Missoula Art Museum Montana Triennial: 2015 by Missoula Art Museum

M O N TA N A T R I E

N N I A L :2015

MONTANA TRIENNIAL 2015

DIREC TOR’S COMMENTS – laura j. millin –

teel magnate Andrew Carnegie inaugurated the first survey of international contemporary art in 1886, at the Carnegie International at the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburg, as part of his philanthropic crusade to bring culture to the masses. That crusade included the establishment of over 1,600 public libraries in North American, including the Missoula Public Library in the building now occupied by MAM. Since that time international biennials and triennials have been established in museums worldwide and in turn, regional and statewide surveys. The Montana Triennial: 2015 followed suit beginning in 2009. The project demonstrates an abiding commitment and respect for contemporary art practice in a state and region known better for its western art tradition. Our commitment to invite an out-of-state curator to make the selection of artworks from the state remains strong. It is a process that allows us to think outside our box here at home. The juried exhibition is open to all artists living and working in the state of Montana, and includes work by both established and emerging artists, with the stipulation that the works be new, fresh and innovative. Once again, MAM wishes to thank all of the artists who participated in this process. All of us at MAM are so very pleased to have engaged our longtime friend and former statewide colleague Peter Held to serve as the juror of the The Montana Triennial: 2015. He has taken on the job with the right measure of curiosity, an acute sense of history, and a passionate sense of what makes this place unique. His themes say it all: Intimate, Expansive, Mark-Making and We the People. Montana Triennial: 2015 is supported in part with a grant from the Montana Cultural Trust; MAM thanks the Montana Cultural Trust Committee, the Montana Legislature, and the Montana Arts Council for standing behind this project for each of the three Triennials. Catalog sponsorship comes from Helori Graff, Artcraft. In closing I wish to thank MAM’s Board of Directors, patrons and the City of Missoula for supporting our endeavor to take on such a daunting task as hosting a statewide survey. MAM’s mission is well realized with this project: engaging audience and artists in the exploration of contemporary art relevant to the community, state and region.

intimate and

Montana Triennial: 2015 – peter held –

aving resided in Montana for more than 25 years, I was honored to be asked to curate this year’s Triennial. The Missoula Art Museum staff and I started a conversation almost three years ago to discuss the possibilities of the complexion of the exhibition; a mutual decision was made to finely curate with fewer artists and having larger bodies of work by each artist. We have succeeded. Jurying exhibitions of this nature is a reflection on my personal tastes, honed by years of organizing shows in a variety of formats, drawn from experiences as the former director and curator at the Holter Museum of Art and until recently, the curator of ceramics at the Arizona State University Art Museum. I’m fortunate that my career has taken me across the globe to visit artist studios, art fairs, and to lecture — each journey informing my mind’s eye. In reviewing more than 200 submissions, it was daunting to come to final conclusions. But several themes arose that facilitated envisioning an end result: Intimate; Expansive; Mark-Making; and We the People. I believe the sum total accurately reflects the state of the arts in Montana today. An added dimension in the jurying process is becoming familiar with artists previously unknown to me. Certainly I was well-acquainted with a majority

of artists submitting for the Triennial, having worked with most in the past. Throughout my career I have always strived to champion emerging artists, artists from other cultures, and equal representation of women. I’m pleased with the mix of recognized and underserved artists for this show. Survey art exhibitions convey the cultural temperature of our time in myriad means. Different media, numerous concerns, and various manners of expression all find validity in a world of diversity. There is no right way or wrong way of expressing oneself. Some artists delve into the soul, while others explore the external world. A studied detail may represent a far larger viewpoint. The grandeur of the wide-open landscape may capture a fleeting moment in time. The artists in this exhibition attempt to capture the world as they see it, be it from arm’s length or the distant gaze of the rancher overseeing his charge. The works range from the abstract to the figurative, but all reflect years of artistic preparation honed by schooling, travel, experience, critical theory, knowledge of place, and repeated trips to the studio revisiting themes and craft. Whether black–and-white or color, intimate or world-weary, rendered by manipulating clay or pushing paint, the works in this exhibition relate private tales and shared subject matter.

Jon Lodge, Surface Tension 59 Pulse Interval Analysis, acrylic, carbon colloid substrate, graphite on board, 16 x 16”, 2014

All are rich in distinct personal expression, yet similar thematic concerns can be discerned. Some of the artists have a special affinity for the land. Others empathize with persons known and unknown, portraying the human condition in all its variety. Technical matters are of utmost importance to some, while other artists are storytellers. Humor can be a main objective. Some scrutinize intimate relationships. This is why institutions continue to feature open exhibitions: They probe the mind of the artist without preconceived notion, letting the artists speak for themselves. It remains for their audience to discern common threads of thought, guiding us through the maze of contemporary ideas. Four artists in the exhibition examine intimate relationships in their work. Their subject matter focuses on relationships or a self-absorbed solidary figure in contemplation of their existence. Whether rendered in clay or paint, each of the artists wrestle with our existence in the wider world, be it alone or in tandem. The ceramic works of the apt-named Carla Potter seek both technical proficiency and intimacy. “I am curious about the qualities that have become labeled masculine and feminine,” she writes. “Hard shells and soft underbellies, I have discovered my own through the course of squishing about in the clay.” Her method, while still fully expressing reverence for the world and her place in it, allows the malleability of clay to more divulge her inner emotions. Kalon Baughan works as a professional wildlife painter who has garnered many honors over the years for his technical proficiency. He is an avid outdoorsman who enjoys research trips into the wild. But in this latest series of works, Baughan turns to the human figure, or rather human figures enmeshed in intimate embrace. His reverence for detail is evident; his skill of depiction is palpable. It is heartening to see an artist break free of his comfort zone and wander into unknown territory with such relish. Missoula artist Kristi Hager received a Gottlieb Foundation Individual Support Grant in 2003 based on twenty years of artistic achievement. A

photographer, writer, performer, painter, and activist, in the present exhibition she embraces painterly figuration, endowing her works with historical precedent while capturing a spirit of intimate introspection. Stephanie Frostad is represented by masterful paintings, connecting the figure with the natural environment. Her narrative paintings deal with characters dwelling in mostly agrarian landscapes, working with — and against — the four elements, not unlike the harsh conditions of Montana. She finds fertile ground for allegories about the unnatural circumstances within nature, with all its intimate and unknowing circumstances affecting our lives. Other works in the exhibition focus on the social context of the individual rather than scrutiny of one’s inner life. Bypassing intimacy for situating the figure in an environment revealing personality, these works, be they photographic or painted, examine the effects of daily living on the subject. Alexis Pike’s photograph of the after-effects of a sudden downpour, and the joy taken in a flooded portion of lawn, reveals the spontaneity of the individual awash in the moment, straightened by the craft behind the work. As the vertical figure of the subject crosses the horizontal sidewalk, our attention is centered on the force of nature below the photograph’s horizon, the upper portion of the work reflects our engagement with the realities of the world. With experience in commercial illustration, watercolorist Bayla Laks’s detailed renderings depict whimsical narrative renditions of everyday life. She is represented by three works portraying hard-living, hard-partying, flag-waving, beer-guzzling, gun-toting folks, reveling in their own exuberance. Make of it what you will, but they are forthright and honest, and, I would suppose, people the artist knows intimately. Jennifer Pulchinski employs the figure to convey “an honest echo of our social lives.” Her work in the exhibition is shorn of culture clutter, relying on the choice of clothing, or lack of it, to reveal the individual’s personality. Pulchinski often ventures into

installation to flush out the motivation of her subject. “We are not static zombies,” she has stated. “We morph and always change.” Larry Blackwood’s education in sociology comes through loud and clear in his photographic depiction of a self-assured cigar-chomping patriot in repose. He could equally have studied anthropology. Seeking the elusive moments that are gone in a blink, Blackwood has a sense of humor coupled with sensitivity to his subject. The husband and wife team of Lido and Jessica Vizzutti both contribute photographic work to the exhibition. Lido was an award-winning practicing photojournalist for many years before turning to a freelance career. He photographs a young cowhand astride his steed, his expressionless face disclosing nothing, the accoutrements revealing all. Likewise, Jessica photographs a masked face, cloaked in beekeepers’ protective mesh. Standing in an open field, chaos swirls around her. The dichotomy of apparent risk and shielded safety marks this as one of the most highly evocative images in the entire exhibition. While some of the artists in the exhibition focus on the figure, others employ the landscape as a starting point for their creativity. Those who do, employ very different strategies in accomplishing their task. Barbara Van Cleve and Ken Dvorak use a camera to engage with the landscape, while Dana Boussard and Michael Haykin dip into contemporary trends of presentation to convey allegories of the land. Barbara Van Cleve hails from a Montana ranching family dating back to 1880. She was in the saddle helping the family with chores by age six and given a camera at age eleven. These early experiences shaped a passion for photography and the land. She is represented in the exhibition by two black-and-white photographs of cowboys overseeing their stock. But it is the wide sweep of the land that dominates her work. Van Cleve’s authentication provides her with active engagement with ranching life, and her special relationship with women who work within it has garnered her induction into the Cowgirl Museum and

Hall of Fame in Fort Worth, Texas. Ken Dvorak moved to Montana in 2005 with an interest in photography dating back to the 1960s. His landscape work in black-and-white exudes drama, capturing moments in nature that portend adventure and contemplation. Unlike Barbara Van Cleve, Dvorak eliminates the figure to concentrate solely on the land and the effects of time upon it. Whether it is a river cutting through the canyons of Yellowstone, or a deserted farmhouse, the aged beauty of a changing landscape is revealed amidst the ravages of a passing era. Dana Boussard provides us with a very different entry into landscapes cloaked in her fluid and skilled hand. Persons and homes dot her drawn landscapes, reminding us that we dwell in nature… and our fantasies. Balancing a world composed of a spectrum lying between fact and fiction, of the spiritual and concrete, Boussard’s drawings, much like her fiber works, are surreal dream-like composites of the known and unknowing. Unlike the documentary photography of Van Cleve and Dvorak, Boussard clearly exploits nature for its symbolic potential. Clouds, insects, and stones are the subjects of Michael Haykin’s paintings. Whether living in the mountains outside of Boulder, Montana, or the Sonoran desert in the foothills of Tucson, Arizona, Haykin is enthralled by the wonders of nature, examining the vast nuances in abundance. His internal narratives and personal mythologies shape his mosaic-like paintings, examining the details of nature while abstracting them for painterly ends. While Boussard’s and Haykin’s paintings are abstracted from nature, the next grouping of artists are all about the process of painting and can be said to be non-objective artists rather than abstract, since their work does not derive from observation of nature. Their concerns are in contrast to the other artists in the exhibition who employ reality in the service of their art. The following artists begin with paint and end with paint. The process they undertake depends solely on color, composition, and construction. Clues to the progression of the work

are often left in the pictoral plane. Like paragraphs in a story, these mark-makers leave behind layers of thought that went into the evolution of the painting. Brandon Reintjes, both a curator and painter, is represented by four works in the exhibition. They are notable for perforated layers of paint revealing other dimensions. As a curator he is well-schooled in contemporary cultural currents, and has spoken of Montana Modernism in a discussion of Dadaist Tristan Tzara. He has also had occasion to converse on the record with other of the artists in the exhibition. He did so with Sandra Dal Poggetto, and it bears repeating in examining the motivation of these nonobjective painters. Both are physical painters, pushing and manipulating paint on surface with a technique that is seemingly impulsive yet very studied and controlled. Dal Poggetto’s works have a similar quality. Her flat backgrounds are punctuated by flourishes that can be seen as resting on the surface or revealing a different reality beneath the surface. Her paintings can only be made in the American West, informed by her skills as a hunter and intrepid chronicler of nature lay bare. Jessie Baldwin once taught a class in alternative painting techniques at the Missoula Art Museum, which explained “how to apply paint with a variety of common household tools.” Her mixed media works display an intuitive use of materials and their application. Her philosophy of “anything in the service of art,” finds resonance in her melding of strokes, scratches, scouring and smears. Baldwin’s work is pure mark-making, and for those who can read her layering of paint, it can be as meaningful as a wellcrafted work of literature. The paintings of Jon Lodge rely on techniques that court randomness. A musician as well as a visual artist, Lodge applies the lessons of jazz improvisation, moved by music and the gradations of sound and the rising and falling of emotional and intellectual dimensions. Surface Tension 59 Pulse Interval Analysis can read as Morse code, braille or perhaps the experimental scores of visual sound. The artist states

most eloquently that his “visual work is silent, but holds within it a translation.” Maggie Carlson invents systems. They are systems not of technique, but drawn from some hidden dictionary of meaning. Her calligraphic designs call to mind the script of a forgotten civilization whose language has been lost in the dusty corridors of time. Pamela Caughey also employs cryptic text in her work. Like her fellow mark-makers she invites spontaneity. The encaustic medium holds a special interest for her with its malleable surface, giving her the opportunity for directly translating expressive content to the surface. We have dealt with the two-dimensional works on paper and canvas in the exhibition, but no survey of Montana art would be complete without inclusion of ceramic works. Drawing upon the legacy of Peter Voulkos and Rudy Autio and the establishment of the Archie Bray Foundation in 1951, which has attracted international resident artists, it is no small wonder that the Triennial has attracted accomplished artists within the field. From innovative large-scale cast porcelain sculpture to post-pop narrative vessels, the ceramic offerings in the exhibition display a full range of ceramic design and originality that would be at home in any major clay survey in the country. Jeremy Hatch contributes a porcelain stool and spool cast from actual objects. He is a past Archie Bray resident who also completed residencies in Asia and Europe, and has taught at the Rhode Island School of Design. “For me, the act of casting is a symbolic gesture; it freezes a moment in time, recording and preserving forms and events that are impossible to relive. My work implicates the viewer as a participant, reflecting back the personal histories, desires, and anxieties brought to it.” His monochromatic sculpture brings monumentality even to smaller-scaled objects. Julia Galloway is represented by a large-scale porcelain installation The Place it is I Call Home. A major departure for this ceramist widely known for her elegantly crafted baroque utilitarian vessels, the installation of ceramic components residing on the walls and suspended from the ceiling forces

the viewer to look skyward, as if dreamily gazing at passing clouds. She is currently a ceramics professor in the School of Art at The University of Montana, Missoula, and is a member of the board of the Archie Bray Foundation. Israeli artist Zemer Peled is a current Windgate Fellow resident artist at Archie Bray, who also uses ceramics in her installation works. She begins by rolling sheets of raw and fired clay that are shattered into shards and reconstructed into life-like and imagined organic forms. Her work, predominantly in hues of blue and white, can be interpreted as the fragility of the material and life itself, The elaborate sophisticated works of Hatch, Galloway, and Peled are counterbalanced by the playful yet serious works of Jesse Albrecht and Shalene Valenzuela. Both fall into the “funk” category of ceramic sculpture, a long-standing tradition, which elevates the crafting of clay vessels to a level beyond mere practicality. These artists have something to say, and express it with a trace of humor and wit. Jesse Albrecht’s personal story is as riveting as his painted vessels. A combat medic in Iraq, he is represented by two works that reflect his wartime experience. War Stuff and Welcome Home replicate both the familiarity of combat and the adjustments necessitated when returning home from battle. “My work becomes the means of collecting and analyzing data about the historical, cultural, ethical, and contemporary aspects of war,” he writes, “and the act of making provides relief in the process.” Nowhere else in the exhibition is art in the service of therapy as profound and compelling. Shalene Valenzuela’s ceramic sculpture, Cinched, is rife with allegory. She draws upon a heritage established by Voulkos, having attended the University of California, Berkeley, where Voulkos taught, and participated in the Archie Bray residency program, which he helped establish. But the results couldn’t be more different. A focus on women’s issues is a dominant concern. The trompe l’oeil works are slip-cast and illustrated with hand-painted and screen-printed imagery, reflecting upon a

variety of issues with a thoughtful, yet humorous tenor. The artist goes on to state that, “Beneath the shiny veneer of these relics hides a complex and sometimes contradicting truth of what things seem to appear upon first glance.” One could apply these words to all the works in the Triennial. The “shiny veneer” of craft, whether painting, photography, drawing, or ceramic, services the artist’s vision. These visions are not so much revelations as they are explorations, obtained through trial and error in contemplation of the medium and the artist’s intellectual meanderings. Whether it is a young cowhand photographed astride his mount, or a painted woman immersed to her waist in a pool of water, we take from it what we will, bringing our own background to evocative works of art encouraging us to explore new avenues of meaning. Truthfully, I had twinges of being homesick reviewing the works by these talented artists. They have captured all that I love about Montana: the windswept vistas of the eastern plains, the craggy snow-capped mountains ringing the western front, bursting fields of wildflowers and bear grass pregnant with spring. But most of all it is the spirit and independence of the people who call Montana home that brings me back on annual sojourns. I have never lost touch in absentia, and the artists in the 2015 Triennial have captured all that and more. In closing I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to all the artists who provided me the opportunity to preview their art and to my long-time friends at the museum who made the process of organizing the Triennial a deeply enriching experience. Laura Millin, Steve Glueckert, and John Calsbeek should be commended for their unwavering support of Montana artists and for continuing to provide a lively platform to showcase the rich artistic legacy informed by the land and its people. Peter Held Independent Curator Phoenix, Arizona

Jesse Albrecht

grew up in a small Wisconsin town. He joined the National Guard at the age of 19 and majored in ceramics at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. Albrecht moved to Iowa in 2000 to pursue an MFA at the University of Iowa, and when transferring National Guard units he was re-classed as combat medic. Halfway through his MFA, Albrecht was deployed to Iraq. He returned to graduate school and used clay as an expressive outlet for the overwhelming cultural, mental, and physical experiences of war. Albrecht lives in Bozeman, MT, and teaches drawing at Montana State University. He is a member of the collaborative art group Paintallica and a rotational member in the project Combat Paper. Jesse Albrecht, War & Stuff, ceramic, 9 x 9 x 18â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Jessica Baldwin

is an artist and teacher living and working in Missoula, MT. She earned a BA from The University of Montana and an MA from Boston University. Baldwin relies on drawing and painting as a source for obtaining understanding and finding meaning. She explains, “As I draw and paint I begin to make sense of my surroundings, emotions, and experiences. Using abstraction and mixed materials allows me to build a vocabulary to convey what I cannot with words.” Baldwin teaches K-12 visual arts in the Alberton public schools. Jessica Baldwin, Broken Wires,graphite, acrylic, watercolor pencil, and oil pastel on paper, 30 x 22”, 2014

Kalon Baughan

lives in Helmville, MT. He earned his BFA from Albion College and graduated with honors in 1988. Between 1990 and 1992 Baughan was artist in residence at Albion College. In 1999 Northlight Books published Baughanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Painting the Faces of Wildlife. Baughan has taught figure drawing classes, shown his work both nationally and internationally, and has won numerous awards for his paintings and drawings. Kalon Baughan, Daydream, charcoal on paper, 26 x 47â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Larry Blackwood

of Helena, MT, is a self-taught fine art photographer with more than 40 years of experience. Born and raised in Kansas, he has lived in Montana for 32 years. He earned a Ph.D. in statistics and worked in that field for 30 years while pursuing photography part time. In 2007 he switched to photography full time. MAM sponsored an exhibit of Blackwood’s photography that toured Montana through MAGDA in 2012/2013. He has had numerous solo exhibitions, including at the Wichita Art Museum, the Center for Contemporary Arts, the Museum of Idaho, and the Hockaday Museum of Art in Kalispell, MT. Larry Blackwood, Patriot’s Dream #10, pigment ink photograph, 18 x 24”, 2013

Dana Boussard

is a nationally renowned artist with artwork in the collections of numerous private, corporate, and public buildings around the country. She has an active studio practice, as well a long career as a public artist. She creates installations on commission from architects, designers, liturgical entities, and individuals and works in both textile murals and stained glass installations. She creates large-scale work that can be seen in public space from Anchorage, AK, to Washington, D.C. Boussard has earned numerous awards and accolades, exhibits her work in museums nationally and abroad, and has been a vocal advocate for the arts and art in education for decades. She lives in Arlee, MT, with her husband Stan Reifel. Dana Boussard, Separation Anxiety, oil stick, colored pencil on paper, 44 x 30â&#x20AC;?, 2012

Stephen Braun

has worked in ceramics for more than 30 years and studied art with Rudy Autio and Ken Little at The University of Montana. He has been featured in numerous solo exhibits and group shows nationwide and abroad. Braun lectures and presents demonstrations at museums, universities, and conferences. His work is in myriad collections and museums, including in MAM’s permanent collection. The John Natsoulas Gallery published an 80-page book on Braun’s work titled Cause and Effect. Braun lives outside of Whitefish, MT, and teaches at Flathead Valley Community College in Kalispell. In 2013 he co-founded “Ceramics Festiva,” an alternative firingtechniques conference with David Smith at FVCC in Kalispell. Stephen Braun, A Forest of Smoke Stacks, rakued clay, 22 x 15 x 8.5’, 2014

Christiane Buell

, born and raised in Switzerland, has lived in the United States for 20 years. A classically trained ballerina, she studied at the Swiss College of Dance and Ballet in Zurich from 1982 to 1986 and at the Alvin Ailey Dance School in New York City in 1987. Buell came to painting after an automobile accident ended her aspirations of being a professional dancer. She studied at the Swiss College of Fine Arts before moving to the Bay Area, where she attended California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland. Buell was an artist-in-residence at the Montana Artists Refuge in Basin in 2004/2005. She lives in Helena, MT. Christiane Buell, Barb Line, oil on canvas, 21 x 21â&#x20AC;?, 2013

Maggie Carlson

is originally from Oregon but came to Montana to study with Rudy Autio at The University of Montana. She eventually earned a BFA from California College of Arts and Crafts and an MA from Regis University. Carlson accepted a Montana Arts Council funded artist-in-residency on the Crow Indian Reservation, where she initiated a community art center in Wyola, MT. She has also completed residencies at the Archie Bray Foundation, at Yellowstone Art Museum, and at UCross, Wyoming. Carlson teaches art at Wyola School and works from her studio on her husbandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s family ranch in Southeast Montana. Maggie Carlson, Willows, acrylic and paper on wood panel, 32 x 33â&#x20AC;?, 2013

Pamela Caughey is an artist

living in Hamilton, MT. She grew up in Wisconsin and graduated with a bachelor of science in biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She studied photography, drawing, and ceramics in London before moving to Montana in 1986. Caughey returned to school to pursue art at The University of Montana in 2007, entered graduate school in 2008, and earned her MFA in 2010. She recently participated in numerous exhibitions, including the 10th NW Biennial at the Tacoma Art Museum in 2012, and was featured with a solo exhibition at MAM in 2014. Caughey is on the faculty at the Bitterroot College of The University of Montana, where she teaches art. Pamela Caughey, Circumnavigation, encaustic, mixed media, 28 x 28â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Sandra Dal Poggetto

was born in Sonoma, CA, and now lives and works in Helena, MT. She earned an MA in painting and drawing from San Francisco State University, and also studied in Italy. Her accolades and awards include published essays on art and the landscape, the Helene Wurlitzer Painting Fellowship, Pouch Foundation Residence, and Ucross Foundation Fellowships, among others. Dal Poggetto has participated in numerous group exhibitions, including at PDX Contemporary, Yellowstone Art Museum, and MAM. Her list of solo museum exhibitions includes the Holter Museum of Art, Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture, and the Montana Museum of Art & Culture at The University of Montana.

Sandra Dal Poggetto, Relict #7, oil, soft pastel on paper, 15 x 15â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Jane Waggoner Deschner grew up in Lawrence, KS, and moved to Montana in 1977. She earned a degree in geography at the University of Kansas and an MFA at Vermont College of Fine Arts. She exhibits actively with recent solo shows in Kansas, Missouri, Nevada, Wyoming, and Montana. Deschnerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work was featured in The Embroidered Image, an invitational show at Robert Mann Gallery in New York City through the summer of 2014. In addition to being an artist, Deschner works as an exhibition installer, graphic designer, photographer, instructor, curator, and picture framer, and has served on the Montana Arts Council since 2008. Deschner lives in Billings, MT, with her partner, artist Jon Lodge.

Jane Waggoner Deschner, from the domino mask series (Jesus, assorted people), hand-embroidered vintage holy cards and snapshots, 15 x 11â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Josh DeWeese

is a ceramic artist and educator. He is an associate professor of art, teaching ceramics at Montana State University in Bozeman, where he and his wife Rosalie Wynkoop have a home and studio. DeWeese served as Resident Director of the Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts in Helena, MT, from 1992 to 2006. He holds an MFA from the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University, and a BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute. DeWeese has exhibited and taught workshops internationally, and his work is included in numerous public and private collections. Josh DeWeese, Large Covered Jar #3, wood fired salt/soda glazed stoneware, 20 x 21 x 26â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Christopher Dufala was born

and raised in southern New Jersey and earned his MFA in Spatial Arts/Ceramics at San Jose State University in 2004. He has been an artist-in-residence at several nonprofit institutions, including Osage Artists Community in 2009, the Clay Studio of Missoula in 2012, and he is currently a second-year resident at the Archie Bray Foundation. Dufala exhibits his work nationally in group, two-person, and solo exhibitions. He has lectured and given demonstrations as a visiting artist at several institutions across the country. Dufala serves as an art committee member and program consultant for the Osage Artists Community and was recently published in Ceramics: Art and Perception.

Christopher Dufala, Withering, earthenware, underglaze, glaze, stain, 16 x 52 x 8â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Ken Dvorak became interested in

photography in 1968 while serving in the Navy when the shipâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s photographer taught him how to use the darkroom. In 1985 he moved to Salinas, CA, and resumed an interest in black-and-white photography by taking evening courses at the community college. Since retirement, Dvorak has devoted more time to photography and exhibits his work in galleries in Missoula, Whitefish, and in his hometown of Seeley Lake, MT. He was also selected for the Montana Triennial: 2012. Dvorak is on the board of directors of Alpine Artisans where he works to make the Seeley, Swan, and Blackfoot Valleys an art destination. Ken Dvorak, Morman Row Homestead, Teton National Park, black & white giclee print, 14 x 11â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Stephanie J. Frostad

studied at Studio Arts Center International in Florence, Italy; the Maryland Institute; College of Art (BFA 1990); and The University of Montana (MFA 1994). She has exhibited throughout the United States and abroad in Canada, China, Italy and New Zealand. Her work is in numerous private and public collections, including the University of Washington Medical Center, the University of Victoria in British Columbia, the Montana Museum of Art & Culture, and the Missoula Art Museum. Frostad received a Montana Arts Council Fellowship in 1994. Born and raised in Walla Walla, WA, Frostad now lives and works in Missoula, MT. Stephanie J. Frostad, Swallow, graphite & oil on wood panel, 11 x 14â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Julia Galloway is a utilitarian

potter and an art professor at The University of Montana. She has exhibited across the United States, Canada, and Asia, and her work is included in many public art collections. Galloway has served on the board of the Haystack Mountain School of Crafts and the Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts. Her work has been published in Ceramics Monthly, Studio Potter, Art and Perception, Clay Times, and in numerous books. Galloway first moved to Montana in 1995 to be an artistin-residence at the Archie Bray Foundation in Helena, MT, and returned in 2009 after teaching at the School for American Crafts in New York for nine years. Julia Galloway, The Place It Is That I Call Home, porcelain and mixed media, size variable

Keith Goodhart

grew up in Pennsylvania, and moved to Montana in the mid-1970s. He became interested in making kinetic sculptures and toys for children while working as a ranch hand outside of Big Timber, MT. Largely self-taught, Goodhart has always been interested in finding energy in the materials he uses, no matter how humble. He makes freestanding and wallmounted mixed media sculptures. Since the early 1990â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s, Goodhart has been represented by a gallery in New York City, and has participated in a number of solo shows as well as museum exhibitions throughout the United States. Keith Goodhart, By the Italian Sunset, mixed, 28 x 29 x 12â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Kristi Hager lives in Missoula,

MT, and has worked as a self-employed photographer and multidisciplinary artist in Montana since 1984. Hager received a BA in architecture from the University of Pennsylvania and an MFA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She has been lecturer for the Humanities Montana Speakers Bureau since 1996. Her book, Evelyn Cameron, Montana’s Pioneer Photographer, was a 2007 Montana Book Award winner. Hager received a Montana Arts Council Artist’s Fellowship in 1986 and an Individual Artist’s Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts in 1989. Her photographs and paintings are in numerous public and private collections, and she has more than 500 photographs archived in the Library of Congress. In 2003, Hager received a Gottlieb Foundation Individual Support Grant based on 20 years’ artistic achievement. She received the Montana Arts Council Artist’s Innovation Award in 2010

Kristi Hager, Mirror, oil on paper, 11 x 15”, 2014

Robert Harrison is a practicing

artist who lives and works in Helena, MT. He has built his 30-plus-year career in the site-specific, large-scale architectural sculpture realm, along with smaller-scale studio activity. He holds BFA and MFA degrees in ceramics and is a member of the International Academy of Ceramics in Geneva, the World Association of Brick Artists, the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, and is a Fellow of NCECA (National Council on Education for the Ceramics Arts). Harrisonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s exhibition and installation record is extensive and global.

Robert Harrison, Hommage 1 for Augustus the Strong, reclaimed porcelain, wood, gold leaf, glass, 32 x 55 x 6â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Jeremy Hatch was born in

Vancouver, BC, and received an MFA from the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University. Since 2000 he has been active in solo exhibitions, collaborative projects, and group shows at myriad venues, including the Canadian Clay and Glass Galleryin Waterloo, Ontario; the Urban Institute for Contemporary Art in Grand Rapids, MI; and the Icheon World Ceramic Center in Icheon, Korea. Hatch has been the recipient of residencies at the Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts, the Archie Bray Foundation, the European Ceramic Work Center, the Bemis Center for Contemporary Art, the Art/Industry Program at Kohler Company, and Medalta. He is an assistant professor at Montana State University, Bozeman, MT.

Jeremy Hatch, Untitled (Spool), porcelain, 42 x 34 x 34â&#x20AC;?, 2013

Michael Haykin was born

and educated in Munich, Germany, while his family was in military service for the United States. In addition to numerous one- and two-person gallery shows, Haykin’s representational paintings have been shown at the Holter Museum of Art in Helena, the Montana Artists’ Refuge in Basin, the Helander Gallery in Palm Beach, FL, the Works Gallery in Southampton, NY, and the Limbo Gallery in New York City. Haykin lives in Boulder, MT.

Michael Haykin, Cumulus X, oil on canvas, 54 x 54”, 2014

Bayla Laks

was born and raised in New York’s Hudson Valley and now lives in Missoula, MT. While pursuing a career in illustration, Laks studied in countries all over the world, including Italy and Mexico, and at the Camberwell College of Arts-University of Arts London. She has a BFA from the Hartford Art School in Connecticut and has taught painting, drawing, printmaking, and bookbinding to all ages, including coordinating shows for youth and young adults with developmental disabilities. Laks’ exhibition history includes The Arts Center of the Capital Region in Troy, NY, the National Heirloom Exposition in California, and the Philadelphia Flower Show. Bayla Laks, Zoe, watercolor, pen and ink, 8 x 10”, 2012

Jodi Lightner

completed her MFA at Wichita State University in 2010. Since then she has exhibited nationally and internationally, including at the Angle Gallery in Seattle, Cara and Cabezas Contemporary in Kansas City, and Xuchang University in China. She has participated in artist residencies focused on studio practice at the International School of Painting, Drawing, and Sculpture in Montecastello di Vibio, Italy; and the Vermont Student Center in Johnson, VT. In 2012, Lightner was awarded the emerging artist in residency at Penn StateAltoona, where she also taught. Her work is represented by Kim Weinberger Fine Art in Kansas City. Lightner lives in Billings, MT, where she is an assistant professor of art at Montana State University-Billings. Jodi Lightner, Flocking, collected chairs, rope and balance, dimensions variable, 2014

Jon Lodge

was born in Red Lodge, MT, and his formal art training was in jazz performance and composition at Berklee College of Music in Boston. He gradually migrated into visual media, becoming the school’s photographer and art director. Lodge’s work fuses systems and processes of music and visual art—emphasizing material and process while harnessing the nuanced effects of light and shadow to animate his work. He has participated in group and solo exhibitions in museums and galleries nationally. His work is in the permanent collections of the Yellowstone Art Museum, the Missoula Art Museum, the Nicolaysen Art Museum, the U.S. Navy, and Yellowstone Public Radio. Lodge lives and works in Billings, MT. Jon Lodge, Drip Process Hybrid (Frequency/Amplitude Modulation) No. 2, acrylic, gesso, carbon colloid substrate on aluminum, 29 x 26.5”, 2013

Zemer Peled

was born and raised in a kibbutz in the northern part of Israel. After completing a BA in ceramics and glass at the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem, she earned an MA in ceramics and glass from the Royal College of Art in London, where she was awarded the Clore Foundation Award. Her work has been featured at Sothebyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and Saatchi Gallery, London, The Museum Tel Aviv, Israel, and the Orangerie du Senate, Paris among others. Peled is currently a long-term resident at the Archie Bray Foundation, Helena, MT. Zemer Peled, Sky Island, porcelain shards, fired clay, metal, 10 x 8 x 6â&#x20AC;&#x2122;, 2015

Alexis Pike is a sixth-generation

Idahoan. She received her BFA from Boise State University and her MFA from the University of Iowa. She has exhibited work at Blue Sky Gallery in Portland, OR, was one of five finalists for the Seattle Art Museum’s Betty Bowen Award, exhibited in the public art installation THE FENCE in both Brooklyn and Boston, and published in Harper’s magazine. Pike lives in Bozeman, MT, where she is an assistant professor at Montana State University.

Alexis Pike, Flood Irrigated Yard—Gooding, Idaho, pigment print, 18 x 22”, 2013

Carla Potter

grew up on a remote island in Southeast Alaska, where the dramatic landscape and relentless rain served up plenty of food for the imagination. During a sculpture class she realized that working with her hands offered a rewarding creative path. After her children had grown and left home she came south for a residency at the Archie Bray Foundation in Helena, MT. Potter then earned her MFA at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. She now resides in Helena, where she makes art and serves on the board of directors of the Holter Museum of Art. Carla Potter, Gesture #3, porcelain, 7 x 7 x 1â&#x20AC;?, 2013

Joanna Powell was born in

Dallas, TX and received a BFA in ceramics from the University of North Texas and an MFA in ceramics from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2012. Powell has exhibited her work throughout the United States including in Denver at the Plinth Gallery and Showpen Gallery, and the Center for Contemporary Craft, Pittsburg, PA. In 2011, she was a LEAP finalist at The Center for Contemporary Craft. Most recently she was named a 2015 NCECA (National Council for Ceramic Arts) Emerging Artist. Powell is a long-term resident as a Windgate Fellow at the Archie Bray Foundation in Helena, MT. Joanna Powell, A Simple Complicated Truth, earthenware, canvas, acrylic, plastic, 10’ x 7’9” x 4’, 2014

Jennifer Pulchinski was born

in Wisconsin in 1977. She uses the surface appearance of a person to translate what is deep inside that person and what is shared deep inside all people. When she begins a drawing with her subject, she describes the process as “borrowing the humanness.” Pulchinski’s higher education began with studying business and psychology in Wisconsin. In 2001 she moved to Bozeman, MT, where she continued her studies in education, but finished with a BFA in 2008 from Montana State University. Pulchinski still resides in Bozeman, MT drawing people and sculpting with barbed wire.

Jennifer Pulchinski, E. Ornitz, soft pastel on paper, 45 x 96”, 2014

Alison Reintjes is a ceramic

artist living and working in Missoula, MT. She studied at Kent State University, the Canberra School of Art in Australia, and Northern Michigan University. She first moved to Montana in 2001 for a residency at the Archie Bray Foundation in Helena. Reintjes has also held artist residencies at Greenwich House Pottery in New York, Jentel in Wyoming, Mount St. Francis in Indiana, and the Clay Studio of Missoula. She has exhibited at the Oregon College of Arts & Crafts, Portland, AKAR Gallery, Iowa City, Museu de Ceramica de lâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Alcora in Spain, Lillstreet Art Center in Chicago, and MAM, among others.

Alison Reintjes, Clatterbang, slipcast porcelain, 64 x 73 x 1â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Brandon Reintjes was born

in Bozeman, MT, and grew up in Northern Michigan on the coast of Lake Superior. He received his undergraduate degree in painting and drawing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and his MA in curatorial and critical studies from the University of Louisville. He maintains an active studio practice in addition to being the father of twins and working full time as Curator of Art at the Montana Museum of Art and Culture at The University of Montana. Reintjes lives in Missoula, MT, with his wife Alison. His studio is in a dark basement, which he only visits at night.

Brandon Reintjes, Buoy, oil and spraypaint on panel, 10 x 10â&#x20AC;?, 2015

Jay Schmidt was born in Chester,

PA. He received a BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute in 1974, and an MFA in sculpture and drawing from the University of California-Davis in 1976. After teaching for 26 years at Montana State University, in 2007 Schmidt retired from academia to become a full-time studio artist in Bozeman. In the past two years he has had solo exhibitions at MAM and the Holter Museum of Art in Helena, MT. In January he won the Sixth Biennial Zahner Competition, and his sculpture proposal will be fabricated this summer in Kansas City. He is a member of Paintallica, the Living Breathing Thing, and an active participant in the Free Art School movement. Jay Schmidt, Old Faithful, painted wood and carnival lights, 4 x 17 x 4â&#x20AC;&#x2122;, 2014

Shalene Valenzuela was born

in Santa Barbara, CA. She received her MFA in ceramics from California College of Arts and Crafts. In 2007 she came to Montana to participate in a long-term residency at the Clay Studio of Missoula, MT. She now maintains a studio in the historic Brunswick Building and is the executive director of the Clay Studio of Missoula. Valenzuela has participated in summer artist residencies at the Archie Bray Foundation and Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts. Valenzuela has been a guest artist and speaker at a number of art centers, colleges, and universities. Her work has been featured in several group and solo exhibitions nationally and is included in numerous publications and collections. Shalene Valenzuela, Cinched In II, cone 6 porcelain, 11 x 16 x 9â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Barbara Van Cleve was born

and raised on her family’s historic ranch in Melville, MT. She earned an MA in English literature at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL, and then taught English literature and later photography for more than 25 years at DePaul University, Loyola University, and Mundelein College—all in the Chicago area. She moved to Santa Fe in 1980 to concentrate full time on photography and had her first major exhibition in 1985. Since then Van Cleve has had more than 60 solo shows, more than 100 group shows, and numerous book publications. She eventually moved to Big Timber, MT, where her studio is located close to her family ranch.

Jessica Lowry Vizzutti

is a Montana-based photographer. Her work frequently appears in national publications, including the New York Times, Poets and Writers, and Sunset magazine. A Georgia native, she earned a degree in telecommunications/journalism from the University of Georgia. She now calls Missoula home and loves barbecue and back roads.

Jessica Lowry Vizzutti, From Where I Stand: Babb, MT, fine art photo print, 24 x 16â&#x20AC;?, 2014

Lido Vizzutti has been working

as a professional documentary, commercial, and editorial photographer for 15 years. After graduating with a degree in photojournalism from The University of Montana, Lido moved to Tennessee and worked as a staff photographer for the Chattanooga Times Free Press. While there, he was recognized with the Award of Excellence from the Society of Professional Journalists for his coverage of troops returning from Iraq. Vizutti returned to Montana where, in 2007, he helped found the Flathead Beacon, a daily online and weekly print newspaper in Kalispell. In 2013 Vizzuti started a freelance career with his wife and fellow photographer Jessica in Missoula, MT.

Lido Vizzutti, Blue Moon Rodeo: Young Man, photograph, 16 x 24,â&#x20AC;? 2012

Willem Volkersz studied art and

architecture at the University of Washington and received an MFA in painting from Mills College. His family moved to Seattle from Holland in the early 1950s. His drawings and sculptures have been shown in 44 solo exhibitions and more than 200 group shows in the United States and abroad. His most recent show was at Visions West Contemporary in Denver. In 2015 his work will be featured in a solo exhibition at the Yellowstone Art Museum in Billings and in the Portland Art Museumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Contemporary Northwest Art Awards exhibition. Volkersz has received numerous grants, including from the Gottlieb Foundation and the Montana Arts Council, and was also named a Fulbright Senior Scholar. He taught at the Kansas City Art Institute for 18 years before becoming director of the school of art at Montana State University in Bozeman in 1986. He retired from teaching in 2001 in order to become a full-time studio artist; he lives in Bozeman, MT. Willem Volkersz, Invasive Species, wood, paint, found objects, 72 x 52.5 x 8â&#x20AC;?, 2012

Monte Yellow Bird

signs his paintings and ledgers using the name he has been given through ceremony, Black Pinto Horse. He is Arikara and Hidatsa from the Three Affiliated Tribes Reservation in North Dakota. Yellow Bird attended the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe when he was sixteen and furthered his art and history studies at North Dakota State University. In 2002 he earned his bachelor of fine arts from Minot State University. In October 2014 Yellow Bird was chosen by the NelsonAtkins Museum as their artist-in-residence in Kansas City, MO, and in August was awarded the South Western American Indian Arts Residency Fellowship. Yellow Bird lives in Wilsall, MT. Monte Yellow Bird, Before the Dog Days, colored pencil on Boston, MA ledger, cir. 1834, 9.75 x 14.75â&#x20AC;?, created in 2013

O T H E R

W O R K S

Jesse Albrecht

Jane Waggoner Deschner

Jon Lodge

War Clown, ceramic, 32 x 56 x 22”, 2014 War Party, ceramic, 9 x 18 x 9”, 2014 Welcome Home, ceramic, 10 x 15 x 10”, 2014

from the silhouette series (Couple), hand-embroidered snapshots, 100-year-old album pages, 55 x 33”, 2014 from the silhouette series (Real Cowboy), handembroidered snapshots, 100-year-old album pages, 30 x 16”, 2014

Friction & Gravity (Vertical Flow) No. 2, evaporated water, acrylic, gesso, graphite on transparent static cling plastic, 17.75 x 17.75”, 2013 Surface Tension 59 Pulse Interval Analysis, acrylic, carbon colloid substrate, graphite on board, 16 x 16”, 2014 Surface Tension 91 (cluster map), acrylic, carbon colloid substrate on paper, 31 x 40”, 2015

Jessica Baldwin Handmade Gift, chalk, water, acrylic, graphite, watercolor pencil on paper, 22 x 30”, 2014 To Satiate, watercolor pencil, graphite, water, acrylic, chalk on paper, 22 x 30”, 2014 Waiting in the Yard, oil pastel, chalk, acrylic, graphite, watercolor pencil on paper, 39.5 x 26” 2014

Kalon Baughan Ball of Limbs, graphite on paper, 32 x 32”, 2012 Craniopagus, graphite on paper, 36 x 42”, 2012

Dana Boussard Her Whisper Saved Us, oil stick, colored pencil on paper, 44 x 30”, 2014 We Were Never More Devoted Sisters, oil stick, colored pencil on paper, 44 x 30”, 2012

Stephen Braun Victory, rakued clay, 36 x 96 x 24”, 2014

Christiane Buell Blue Mallard, oil on canvas, 43 x 55”, 2012 High Ore, oil on canvas, 43 x 55”, 2012 Lotus Road, oil on canvas, 21 x 21”, 2013

Maggie Carlson Neiko’s Story, Sumi ink on rice paper, 18 x 38”, 2013 The Story of Line, Sumi ink on rice paper, 18 x 38”, 2013 Translations, paper and Sumi ink on wood panel, 22 x 42”, 2013

Pamela Caughey Scratching the Surface, encaustc, mixed media, 32 x 32”, 2014

Sandra Dal Poggetto American Fork #12, oil, soft pastel, charcoal, buckskin danglers on canvas, 87 x 78”, 2014 Relict #6, oil, soft pastel on paper, 17.5 x 8.75”, 2014

Josh DeWeese Large Covered Jar #1, wood fired salt/soda glazed stoneware, 20 x 21 x 30”, 2014 Large Covered Jar #2, wood fired salt/soda glazed stoneware, 19 x 20 x 27”, 2014

Ken Dvorak Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Yellowstone National Park, giclee print, 24 x 20”, 2014 McDonald Falls, Glacier National Park, giclee print, 20 x 16”, 2014

Stephanie J. Frostad Hesitation, graphite & oil on wood panel, 8 x 10”, 2014 Swamp, graphite & oil on wood panel, 10 x 30”, 2014

Keith Goodhart Nest, mixed media, 30 x 24 x 18”, 2014

Kristi Hager

Carla Potter The Possibility #3, porcelain, 4 x 4 x 3”, 2013

Jennifer Pulchinski R. Connell, soft pastel on paper, 60 x 53”, 2014

Brandon Reintjes Costa, oil on aluminum, 12 x 12”, 2015 Piques, oil, ink and spraypaint on paper, mounted on panel, 10 x 10”, 2013 Play, oil on aluminum, 12 x 12”, 2013

Shalene Valenzuela A Toast to Burning Desires III, ceramic, 8 x10 x 6”, 2014 Handbaggage: Just One Bite, cone 6 porcelain, 8 x 7 x 4”, 2014 Telephone: Listen and Learn VII, ceramic 5 x10 x 8”, 2013

Bather, after Ingres, oil on paper, 9 x 13”, 2015 Crawl, oil on paper, 12 x 9”, 2014 Dawn, oil on paper, 15 x 11”, 2014

Barbara Van Cleve

Jeremy Hatch

Willem Volkersz

Untitled (Stool), porcelain, 16 x16 x 23”, 2012

Michael Haykin Insect Collection, oil on canvas, 54 x 54”, 2014 Jefferson River X, oil on canvas, 54 x 54”, 2014

Bayla Laks Paloma, Pascal and Jericho, watercolor, pen and ink, 11 x 17”, 2013 Will, watercolor, pen and Ink, 8 x 10”, 2014

A Quiet Night under the Big Dipper, silver gelatin print, 28 x 22”, 2012 Immigrant’s Dream, wood, paint, found objects, 27 x 81 x 20”, 2012 The Crossing, neon, wood, paint, found objects, 34 x 11 x 31”, 2014

Monte Yellow Bird Watch the Birdie, colored pencil on merchantile ledger circa 1913, 17 x 17”, 2012 I’ll Lead the Charge for Future Generations, colored pencil on US Calvary Recruiting ledger, circa 1800s, 10.25 x 15.25”, 2014 One More Prairie Flower, colored pencil on Dakota Territory, Probate Court, circa 1800s, 10 x 8”, 2014

Thanks

Montana Triennial: 2015 is supported in part with a grant from the Montana Cultural Trust; MAM thanks the Montana Cultural Trust Committee, the Montana Legislature, and the Montana Arts Council for standing behind this project for each of the three Triennials. Catalog sponsorship comes from Helori Graff, Artcraft Printers. Published by the Missoula Art Museum 335 N. Pattee, Missoula, MT 59802 missoulaartmuseum.org // 406.728.0477 Copyright © 2015 by the Missoula Art Museum The Missoula Art Museum is an accredited member of the American Association of Museums. Cover Image: Zemer Peled, Sky Island, porcelain shards, clay, metal, 10 x 8 x 6', 2015 Book Design: Yogesh Simpson

MISSOULA ART MUSEUM MISSION

MAM serves the public by engaging audiences and artists in the exploration of contemporary art relevant to the community, state and region. MAM STAFF

Laura Millin, Executive Director Anna Buxton, Development Associate John Calsbeek, Assistant Curator & Preparator Tracy Cosgrove, Internal Operations Manager Alison Dillon, Visitor Services Manager & Accessibility Contact Stephen Glueckert, Senior Exhibitions Curator Kay Grissom-Kiely, Grants Writer Ted Hughes, Registrar Katie Stanton, Marketing & Communications Director Renée Taaffe, Education Curator 2015 MAM BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Betsy Bach, President Bob Terrazas, Vice President Leslie Ann Jensen, Treasurer Brian Sippy, Secretary Jennifer Brockhouse Liz Dye Jocelyn Siler Sara Smith Bobby Tilton Paul Tripp Janet Whaley