Making News… Leading art collector and philanthropist donates $4 million in ceramics to Arizona State University Art Museum The Arizona State University Art Museum will receive nearly $4 million in contemporary ceramics from Arizona resident and Belgian native Stéphane Janssen, considered one of the world’s leading collectors of contemporary art. The donation consists of Janssen’s entire ceramics collection, with the exception of the works in his home – which are a promised gift to ASU – and his historic and contemporary Native American collection. Except for select pieces earmarked for the ASU Art Museum, the bulk of Janssen’s Native American work will be donated to the National Museum of the American Indian, which opens this fall on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. Janssen, a longtime supporter of the ASU Art Museum, will donate 686 ceramic works to the museum’s Ceramics Research Center and is offering another 200 pieces to the museum to sell to raise money for additional acquisitions. Janssen’s ceramics collection was acquired over a decade with his late partner, ceramist R. Michael Johns. To be officially named The Stéphane Janssen and R. Michael Johns Collection, it includes work by major American and international ceramists, including Robert Arneson, Akio Takamori, Jun Kaneko, Viola Frey, Adrian Saxe, Richard Notkin, George Ohr,
Ruth Duckworth and Harrison McIntosh, as well as a variety of emerging artists. Janssen’s ceramics collection was built combining two approaches – choices made with Johns’ studied eye for technical merit and those made with Janssen’s eye for pure aesthetic. The result is extraordinary diversity – from massive figurative sculptures that grace the hills, patios, entry and even the pool of Janssen’s Arizona estate, to delightfully whimsical bowls and teapots, some of which were created by Johns. Janssen’s decision to donate his collection to the museum’s Ceramics Research Center grew out of his love for Phoenix, his admiration for the philosophy of the CRC and the desire to keep his collection together. He said he likes the fact that the CRC embraces an open storage concept that enables visitors to see the majority of the collection, instead of having it hidden away in vaults most of the time. “It keeps the work alive,” he adds.
Susan H. Perterson with her collection of Native American ceramics.
Susan H. Peterson Archive and Ceramics Collection
Stéphane Janssen between Big Boy and Orange and Yellow Hand Man by Viola Frey.
Recently, noted ceramic scholar Susan Peterson, a retired ceramics professor, practicing and exhibiting potter, author of 11 books and collector of ceramics gifted the Arizona State University Art Museum with more than 275 historic, ethnic and contemporary ceramic art. When she moved from California and New York City to Carefree, Arizona, Susan became more directly involved in the ASU Art Museum and the formation of the Ceramics Research Center. The work reflects her wide-ranging interests and world travels and also serves as a visual record of the work of well-known ceramists when they were her students (Dora de Larios, Ken Price and John Mason) or early in their careers. From Japan, examples of ware from Tamba, Onda and Mashiko are well-represented, as is indigenous American pottery from the Jugtown Pottery in Seagrove, North Carolina, and Native American pottery with a special emphasis on the descendants of famed potter Maria Martinez from San Ildefonso Pueblo in New Mexico. Ceramics from Yixing, China, and Bernard Leach’s St. Ives Pottery are also documented through this generous gift. The study collection will serve ceramic students, researchers and the general public with a wonderful cross-section of pottery traditions and aesthetic directions.
In addition to the ceramics donation, Susan will also be gifting her ceramics archive that includes files of more than 1,500 domestic and international ceramic artists with vitae and photographs, her manuscripts, working and travel notes, videos and a large library of ceramic books. Also included is an archive from Glen Lukens, an early well-known ceramic and glass craftsman and former University of Southern California ceramics professor.
The Diane and Sandy Besser Collection of Figurative Ceramics Avid collectors of ceramics since 1964, Sandy and Diane Besser have amassed a wonderful group of ceramics that initially started with vessel forms and teapots. Seven years ago, their interest became more focused on figurative ceramic Sun-Koo Yuh. Untitled 2002. Clay, 16 1/2 sculpture, an area x 9 x 11 inches. Collection of the ASU Art they felt was being Museum; Gift of Diane and Sandy Besser. overlooked and underappreciated. Their interest in the figure was a natural extension of the Besser’s earlier collecting focus of 20th century figurative drawings. The Bessers have always supported both established and emerging artists. The works offer varying perspectives on the human condition, ranging from political commentary, psychological drama to humorous observations of daily life. As their collections broadened and matured, Sandy and Diane contemplated a fitting repository for their works. After Diane’s recent passing, Sandy visited the ASU Art Museum’s Ceramics Research Center several times, finding that his aspirations for the collection were matched by the center’s recent initiatives in increased public accessibility. In 2003, Mr. Besser donated 40 works, with other gifts pending. This new acquisition of figurative work greatly enhances the scope of the existing ASU collection, providing an important visual record of a significant trend in contemporary ceramic art. Sandy Besser at the CRC where his gift is being showcased.
Intern News The Ceramics Research Center’s staff is fortunate to work with many talented students who serve as interns. Internships at the CRC provide workrelated, hands-on experience for students in the arts and other disciplines. In addition to earning credit toward a degree, the internship experience also provides personal and intellectual development as new skills, knowledge and abilities are enhanced and professional relationships are formed. Joseph Gower is a first-year ceramics M.F.A. candidate originally from Madison, Wisconsin. He received his B.F.A. from the University of Wisconsin in 2003. Semester intern projects included processing and installing new acquisitions, organizing archival materials from Susan Peterson, and assisting with the live auction during Ceram*A*Rama. He is currently researching and compiling information on artists who are part of the Humor, Irony and
Wit: Ceramic Funk from the Sixties and Beyond exhibition. Steve Hilton is a second-year M.F.A. candidate in ceramics in the School of Art. He came to ASU in 2003 with a B.S. in Geology and an M.S. in Art Education, in addition to teaching 13 years of science and art at middle and high school. Steve is currently teaching 3D Design and working as a teaching and research assistant for the University Gallery Class and as a teaching assistant for the Ceramic Throwing class. This winter, Steve completed a 10-foot-by-15-foot ceramic sculpture for the Mars Space Flight Facility in the Mohr Building on the ASU Tempe campus. Steve has worked on collection management tasks and was very helpful during the Ceram*A*Rama Gala. Lorraine Shwer is a native of South Africa. She holds a B.A. in Art History and has a background in
graphic design. In 1978 she and her family moved to the United States. She is currently enrolled in the graduate Art History program at ASU. Lorraine enjoys the feel of clay and has participated in the open studio at Phoenix College years ago and taking classes at Mesa Art Center more recently. She has a small studio at home and recently started to explore mosaics. At the CRC, Lorraine is researching modern and contemporary British studio ceramics. Her findings will be used as interpretive text for the exhibition British Ceramic Masterworks: Highlights from the Anne and Sam Davis Collection. Thank you Joe, Steve and Lorraine, for your interest and hard work!