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Copyright © 2004 The American Ceramic Society All rights reserved Ceramics Monthly April 2004 2 Ceramics Monthly April 2004 4 APRIL 2004 / Volume 52 Number 4 featu res 36 Gary Hootman by James Kasper A potter's search for an American wood-firing aesthetic 40 Claudi Casanovas Homage to Nature by Nesrin During 43 Ryumonji: The Hidden Dinosaur by Kelvin Bradford An accidental discovery of traditional pottery practices in Japan 46 Earth in Balance by Pamela Dillon Regional exhibition of works by 38 artists at Rosewood Gallery in Kettering, Ohio 51 A Potter's Progress by Carolyn Genders An artist's reflection on the evolution of style 54 The Renwick and Me by irma starr 17th-century slipware plate commemorates a historical gallery 56 Joe Bova's Politics and War by Dorothy joiner Ceramic sculpture lampooning contemporary American culture 60 A Body of Work by John Chalke Experimenting with clay bodies in Canada 65 Walking the Middle Ground The Work of Nazare Feliciano by Joel Betancourt 68 Summer Workshops 2004 Contact information for opportunities in the U.S. and abroad departments 10 letters 16 upfront 28 new books 72 call for entries 80 suggestions 82 calendar 116 questions 118 classified advertising 120 comment: On Selling Out by Rikki Grace 120 index to advertisers cover: "No. 107 Salina," 66 centimeters (26 inches) in height, stoneware with feldspar and combustibles, by Claudi Casanovas, Catalunya, Spain; page 40. Ceramics Monthly April 2004 5 upfront 16 Exhibition of Wood-FiredCeramics in Connecticut Works by 12 artists at Seton Gallery, University of New Haven 16 Kyle Carpenter Functional pottery at MudFire Gallery in Atlanta, Georgia 18 Exhibition of Face Jugs Contemporary and historical works by 20 artists at Southern Pottery Workcenter and Gallery in Columbia, South Carolina 18 Group Exhibition in Oregon Wood-fired ceramics at Fifth Element Gallery in Portland 20 Rebekah Diamantopoulos Porcelain vessels at the Contemporary Crafts Museum & Gallery in Portland, Oregon 22 Liz Vercruysse Vessels at Jackson Artworks in Omaha, Nebraska 22 Patz Fowle Animal sculpture at Peter D. Hyman Fine Arts Center at Francis Marion University in Florence, South Carolina 22 Gloria Carrasco Urban sculpture at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Oaxaca, Mexico 24 Anthony Caro Figurative sculpture at Garth Clark Gallery in New York City 24 Fiamma Colonna Montagu Large-scale vessel installation at the Gallery at Windsor, near Vero Beach, Florida 24 Sid Oakley, 1932-2004 Ceramics Monthly April 2004 6 Ceramics Monthly April 2004 7 lege of Ceramics at Alfred). I teach both similar works featured month after month letters drawing, painting, as well as clay sculpture for the past three to four years. I mainly and pottery. I have subscribed to your work with figures, as well as tiles, and most Student Reference magazine since my first year of teaching of the work you feature has been mostly Your publication contains inspirational because of the positive influence the maga­ functional ware—pots and vessels. articles and exquisite visuals. My studentszine had on me during college. I have The sculptural work you do show is constantly refer to the back issues for ideas. shared the ideas in your magazine with my usually abstract and rarely based on the Marlene Astman, North Hollywood, CA students over the years (taking them to masters’ approach. I do feel inspired when I galleries and museums is not normally an see those works of beauty created by mod­ Master Works option, due to our location). Although I ern masters. However, work you have fea­ I have been an art instructor in northern have certainly gained a lot from your maga­ tured recently leans more toward gruesome New York for 16 years, and I am a graduate zine in the past, and still do from time to and poor craftsmanship. I have experienced of Alfred University (New York State Col­ time, I have become bored with seeing many different types of art, and I don’t want you to feel as if I am closed-minded, but, at the same time, it seems to me that the kind of work you feature is becoming too predictable. Again, I have been a longtime subscriber to your magazine—nearly 20 years—and would like to stress the benefit and merit I have found in it. I would like to continue subscribing, but I would ask that you con­ sider highlighting artists who enjoy making realistic, masterful works from time to time as well. Bob Renaud, Carthage NY Critical Thinking Drop out the clever and decorative work. This will strengthen the credibility of the rest. Keep as broad an approach as you can, and include more critical thinking about the field. Mike Vatalaro, Pendleton, SC Legwork I think about my pots as I sit at my wheel and dig my own clay—from the pugged, de-aired, premixed, boxed and bagged lump of my favorite combination for plasticity and strength. What mix is this? I forget once in a while. I know I can get it again, and someone else knows the formula. At a workshop a few years ago, a gentle­ man from Colorado explained absorption rates and how to make tools for tests. In several studios I’ve visited, many tiles for many tests line the walls. Applications of glaze formulae on countless clay bodies abound and dizzy me with variety. Who has the time for such resolve? I reminisce about flipping the switches on my own antique kiln, watching clocks and cones. Truly ancient kilns come to mind—the ones from books. Potters stoked flames in a pit or a pile, let it breathe, stoked again, kept the heat up, watched the flame, let it cool. Perhaps they took the time to tell tales of even more ancient days and how it was before everyone was in such Ceramics Monthly April 2004 10 letters There are many pots I’ve loved throw­ taught a child, then a friend, then someone ing—both ways. They’re stacked in a rubbleorganized a workshop. Pretty soon, classes heap in my backyard. The pots that I keep were being held. I admire those artisans a hurry, and you knew the heat was right come from people who have had heaps of who know the process and flow with it, by the color. their own, and have been disappointed by work at it and write about it for us. I ad­ Sometimes, when I try to squeeze a few the recipe that didn’t quite gel.