoxical impression is one of aesthetic beauty and unknown strength- this could crush us while we are busy admiring it. The sculpted ceramic heads or “post-human power figures” combine fired clay and computer parts that stand eye to eye with the viewer. The implied functions and super human strength can be intimidating or comforting, depending on how far into the future you are willing to stare.

Judy Malloy, a pioneer hypertext poet from the early days of computing, has devised a series of phrases or lexias that comprise a poem. In Paths of Memory and Painting, the viewer is asked to navigate the poem by clicking the lexia that attracts them. An ethereal narrative emerges based on individual decision. The resulting form reflects the viewer’s desire for a certain path. The act of reading poetry and choosing what portion comes next alters the traditional form and a feeling of intimacy emerges between the viewer and the computer. We may be familiar with hypertext links on the internet that bounce us from one article to the next, but to do so for the purpose of art is a new experience.

Judy Malloy, "Paths of Memory and Painting," Hypertext literature, DHTML, 2010

In each case, the artist is revealing something beautiful yet foreboding, reminding us that the consequences of technology are only partially known to us. What will become of the world that does not fit on a screen? Will we always have the ability to love and share it IRL? In an age where any idea worth sharing comes with a pre-fab hashtag, I invite you to take a look around the gallery and admire the work of these four contemporary artists. Meanwhile, reflect on a question; if an exhibition doesn’t Instagram well, is it worth sharing? #TechnologyBecomesThem

-         Mary Gagler, Curator

Along The Line

The Café Gallery at the Art School at Old Church is pleased to have presented Along The Line, a duet exhibition that showcased work from local artists Karen Stern and Sarah Camille Wilson. Their most recent work in pottery was on display. Both Karen and Sarah are members of the Art School at Old Church community and have come together for an exhibition that highlights both the sculptural form and functionality in pottery. Along The Line was on view at the Café Gallery from July 9th through August 4th.

Face cup, Karen Stern

Karen Stern (ENGLEWOOD, NJ) is a part-time potter and a full-time clay enthusiast under the alias Dangerous Pottery. Stern has been making and collecting pottery for 10 years. Focusing on functional ceramics, Karen incorporates line work and form to create delicate details and handsome pottery.  She works from her home studio and in the ceramics studio at the Art School at Old Church, one of the few local art schools to offer pottery. She has also studied at Penland School of Crafts in Penland, NC. Her pottery has been exhibited at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. Today, her work can be seen at Market House in Westwood, NJ, The Noyes Museum of Art in Oceanville, NJ, and at local craft shows and farmers markets in Bergen County. To see more of Karen's work, check out her Facebook page Dangerous Pottery . 

Vase, Sarah Camille Wilson

Sarah Camille Wilson (TEANECK, NJ) holds a BFA in ceramics from Maine College of Art and an MFA in ceramics from Syracuse University. Wilson teaches ceramics at the 92nd Street Y, Brick House Ceramic Art Center, and at the Art School at Old Church. While working in both sculptural and functional form, Wilson seeks a balance between beauty and ugliness in her work. She spotlights the textures and surfaces of the materials as they play an important role in each final piece.  She was the 2014 Teaching Artist in Residence at Golden Bridge Pottery in Pondicherry, India. She has been an artist in residence at Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts, where she was the recipient of the Kiln God Fellowship, and at The Pottery Workshop in Jingdezhen, China. View Sarah's website for more information about her pottery www.sarahcamillewilson.com.

Sarah Camille Wilson

Sarah Camille Wilson

Karen Stern 

The Café Gallery is open Monday-Friday from 9:00 AM-5:30 PM, please call for evening and weekend hours. 

Draw Yourself In! Kids Art Index

Collaborative drawing project in the Mikhail Zakin Gallery
August 10 – September 5, 2015

The interactive mural in the gallery is the site of a collaborative drawing project open to all members of the Art School community.

The project showcases creativity by providing a ready-made exhibition space for community members. An outline of an alphabet awaits illustrations from individuals. 

Those looking for ideas are encouraged to reference the art history library located in the Café Gallery. You may find yourselves asking important questions such as: Should you list Cézanne’s apples under “A” for apple or “C” for Cézanne?

This project is collaborative, so we invite you to pick up a crayon or pencil, and add something to the wall! No contribution is too small or too large. Share your creativity in this community project!

  

Enamelist Society 2014 Grant Recipient — The Art School at Old Church

Grant Report/Evaluation by Jennifer Jordan Park

As a 2014 Enamelist Society Grant Recipient, the Art School at Old Church has been able to expand its offerings by starting an enameling program at the school. The mission of the art school is to enrich the quality of life in the community through visual arts education and cultural events.

The Art School at Old Church was established in 1974 as a non-profit, non-sectarian 501(c)(3) organization located in Bergen county in New Jersey. Housed in an old church, with four studios, it offers over 80 courses in each of its four quarters. The many offerings include fine art and craft classes for adults, teens, children, and families, as well as workshops and outreach programs. The educational programming serves over 700 students per quarter. The school also houses two galleries that are free and open to the public. The Art School at Old Church received the Paragon SC2-BD kiln via donation and was able to purchase, with grant funding, other enameling essentials, such as firing fork, IR glasses, heat resistant gloves, kiln furniture, sifters, grinding tools, and holding agent. With this new equipment, the art school is now able to offer enameling classes in its updated jewelry studio. Since receiving the grant, the art school enameling classes have been enrolling five to six students per class each quarter. In addition to enameling classes, the art school is able to promote enameling in other classes, such as Classical Jewelry (focus on ancient techniques of enameling, granulation, and chain making), and Jewelry Outside the Box (focus on using alternative materials such as enameling, resin, acrylic, and found objects). The art school has also run an Enamel Rings one-day workshop that enrolled nine students.

In these classes and workshops, students have been learning the art of enameling on small-scale items appropriate for jewelry making, sculpture, and two-dimensional art. Students have been using opaque, opalescent, and transparent enamels on copper, silver, precious metal clay, and steel. They have learned a variety of application methods including sifting, wet-packing, and painting. They have learned the techniques of stenciling, sgraffito, basse taille, champlevé, cloisonné, and plique-à-jour. Students have experimented with underglazes, overglazes, foils, leaf, separation enamels, liquid enamel, glass lump, and threads. They have been finishing pieces by stoning, etching, and/or or flash firing. They have learned how to use the flex shaft and appropriate tools for finishing enamels. Students have been using several methods for setting enamels, including bezel, prong, and tab setting. Additionally, they have been introduced to using solder with enamels.

The Art School at Old Church has achieved its objective of starting an enameling program with the ability to serve 20 students or more each quarter in enameling and related classes. Many thanks to the Enamelist Society for helping the Art School at Old Church to provide enhanced educational opportunities to the surrounding visual arts community.