SUMMER EXHIBITIONS | EVENTS | EDUCATION | ARTIST SERVICES
2021
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Northern Clay Center
DIRECTOR'S REPORT
Over the course of the last fourteen months, Northern Clay Center has implemented a number of changes through transition, programmatic evolution, introspective evaluation, and the redevelopment of connections with all of its constituents. Guided by the Center's service-driven mission, our focus has remained on the communities that we serve and the ongoing advancement of the ceramic arts in all of our program areas. Through the development of new platforms, new programming, and with the assistance of an increasingly nimble and openminded approach to all of our practices, our commitment to the mission and community have allowed us to build upon our history and experience in innovative ways that help to further address conversations about accessibility, inclusivity, and diversity that have long been a part of our drive and focus. As the organization continues on its journey through the 30th Anniversary year that began in the fall of 2020, we have been reminded constantly of the myriad reasons that Northern Clay Center has remained a strong, relevant, and engaging organization in the field of clay. Guided and sustained under the direction of strong leaders and a supportive Board or Directors, the Center has consistently grown, thanks to the dedication of so many individuals who committed their time and energy to a mission and community that they believed in. Driven by a local and national community looking to engage in clay through exhibitions
and the sales gallery, education and outreach programming, residency and fellowship opportunities, as well as through our studio program, NCC has been able to provide a welcoming venue and platform for artists, learners, and the community to network and engage. Made possible by both the participation and donations of the community, and generous contributions from various foundations, corporations, and government agencies, the collective vision to support and sustain the organization has helped to facilitate an impact greater than most will realize. Collectively, these groups have contributed to the ongoing development of Northern Clay Center and the sustained ability to engage innumerable individuals through clay. In recognition of the Center’s 30th anniversary, our spring exhibitions hosted work created by makers who we have been fortunate enough to know and work with in our history. While the gatherings and group celebrations of anniversaries past are still outside of a safe reality given the constraints of the current health crisis, we welcome all to visit the exhibition— in person by reservation, or virtually on our website—to look back at the history of the Center and to partake in an interactive component to mark and record your story in the continuing history of Northern Clay Center. With the deepest of sincerity, we are grateful for each and every individual who has been a part of NCC’s history since its inception. Through your participation and with your support
and trust, Northern Clay Center has continued to advance and evolve to meet the needs of the community, challenge the field, support working artists, and bring clay into the everyday lives of as many people and in as many ways as we are able. Thank you for being a part of the Center’s history and for your ongoing support and involvement as we begin to write the next chapter of NCC’s story. ~Kyle Rudy-Kohlhepp
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EXHIBITIONS
American Pottery Festival September 1 – 5, 2021 Sales Gallery, Main Gallery, & Emily Galusha Gallery Opening Day Gallery Appointments & Online Benefit Sale: Wednesday, September 1, 10 am – 7 pm Daily Free Virtual Artist Lectures & Demos, 6 – 8 pm
Northern Clay Center is pleased to announce the guest artists for the 2021 American Pottery Festival, our annual fundraising benefit. Ceramic artists from across the country will illuminate and celebrate the honor in, and value of, the millions of ways to be and live and create in the U.S. They will generously offer glimpses of their studio practice, focusing on their personal perspectives and histories, technical information, and insight into their inspirations. Perhaps most humanizing, they will share experiences as makers through artist talks, demonstrations, and an exploration of the core significance of the medium within the context of this year’s life-altering challenges. AMERICAN POTTERY FESTIVAL 2021 INVITED ARTISTS Kurt Anderson, Ashley Bevington, Doug Casebeer, Pattie Chalmers, Matthew Dercole, Amanda Dobbratz, Justin Donofrio, Sanam Emami, Brett Freund, Stuart Gair, Bianka Groves, Guillermo Guardia, Mike Helke, Peter Jadoonath, Randy Johnston, Bill Jones, Kathy King, Forrest Lesch-Middelton, Jordan McDonald, Jeff Oestreich, Ronan Peterson, Tricia Schmidt, Mike Tavares, Sue Tirrell, Sandra Torres, Daniel Velasquez, Joyce St.Clair Voltz, Lars Voltz, Kurt Brian Webb Please visit northernclaycenter.org/APF for more information about workshop registration, preview work for sale, tickets, and our sponsors.
Sue Tirrell, Mug.
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APF Schedule & Fees
GALLERY ADMISSION Ticketed shopping appointments are available every 1.5 hours, beginning at 10 am, with a maximum of 10 tickets per time frame. Social distancing, gloves, and masks are required and will be provided. OPENING DAY: Wednesday, September 1, 10 am – 7 pm 1.5 hour gallery appointment: $35 Thursday, September 2, 10 am – 7 pm 1.5 hour gallery appointment: $25 Friday, September 3, 10 am – 7 pm 1.5 hour gallery appointment: $15 Saturday, September 4, 10 am – 7 pm 1.5 hour gallery appointment: $5 Sunday, September 5, 10 am – 7 pm 1.5 hour gallery appointment: $5
PRE-FESTIVAL WORKSHOPS 100% scholarship available to BIPOC attendees 50% scholarship available to any who identify as experiencing financial need NCC Members receive 5% discount Jeff Oestreich Wheels & Heels This 2021 American Pottery Festival weekend kick-off workshop with Jeff Oestreich will have several in-studio student spots available and take place in the virtual realm as well. Clockwise from top: Guillermo Guardia, Kurt Anderson, Kathy King.
Internationally-recognized artist Jeff Oestreich has one foot in tradition and one paving the trail of contemporary ceramics. During his workshop, Jeff
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will demonstrate a few of his favorite forms on the wheel amidst stories and sentiments from his career experiences. He will share techniques that contribute to the simplicity and directness of his approach. Much like the fond stories he will share, and the process of creativity, the workshop will unfold and build in an organic manner as artists, participants, and material synergize in space. Your time together will also feature a high profile surprise; you’ll be head over heels for this special opportunity! Thursday, September 2, 10 am – 1 pm Fees: $80 in-person workshop $80 Virtual Workshop with Materials Kit $60 Virtual Workshop - Content Only $45 Students with Materials Kit $30 Students - Content Only Tricia Schmidt & Kurt Brian Webb Concatenation of Art & Education Join artists and educators, Tricia Schmidt and Kurt Brian Webb, for a workshop on figurative storytelling in contemporary ceramics, their relevant work as educators, and where these paths intersect. Schmidt and Webb will demonstrate their respective illustrating and figurative decoration techniques while discussing how symbolism and social commentary are expressed in their works as well as how their works fit in the lineage of narrative pots. With a combined 50+ years of experience teaching in public schools, Webb and Schmidt will also share insights on guiding students in their expression of story and how their role as educators weaves with their artistic practice. As you absorb their teaching and techniques, practice surface decoration methods on tiles and forms of your own.
Thursday, September 2, 2 – 5 pm Fees: $80 Virtual Workshop with Materials Kit $60 Virtual Workshop - Content Only $45 Students with Materials Kit $30 Students - Content Only Sue Tirrell Unforgettable: Commemorative Plates and Tiles What images, feelings, and situations will you remember most about this tumultuous past year? How would you translate complicated feelings into an object of beauty and contemplation? Join Sue Tirrell for an exploration of plate making and narrative surface design. Sue will discuss examples of historic and contemporary commemorative ceramics and why they are important. Demonstrations will include handbuilt plate construction techniques as well as how Tirrell approaches narrative composition using pattern, symbols, and expressive color. With a materials kit option, participants will design their own plate and have the opportunity to paint, draw, and carve their own narrative designs with underglazes on a leather-hard tile. Friday, September 3, 10 am – 1 pm Fees: $80 Virtual Workshop with Materials Kit $60 Virtual Workshop - Content Only $45 Students with Materials Kit $30 Students - Content Onlys Joyce St. Clair Voltz & Lars Voltz Make it Thicker! This dynamic couple strikes a compelling balance with the distinct, juxtaposed personalities of their work. Their unique processes of creating involve practically contrary ways of building, Voltz makes objects that
Top to bottom: Jeff Oestreich, Tricia Schmidt.
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exude visual weight through methods of reduction; and Joyce creates robustly feminine forms with a light evocation through amassing and layering clay components. During this workshop, Volta will demonstrate strategies for using mass advantageously through the process of throwing and building thick, then aggressively subtracting material. St. Clair Voltz will demonstrate throwing forms as base structures for sprig adornment and for accumulating decorative mass. Join in with a materials kit and practice reductive and additive methods along with the artists. Friday, September 3, 2 – 5 pm Fees: $80 Virtual Workshop with Materials Kit $60 Virtual Workshop - Content Only $45 Students with Materials Kit $30 Students - Content Only
WEEKEND WORKSHOPS 100% scholarship available to BIPOC attendees 50% scholarship available to any who identify as experiencing financial need. Saturday All-day Virtual Workshops Saturday, September 4, 10 am – 5 pm Fee: $45 NCC Members and Educators: $35 Students: $30 Sunday All-day Virtual Workshops Sunday, September 5, 10 am – 4 pm Fee: $40 NCC Members and Educators: $30 Students: $25 Stay tuned to our website for up-to-date Saturday and Sunday workshop listings.
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DON'T MISS! May Featured Artists: American Pottery Festival Preview On view online: May 4 – 30 The American Pottery Festival Preview is your last chance to see and buy work by our visiting APF artists until APF weekend, September 1 - 5. Don't miss this special opportunity!
Opposite page: top, Lars Voltz; bottom, Sandra Torres. This page: top, Mike Tavares; bottom, Matthew Dercole.
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Pearl An NCC 30th Anniversary Exhibition April 30 – June 20 Main Gallery Virtual exhibition online May 6
This year, Northern Clay Center marks its 30th Anniversary with a group exhibition featuring the work of artists who have been at the core of a vibrant exhibition program over the years. It would be folly to think it possible to embody the full range of the contributions of the many talented, thrilling, controversial, and wise voices of 30 years of exhibiting artists, let alone offer an exhaustive exploration in one exhibition. Rather, it’s intended as an elegant sampling of relationships and the possibilities of clay as a medium. The name Pearl was selected for this exhibition to set the tone of celebration with a bit of traditional sentimentality, but also as a nod to the hundreds of thousands of people who wore pearls this past January to celebrate the inauguration. For many that day, pearls signified resilience, grace, unity, and poise. Pearls were a symbol of collective celebration of diversity in leadership and inclusion in decision making. NCC is filled with a 30-year history of devoted hard work out of the spotlight to build and advocate for the clay community. But it is the road ahead—filled with continued education and transparent action to ensure that community is diverse, genuinely equitable, impactful, and welcoming—that is something to truly celebrate.
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Opposite page: Anne Türn. This page, clockwise from top left: Linda Christianson, Adam Chau, Alisa Holen, Tom Bartel.
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How It's Going Works by past Emerging Artist Grant Recipients and MN NICE Alumni April 30 – June 20 Emily Galusha Gallery Virtual exhibition online May 6
How It’s Going offers space for past Emerging Artist Grant recipients and MN NICE alumni to share where their lives as artists have taken them since their time at NCC. Artifacts of careers in fashion, videography, engineering, architecture, and of course, ceramics help create an intriguing visual dialog. A collaborative, public timeline is a core part of this exhibit, and we invite everyone who has an NCC “moment” to share to contribute to the timeline wall. Whether your story is a date or an image, or an epic saga, it has a place here. Feel welcome to visit the gallery and add to the timeline in person, or submit your notes and/or images to Tippy Maurant at tippymaurant@northernclaycenter.org, and they’ll be added for you.
Clockwise from top left: Soojin Choi, Aaron Caldwell, Kevin Kao, Victoria Dawes.
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Eleven McKnight Artists July 2 – August 22* Main Gallery and Emily Galusha Gallery *Originally scheduled dates of this exhibition may change
In 2021, the Center’s annual McKnight Artist exhibition will provide the unique opportunity to view a comprehensive installation featuring works by grantees of the past two years. Select works by recipients of the McKnight Artist Fellowship for Ceramic Artists will be on display within the Emily Galusha Gallery. Featured in this gallery will be 2020 recipients Andrea Leila Denecke (Scandia, Minnesota) and Brad Menninga (St. Paul, Minnesota), as well as 2019 recipients Kelly Connole (Northfield, Minnesota) and Guillermo Guardia (Saint Paul, Minnesota). Represented within NCC’s Main Gallery will be works created by recipients of the McKnight Artist Residency for Ceramic Artists. Featured in this gallery will be 2019 recipients Pattie Chalmers (Illinois), Rebecca Chappell (Pennsylvania), and Marcelino PuigPastrana (Puerto Rico); as well as 2018 recipients Ted Adler (Kansas), Alessandro Gallo (Montana), Hidemi Tokutake (Japan), and Leandra Urrutia (Tennessee). This exhibition is supported by the McKnight Foundation and showcases the success of each artist’s fellowship or residency. Ted Adler has been teaching at Wichita State University since 2005, having taught previously at Northern Arizona University’s School of Art in Flagstaff. Adler received his BA from Lewis and Clark College in Portland, Oregon, and his MFA from Ohio State University in Athens, Ohio. He has studied with internationally-respected artists and has served as a long-term resident artist at the Archie Bray Foundation in Helena,
Montana. Adler connects strongly with his interest in exploring the materiality of clay and its relationship to metaphor. He has exhibited work, conducted workshops, and served as visiting artist at numerous ceramic centers and universities in the United States and around the world. Using the vessel as an analogy for selfhood, he elicits a sense that our relationships to ourselves and the world around us are more tenuous that we ordinarily prefer to admit. Pattie Chalmers utilizes a variety of approaches during the making process to create tableaux as an expression of a two-dimensional narrative space made three-dimensional. With fabrications depicting a shrinking of the distance between fact and fiction, her works visualize accounts from varying experiences that are amalgamated to reflect the flux of how things are remembered. Chalmers received her BFA in printmaking from the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada in 1993 and her MFA in ceramics from the University of Minnesota-Minneapolis in 2001. Transitioning from the role of student to teacher, she began work as an instructor shortly after completing her MFA. Having taught at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis and Ohio University in Athens, she has been an associate professor at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois since 2006. In addition to these sustained posts, Chalmers has led myriad lectures and workshops at art centers, universities, and institutions spanning the United States and additionally in both Canada and Hungary.
Top: Ted Adler. Bottom: Pattie Chalmers.
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Rebecca Chappell received her MFA from the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University in 2008 and her BFA from the Cleveland Institute of Art in 2003. Her work embraces directness in its use of earthenware and bold, unapologetic colors. The combination of the two is an appropriate complement to her forms, which are highly evolved yet retain a delicious primitiveness. Chappell has participated in solo and group exhibitions across the US. She was awarded the Evelyn Shapiro Foundation Fellowship in 2010 and her work is part of the renowned Rosenfield Collection. She currently resides in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she was a resident artist from 2010 – 2015 at The Clay Studio. She currently teaches a community class at The Clay Studio and at Maryland Institute College of Art for eight years.
Top to bottom: Rebecca Chappell, Kelly Connole, Leila Denecke.
Kelly Connole received her BFA from the University of Montana in Missoula and her MFA from San Francisco State University. Connole addresses relationships within environments: natural and constructed, human and animal, by combining the tactile nature of clay with memories and emotions. In addition to her participation in solo and group exhibitions across the country, Connole has been named the recipient of numerous grants and awards by organizations including the Jerome Foundation, the Minnesota State Arts Board, and previously by the McKnight Foundation as a Resident Artist. Additionally, she has authored numerous articles, essays, and reviews for publication, and has taught at an array of art centers and universities including her current position as professor of art at Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota.
Andrea Leila Denecke received her BA in Art and German from Cornell College, Mount Vernon, Iowa in 1972, Diploma with honors from Tekisui Museum of Art Ceramic Art Research Institute, Ashiya, Japan in 1986, MFA in studio art from Louisiana State University, Baton Rougein 1989, and certification from the Institute for Public Art and Design from Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Minnesota in 1998. Denecke’s work is reminiscent of historical tools and structures, and powerful in its simplicity. Her work presents the viewer with an island of tranquility for contemplation. Denecke has been recognized with myriad awards and honors including the Jerome Residency Fellowship at Franconia Sculpture Park in 2003, Minnesota State Arts Board Artist Initiative Grant in 2008 and 2013, McKnight Artist Fellowship for Ceramic Artists in 2004 and 2008, and a 1991 commission through the Minneapolis Arts Commission to create and construct the installation Stele Mississippi for the Ibaraki City Municipal Library, Japan. Alessandro Gallo has a diverse background that encompasses studies in law, painting, photography, and ceramics. Gallo represents the silent life of his surroundings and the stories of the people inhabiting them by creating human/animal hybrids, employing animal heads as an expressive tool to exaggerate the interior lives of each subject. Having ventured into the exploration of clay in 2005, Gallo began to compose his anthropomorphic characters and received widespread recognition for his work. He was featured in the 237th Annual Summer Exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts in London
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as well as the 54th Venice Biennale of 2011. Gallo continued to receive acclaim when he was named recipient of a Virginia A. Groot Foundation award in 2012, and as the focus of solo shows in 2014 and 2016 at the Jonathan Levine Gallery in New York. Guillermo Guardia draws inspiration from art history, his upbringing in Peru, Catholicism, his transition to living in the United States, and political events to create both figurative sculptures and functional pottery. He received his BFA in industrial design from Pontifical Catholic University in Lima, Peru and both his MFA and MS in industrial technology from the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks. Guardia has exhibited nationally and was awarded a fellowship from North Dakota Council on the Arts and a residency at the North Dakota Museum of Art. His work is in the permanent collections of the North Dakota Museum of Art in Grand Forks, and Fundación Puntos de Ecuentro in Bogota, Columbia. In 2020, he was named a recipient of an Artist Initiative Grant by the Minnesota State Arts Board. Brad Menninga received his BA in Politics from Oberlin College (Oberlin, OH) in 1992 and his MFA from California College of the Arts (San Francisco) in 2010. Menninga explores continuity and disruptions between past and present through his work by referencing and reimagining neoclassical forms of the Enlightenment era while simultaneously employing techniques of various periods in ceramic history. He has published with Ceramic Arts Daily and Pottery Making Illustrated, and facilitated activist art making workshops through the Portland, Oregon chapters of Jobs with Justice
and Art & Revolution. Menninga has been included in collective installations at the Walters Cultural Art Center, Hillsboro, Oregon, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, California, and created solo installations at the Mall of America, Bloomington, Minnesota and at the 2019 National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts Conference (St. Paul, Minnesota). He currently resides within his 2020 Minnesota Artist Initiative Grant supported period room installation: The Life and Legacy of Gijsbert van Engelenhoven. Marcelino Puig-Pastrana utilizes clay to explore cyclical themes of growth, decay, and transformation and ideas of both regeneration and an object’s tactile memory. Seeking to make an unequivocal affirmation of life in its interconnectedness and its endless possibility for renewal, he continues in his pursuit to resolve myriad questions and emotions that surged to the forefront of his work following Hurricane Maria’s impact on his community. PuigPastrana received his BFA and BA in art history in 2000 from Fordham University in New York, and has additionally trained in the areas of dance, drawing, painting, and printmaking, as well as both lighting and graphic design. In 1992, he was a recipient of a young artist grant in choreography from the National Endowment for the Arts and in 2017 he was a finalist with honorary mention in the 39th International Competition of Ceramic Art, Gualdo Tadino, Italy. Currently, Puig-Pastrana is developing new bodies of work in drawing, painting, printmaking, and ceramics at the Universidad de Puerto Rico and Casa Candina Ceramics Atelier, where he also serves as an Atelier Assistant and Drawing Instructor.
Top: Alessandro Gallo. Bottom: Guillermo Guardia.
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Hidemi Tokutake began her ceramic studies at the Seto Ceramic School in Seto, Japan. From this rich and historical base, Tokutake moved to Australia in 2003 where she studied at the National Art School in Sydney to complete her master’s degree in ceramics. She later became a member of the International Academy of Ceramics. While she currently works and resides in Sydney, Tokutake has completed residencies at various locations across the United States and in Denmark, and has exhibited at venues in Japan, Australia, Taiwan, Denmark, Scotland, Ireland, China, Turkey, Indonesia, and the United States. Creating works that echo the patterns found in nature, Tokutake embraces the presence of touch by allowing her finger marks to remain on the finished works which appear as organic forms interpreted in an Abstract Expressionist style. Leandra Urrutia earned her BFA in drawing and ceramics from Texas State University in San Marcos, and her MFA in ceramics from the University of Mississippi in Oxford. In 2007, she was honored as an Emerging Artist by the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) in Louisville, Kentucky, and in 2014 she was the recipient of the Emmett O’Ryan Award for Artistic Inspiration in Memphis, Tennessee. Beginning in 2002, Urrutia served as associate professor of studio art at Memphis College of Art, leading beginning, intermediate, and advanced courses in clay sculpture and idea development. In addition to exhibiting
her work at national and international venues, she is one of the co-founding members of the Studio Nong Collective, an ongoing international residency program comprising American and Chinese artist-educators invested in creative, cultural, and community exchange. Clockwise from top left: Brad Menninga,Hidemi Tokutake, Leandra Urrutia. Marcelino Puig-Pastrana.
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NCC PEOPLE
A Tribute to Peter Leach
In late winter, the clay community lost an influential and esteemed member. Peter Leach passed away on January 17, 2021 at the age of 87 and left a legacy in ceramics that deserves our ceaseless respect and gratitude. Peter was a founding member, if not the driving force, behind the creation of Northern Clay Center. When sharing remembrances with others, what stands out however, is his passions completely unrelated to his talent as a potter. Kay Erickson, another founding member and Honorary Director, reminisced about morel mushrooms, brilliant pasta dishes, and Peter’s generosity and drive. Linda Coffey, long-tenured board member, collector, volunteer, and also part of those founding conversations shared, Peter was a man who lived large. Not only did he have big dreams, like founding Northern Clay Center, he also made beautiful, big, and stunningly simple pots. I knew him when he was the driver behind NCC, as well as when he was a mycophile (morels only, I believe), and also as a cribbage player. He commissioned a friend to make a cribbage board for me which I continue to love 20 years later. We will miss him! And, Sarah Millfelt, former NCC Executive Director and staff for 20 years wrote the following about Peter, Peter Leach was already a legend by the time I joined the Clay Center’s staff in 1999. I don’t think I had the privilege of really talking with him directly until years later, when I took the reins of NCC. Peter remained incredibly passionate about NCC—its
Peter Leach
service to ceramic artists, its past, and its future— well beyond his tenure with the organization. He shared his opinions about NCC freely during his visits with me; they were plentiful and we didn’t often, if ever, agree! Instead of feeling a need to seek his approval of my vision and efforts for the Clay Center, our encounters instead imbedded in me a sense of duty to honor the past of NCC and a desire to place value on the people who made NCC the magical place it was, it is. At our every meet up, Peter proudly told and retold the story of NCC’s inception with incredible detail. At one point, and for my own personal edification, I remember scribing his story with pen and paper—including the exact list of individuals who were present the day Northern Clay Center was first hatched, and without care to what had already been scribed through formal means at NCC. It was an effort to memorialize our time together.
The treasures behind the counter at Al's Breakfast.
Our last meet-up was June 13, 2019, and we spent a wonderful morning together at Al’s Breakfast in Dinkytown. The staff knew him by name, and I had the great honor of listening to him and the owner swap stories of the old days when Peter was a student potter and frequented the establishment. They pulled out a few dusty vintage Peter Leach pots for me to view; they were so proud to know this man. I ate my weight in pancakes, bacon, and hash browns that morning; Peter paid; we agreed to meet again at that very spot before my tenure at NCC was up, and I’d pick up the tab. I walked him out to his car and told him I was excited for our next breakfast date, which never happened, unfortunately. But my final memory of him is a warm one, with a single shared opinion between us—diner breakfasts were the absolute best!
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NCC PEOPLE
EDUCATION
New Adult Scholarships!
So, thank you, Peter. From everyone who has had even one positive moment related to Northern Clay Center, you are offered thanks and respect. In conclusion, Peter was passionate about clay and changed our region, if not world, with the founding of Northern Clay Center. But we would be remiss if we failed to expound on the recurring themes also present in the memories shared above. Namely, Peter loved morel mushrooms and hunting for such. He was prolific and talented in this regard. Peter loved Al’s Diner. Peter loved cribbage. Peter loved food— both cooking and eating it. He was rumored to have authored a cookbook under the pen name Malfred Ferndock featuring, yes, morel mushrooms. NCC has unearthed a copy and acquired it for inclusion in our library in honor of Peter’s non-ceramic life. Here is just one winner recipe of Peter’s (erm, Malfred’s) for you to enjoy. In peace, Your friends at NCC
NCC is committed to maintaining accountability and pursuing action to build meaningful diversity, impactful equity, and genuine inclusivity in the ceramic community. We recognize that there are significant and systemic racial and economic impacts that impede participation in the arts, and resulting financial barriers contribute to further divide. To address and help bridge financial barriers to ceramic education, NCC is implementing new scholarship options for our education programming to open access to the ceramic arts and welcome all who wish to learn, grow as an artist, and participate in the ceramic arts community.
Malfred Ferndock's Morel Spread Makes about 1 cup 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter 1 cup chopped morels (or cultivated mushrooms) 2 tablespoons sour cream 1/4 teaspoon salt Dash pepper 1/4 cup sherry In a large frying pan heat 1/4 cup butter and saute mushrooms. Cool. Pour mushrooms and any juices that have accumulated into a blender or food processor, along with remaining 1/2 cup butter, sour cream, seasonings and sherry. Blend until smooth, about 1 minute. Chill slightly. Serve on crackers, bread or slices of raw vegetable.
We offer two scholarship options: A half-tuition scholarship, open to artists and learners with financial need, and a full-tuition scholarship, open to artists and learners who identify as Black, Indigenous, or a Person of Color. Scholarships are limited and will be available on a first-come first-served basis. For more information about these scholarships and to apply, please visit our website.
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NCC @ Virtual NCECA 2021
Clockwise from top left: NCC's virtual booth at the conference; work by NCECA guest artists Jose Flores Nava and Christina Erives; and the entrance to the virtual conference space.
We offer our collective thanks to all of you who engaged with NCC to view lectures or purchase pots for the 1st Annual Virtual NCECA conference in March. Each year, the in-person NCECA week is one of my favorite weeks of the year because we get to interact with so many more artists, collectors, peers, and just the curious, than we ever could on our own soil. “Walking” into the virtual expo hall was surprisingly triggering in all the best ways and reminded me of how valuable this conference can be. With over 2000 registered attendees, your purchases of nearly 300 pots, views of hundreds more, and over 150 visits to our current Virtual Exhibition on our site, we were able to help keep income streams open for artists and introduce new works and makers to a larger audience. Thank you to the 2021 American Pottery Festival Artists, Guest Artists, Grant Recipients, and Gallery Artists who trusted us with your wares and allowed us to feature an exciting offering for this event.
We’d also like to offer a special thanks to the artists who graciously gave their time to speak during the Gallery Expo Artist Lectures: Clarice Allgood, MN NICE Alumni & Fogelberg Fellow; Christina Erives, Guest Artist; Randy Schutt, Guest Artist; and Daniel Velasquez, APF 2021 Artist. We have links to their talks on our website for your viewing! Additional thanks must go to the staff and interns who somehow kept pace in the early, dark, and cold months of 2021, and not only launched a brand new website, but also prepared over 800 works for the online gallery. And, lastly, thank you to those of you at NCECA who managed a mountain of challenges to somehow bring people together for an educational event in entirely new ways. I really hope we get to see you all next year. Always, Tippy Maurant Deputy Director Director of Galleries & Exhibitions
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June Featured Artists: Geier, Love, Rudquist, Wert June 2 – July 3 Sales Gallery & Online
It’s finally summer and time to consider a little pottery self-care or gift for another. Please welcome this month’s featured artists by bringing their artwork to your (or someone’s) table, home office, or maybe that’s the same thing? Perhaps it’s a complete new set of contemporary ceramic dinnerware by Rudquist or Wert you crave after dining at home for months, or perhaps you learned you prefer a table full of Mingei-sota wares by several different artists like Love, or that your Google Meet screen needs a little Geier bud vase in the background to cheer you up? The beauty and satisfaction of food and flowers are elevated when offered in ceramic wares. This never changes.
Clockwise from top left: Brian Geier, Christy Wert, Monica Rudquist, Lee Love.
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July Featured Artists: Erives, Gruetzmacher, Jaszczak July 6 – August 1 Sales Gallery & Online
The height of warm weather is the perfect time to change a bit of your surroundings by starting, or adding to, your ceramic collection. Erives draws upon her heritage and imbues her own sense of humor with color to create tiles and functional vessels with engaging graphic sensibilities. Gruetzmacher offers contemporary and strong forms serving as host to deliberate, monochromatic surfaces. Jaszczak brings a quieter body of work with calm, but powerful, wares glazed in a soft, organic palette. Even a “collection” of one piece can offer a moment in the day to recognize a bit of good happening in the world, right?
Clockwise from top left: Adam Gruetzmacher, Christina Erives, Maggie Jaszczak.
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August Featured Artists: Bray, Kraemer, Gruchalla Rosetti Pottery, Swanson August 3 – 29 Sales Gallery & Online
Take a deep breath. Look around. There is always a place in your life for one more perfect pot. It might be a bright and sassy piece by Bray. Or is it one of Kraemer's majolica pots with celebratory images of pollinators and garden bounty? Gruchalla and Rosetti offer raku works decorated with stunning patterns or saturated, serene landscapes, and Swanson provides solid functional wares with the unmistakable and legendary forms born of decades of mastering the craft.
Clockwise from top left: Nathan Bray, Karin Kraemer, Will Swanson, Gruchalla Rosetti Pottery.
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Mother’s Day Gifts Are Coming
CALENDAR
Call for Artists
MAY 1 2 4 6 15 18 20 21 30
Digital illustrations of planters by Katie Cameron.
We have a pretty wonderful gift option for the mother figure in your life! NCC is partnering with local artist, Katie Cameron, to create 6” terracotta planters in an array of colors, from contemporary neutrals to cheerful brights to charm just about any mom personality. Shipping is available, and for local pick-ups your gift will include a lovely live plant. The planters will be ready for pick up or shipping on May 4, but there are only 50 available, so you are welcome to pre-order now to reserve your gift. $80
Northern Clay Center will conduct its biennial review of Sales Gallery artists in summer of 2021. The review will allow for both a consideration of work by new artists, and a reevaluation of work presently in the Sales Gallery, with the goal of representing a diverse community of makers, methods, and bodies of work. Artists who are juried into the Sales Gallery may be represented year-round, during the Holiday Exhibition, for a Featured Artist show, or all of the above. A panel of NCC staff and non-staff individuals who are knowledgeable of ceramics, art, design, and retail, will jury the work. We are happy to help with any questions regarding the application or gallery representation! https://northernclaycenter.org/about/ apply/#Sales-Gallery
Pearl and How It's Going open New Adult Scholarships open April Featured Artists closes Summer Registration opens, 10 am May Featured Artists opens Pearl and How It's Going virtual exhibitions online 30 Year Reunion Panel, 6 pm AAH workshop: Creatures for Your Garden, 12 pm Artist Demo: Kevin Kao How It's Going Artist Panel, 6 pm Applications due: McKnight Residency & McKnight Fellowship, 5 pm May Featured Artists closes
JUNE 2 June Featured Artists opens 20 Pearl and How It's Going close 23 AAH: Wednesday Clay Creativity, 1 pm 30 AAH: Wednesday Clay Creativity, 1 pm JULY 2 Eleven McKnight Artists opens 3 June Featured Artists closes 6 July Featured Artists opens 7 AAH: Wednesday Clay Creativity, 1 pm 10 AAH: Summer Fun Workshop, 2 pm 13 Artist Talk: Hyang Jin Cho, 6 pm 14 AAH: Wednesday Clay Creativity, 1 pm 20 Artist Talk: Roberta Massuch, 6 pm 21 AAH: Wednesday Clay Creativity, 1 pm 23 AAH: McKnight Exhibition Tour 28 AAH: Wednesday Clay Creativity, 1 pm AUGUST 1 July Featured Artists closes 3 August Featured Artists opens 22 Eleven McKnight Artists closes 29 August Featured Artists closes SEPTEMBER 1-5 American Pottery Festival
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McKnight Artist Residency for Ceramic Artists: Hyang Jin Cho and Roberta Massuch
and Smokestack Pottery (Fort Collins, Colorado). She received her BA in Archeology and Art History in 1991 and her MA in Art History in 1995 from Seoul National University (Seoul, South Korea). Continuing her studies as a postgraduate Foreign Research Student and PhD candidate within the Department of Art History at the University of Tokyo in Tokyo, Japan, Cho turned her academic focus to a more tactile experience as an undergraduate student at Colorado State University in Fort Collins. Over the course of her career, Cho has exhibited work, completed projects and residencies, and published in Korea, Japan, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United States.
Hyang Jin Cho
Join Northern Clay Center in welcoming our 2021 Summer McKnight Artist Residents, Hyang Jin Cho & Roberta Massuch. As we embark on this unique opportunity to host two McKnight Artists during the same quarter, we look forward to supporting their individual creative visions while establishing new connections with our community. Hyang Jin Cho A ceramic artist, researcher, and educator, Hyang Jin Cho (Fort Collins, CO) has been developing her practice, knowledge, and understanding of the arts in academia since 1991. She is looking forward to the time, space, community, and support that
the McKnight Artist Residency for Ceramic Artists will provide for her research, but she is also looking beyond such immediate benefits, noting that the opportunity will provide her the chance to “develop my structures further to create objects examining cultural diversity in the US.” Drawing from the community in which she is immersed, “the structures would represent a land as a home where people with diverse backgrounds could enjoy their lives together.” Prior to her residency at Northern Clay Center, Cho completed residencies at the European Ceramic Work Center (ECWC) (Oisterwijk, the Netherlands)
Roberta Massuch Influenced heavily by the architecture of her surroundings, Roberta Massuch (Philadelphia) creates functional pottery, sculptural vessels, and installations with evident reflection on construction techniques and the presence of hand. Utilizing the dichotomy of varied surface colors and interactions, she establishes a comparison to individuals and human interaction; her incorporation of the step motif serves as a metaphor for change. Leaving seams exposed as evidence of construction, her work allows the viewer opportunity to ascertain the interaction of individual components and reference to their structural influence. Massuch received her BFA in ceramics from Northern Illinois University-DeKalb in 2005 and her MFA from Louisiana State University-Baton Rouge in 2013. In addition to posts as instructor at The Clay Studio (Philadelphia), Tyler School of Art (Philadelphia), and the Community College of Philadelphia, she has received awards including the Jerome Ceramic Artist Project Grant in 2009, the
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Independence Foundation Visual Arts Fellowship in 2015 and further recognition through publications such as Clay Times, Ceramics Monthly, Musing About Mud, and various exhibition catalogs through The Clay Studio. Massuch’s work has been exhibited at universities, institutions, galleries and museums across the western United States including Northern Clay Center (Minneapolis, Minnesota), Appalachian Center for Craft (Smithville, Tennesee), Worcester Center for Craft (Massachusetts), The Clay Studio, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Goggleworks Center for the Arts (Reading, Pennsylvannia), and the Visual Arts Center of Richmond (Virginia). Related Events Please join us in welcoming each of these artists to the NCC community for their residencies taking place from July through September. During the first weeks of their time with us in Minneapolis, each artist will present an artist talk with time afterward for questions. McKnight Artist Resident Lecture: Hyang Jin Cho Join us remotely on Tuesday, July 13, at 6pm CT, where Cho will present a free lecture on her work. X15: Tuesday, July 13, 6pm CT FREE, Remote Login McKnight Artist Resident Lecture: Roberta Massuch Join us remotely on Tuesday, July 20, at 6pm CT, where Massuch will present a free lecture on her work. X16: Tuesday, July 20, 6pm CT FREE, Remote Login
Roberta Massuch
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Partner Spotlight: Ebenezer Ridges
While many of our partner organizations have not been able to resume programming due to the various constraints on senior living facilities caused by the pandemic, Northern Clay Center has been running programming with Ebenezer Ridges at their Care Center and Adult Day programs since November of 2020. When some of the restrictions on small group gatherings and outside contractors entering senior living facilities had been lifted by DHS, Ebenezer Ridges was able to adjust to these new measures. Weekly testing still occurred for the populace to ensure the safety of the residents and staff. NCC and our primary teaching artist at Ebenezer Ridges, Elizabeth Coleman, were ready to begin classes again at off-site locations, and we were happy to follow all the safety recommendations and protocols that were in place at the sites. Masking and wearing face shields, continuing to practice social distancing, and utilizing Ridges staff to serve as helping hands for direct contact with students—all of that is feasible! We also planned at the outset to have the option to go virtual at short notice so that we could continue to have some stability in the class schedule, even if outside contractors could not enter for a time. Indeed, within our first few sessions, it was necessary to switch to a digital format for our classes.
Distance-led clay classes, where the teaching artist is “Zooming” into a location and teaching (projected from a TV with the students spaced out at tables around the room) are definitely better than no clay at all! It was great to see classes occurring with this group and it underscored that clay and computers CAN work together. With enough staff assistance, these classes can be a great experience for participants! At Ridges, the staff have plenty of clay skills due of years working with NCC to assist with most minor questions that arise from students. Additionally, this skill set among staff has definitely helped with the overall experience! A staff member also took the time each class to “walk” the teaching artist (displayed on a computer or iPad) around the classroom so that they could interact with the students, talk about the projects, and have a personal engagement moment— something that is so integral during this time of social isolation. Ann Schrempp, Corporate Director of Life Long Learning and Life Long Learning/Intergenerational Director at Ebenezer Ridges Campus, reflected on the classes over the past few months. “We really appreciate that we have still been having clay. We found a way and pushed ourselves. When we first did virtual sessions, we had many hands on-deck, and it made a huge difference!
The residents have a really good time, which is so awesome. There is only so much that Elizabeth can see during the class though, and we cannot wait for her to come to Ridges again.” In fact, Elizabeth was able to resume classes in person with one of the groups starting in February and we were able to add another class for the older preschool childcare group with teaching artist Susan Obermeyer in March. As more of the population receives vaccination, we look forward to opening up our programming more and beginning our work in-person with new groups, while still following all best safety practices. If you would like to learn more about NCC’s ART@HAND programing, please contact Alison Beech, Community Engagement Manager, at 612.339.8007 x 313 or alisonbeech@northernclaycenter.org.
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Summer Classes & Workshops
As we revel in the warmth of summer and soak in the bliss of a new season, we happily invite you into the studios to connect again to the process of working with clay, and to bask in renewed appreciation for the community it generates, and the grounding nature of the process. NCC’s class offerings may continue to evolve as new public health guidelines are made available. Class sizes may continue to be limited and appropriate safety initiatives will remain in place. We encourage you to register early as our in-person classes will fill up quickly. We also will continue to offer Clay-Along online classes. Please visit our website for the most up-to-date information. During daytime hours, many of NCC’s studios will be used by Clay Campers as they make their own discoveries in clay, but the evenings, weekends, and open studio hours are dedicated to you. With a wide range of classes offered for every experience level, we are sure to have something to revitalize your creative energy. Our diverse cast of expert makers and teachers are ready to welcome you into our doors and guide you through a meaningful clay experience. Take advantage of the open studio time offered to NCC students as you practice skills and incorporate classroom demonstrations into your own work. Adult students will have access to the studios during weekday evenings once Clay Camps wrap up, generally 4:30
– 9 pm, and 9 am – 9 pm access on weekends (subject to other NCC events and programming). Browse our online calendar to check studio availability. Our education staff will happily assist you in finding the appropriate class via phone or e-mail: 612.339.8007 x309 or samanthalongley@northernclaycenter.org. NCC is committed to maintaining accountability and pursuing action to build meaningful diversity, impactful equity, and genuine inclusivity in the ceramic community. We recognize that there are significant and systemic racial and economic impacts that impede participation in the arts, and resulting financial barriers contribute to further divide. To address and help bridge financial barriers to ceramic education, NCC is implementing new scholarship options for our education programming to open access to the ceramic arts and welcome all who wish to learn, grow as an artist, and participate in the ceramic arts community. We offer two scholarship options: A half-tuition scholarship, open to artists and learners with financial need, and a full-tuition scholarship, open to artists and learners who identify as Black, Indigenous, or a Person of Color. Scholarships are limited and will be available on a first-come first-served basis. For more information about these scholarships and to apply, please visit our website.
Check out our events calendar for more information about our ART@HAND Programs. Classes marked in this section @ with are designed for and easily accessible to older adults.
CLAY-ALONG VIRTUAL CLASSES Stay connected to your creativity from home and Clay-Along with NCC through virtual classes and materials kits designed to fulfill your clay longings at a social distance. Virtual classes will meet online for two hours once a week for five weeks with an NCC teaching artist who will guide you through quality at-home digital experiences with clay. We are also pleased to offer self-guided clay kits with lesson plans for home for an independent clay experience. Both offerings have the option to include lowfire clay and a set of engobes (colored slips), bisque and clear glaze firings at NCC, and a guide to setting up a space for clay in your home. No clay-specific tools? No problem! All classes and lessons can be accomplished with everyday utensils and objects. You can also select an optional materials kit that includes a guide to setting up an at-home clay space, 25 or 50 pounds of low-fire clay depending on class
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length (choice of low-fire red: a smooth terracotta body; or Raku: a grittier, offwhite body), a set of engobes (colored slips) and firings at NCC. If you have everything you need already, just select the content-only version. We can’t wait for you to Clay-Along with us! Slab-Centric Ceramics Are you a pie maker? Even if you're not, making ceramic vessels out of soft slabs is even easier than pie! Create mugs, quilted bowls, bud vases, and more out of soft slabs using a rolling pin, paper templates, and simple tools found around your kitchen or in your junk drawer. Each week, Marion will introduce and guide you through building a new vessel. It will be easy as pie! Twenty-five pounds of clay are included when you select the materials kit option. This class is suited best to those who have a basic understanding of the stages of clay and building methods, and for levels beyond; beginners will be nurtured. V1: Tuesdays, 10 am – 12 pm Instructor: Marion Angelica Tuesdays, June 15 – July 13 Fee with Kit: $140 (members receive 5% discount) Fee, Content Only: $90 (members receive 5% discount) Beyond Grace, Beyond Space Join Elizabeth Coleman for an online ten-week version of her popular advanced-beginner level handbuilding class that will cultivate your skills and fulfill your clay cravings. Classes will consist of demonstrations that follow the interests of the students along with time to discuss and share projects. Topics include: leatherhard slab-building; making and using sprig, drape, and press molds; scaling up your vessels or sculptures; internal and
external armatures; slip application techniques; alternative firing methods; mixing your own stains; and personal assessment of objects. Students may bring their own project ideas and receive guidance or may choose from a variety of intermediate project-prompts provided by the instructor. Fifty pounds of clay are included when you select the materials kit option. Recommended for advanced-beginner levels and beyond. V2: Thursdays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Elizabeth Coleman June 17 – August 19 Fee with Kit: $280 (members receive 5% discount) Fee, Content Only: $180 (members receive 5% discount)
CLAY-ALONG VIRTUAL WORKSHOPS Get a taste of virtual instruction and explore the possibilities of working with clay at home with these oneday workshop options. All workshop offerings can be accomplished with a simple home set up of a flat porous surface, kitchen utensil tools, plus water and a sponge for clean-up. From casual workshops for beginners, to special topic workshops, get connected virtually so you can stay connected to clay! If you choose a material kit option, pick up your kit from NCC the week before your workshop, and drop off work for firing the following week. Setting Up a Home Studio 101 Curious about taking the leap to set up a space for clay at home? Already have a space and looking for tips and improvements? Join teaching artist and home studio artist Heather Barr for an evening of information and
discussion about getting started with or improving your home clay studio. Cover important considerations such as safety, appropriate equipment, and recycling and disposing clay; and absorb and apply helpful knowledge on planning and layout, handy studio accessories, DIY and professional setups, and more. There will be time for Q&A and discussion, so come with your home studio inquiries and get ready to take notes and the next step in your studio planning! This workshop is great for those who want to know what a home studio set-up entails, for those who are planning and preparing for a home studio, or for those who have a simple studio setup and are wanting to expand. Setting up a home studio is a big step—let us help you get there safely and effectively! XV1: Wednesday, July 14, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Heather Barr Fee: $55 (members receive 5% discount) Clay-Along Workshop: Picnic Plates Grab a housemate or neighbor and enjoy a creative clay-filled evening from the convenience of home or choose a change of scenery and head outside for some clay and play on a warm summer night. Pick up a materials kit from NCC including a couple pounds of low-fire clay and some slips for decorating, then tune in for live virtual instruction to Clay-Along with an NCC teaching artist as they guide you through a handbuilt clay project. This workshop is a great place to start if you're interested in or just getting started with clay, or gives you a chance to test your skills and get creative in a new setting. Once you've completed making, drop off your work at NCC for firings and a coat of clear glaze. Instructions for pick up and
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joining the live workshop will be sent to you upon registration. XV2: Friday, July 16, 6:30 – 8:30 pm Fee: $30 Embellished Form: Pitchers and Mugs Join San Diego artist Ashley Kim as she broadcasts from her sunny studio for two days of investigating and creating compelling functional pieces that invite use and visual fascination. In her own widely recognized work, Kim utilizes slabs and coils along with texture and unique embellishments to create wares with an alluring balance between form and surface, that feature colorful personalities. On Saturday, focus on form and make alongside Kim as she demonstrates pitchers and mugs with her slab building techniques. Return on Sunday for teaching and demonstrations on surface embellishment techniques, including using paper resists and sgraffito. Come away from the workshop with a refreshed sense of form and new tools for creating intriguing surfaces to compliment your work. Twelve pounds of low-fire clay and a set of engobes (colored slips) as well as all firings and a clear coat of glaze are included when you select the materials kit option. This class is designed for those with some previous handbuilding experience and knowledge of basic construction methods, and levels beyond. XV3: July 31 & August 1, 12 – 2:30 pm Instructor: Ashley Kim Fee with Kit: $105 (members receive 5% discount) Fee, Content Only: $75 (members receive 5% discount) Self-Guided Kit Clay-Along Self-Guided Kits balance the independence of self-guided clay exploration with the support of
instructions that guide you step-by-step through a variety of projects at a range of levels; kid-friendly lessons included! These kits are sure to satisfy your clay cravings, keep you creative, and increase your knowledge of forms and techniques. It’s also a great opportunity to play and explore clay, whether you’re brand-new or very experienced.
I2: Mondays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Gabby Gawreluk July 19 – August 16 Fee: $170 non-members + $20 lab fee (members receive 5% discount) I3: Tuesdays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Clarice Allgood June 15 – July 13 Fee: $170 non-members + $20 lab fee (members receive 5% discount)
VKit: Fee: $45
INTRODUCTORY Want to learn the basics of making clay art? Get hands-on during five weeks of instruction and practice in these introductory classes that focus on the basics of building and glazing techniques. These classes will have plenty of guidance for beginners, making them ideal if you have little or no experience with clay and want to test your interest. We recommend that you take this class two or more times (within one quarter, or over consecutive quarters) to build your skills and prepare for Wheel and Handbuilding 201 classes and beyond. Wear old clothes and bring an old towel, a bucket no larger than one gallon, and a beginner’s set of tools to the first class. Tool kits are available for purchase at NCC. Lab fee includes one bag of clay (25 pounds), all glazing materials, firings, and open studio access. Land of Round Pots—Wheel Throwing 101 I1: Mondays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Gabby Gawreluk June 14 – July 12 Fee: $170 non-members + $20 lab fee (members receive 5% discount)
I4: Tuesdays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Clarice Allgood July 20 – August 17 Fee: $170 non-members + $20 lab fee (members receive 5% discount) I5: Fridays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Zach Van Dorn June 18 – July 16 Fee: $170 non-members + $20 lab fee (members receive 5% discount) I6: Saturdays, 1 – 4 pm Instructor: Claire O’Connor June 19 – July 17 Fee: $170 non-members + $20 lab fee (members receive 5% discount) I7: Saturdays, 1 – 4 pm Instructor: Claire O’Connor July 24 – August 21 Fee: $170 non-members + $20 lab fee (members receive 5% discount)
WHEEL We recommend that students begin their study at NCC with an introductory experience in clay, such as our Project Workshops or five-week classes (above). Beginner Throwing 201 will take your skill set to the next level and deepen
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your understanding of clay to prepare you for Wheel 301 and advanced special topics classes. Our education staff will happily assist you in finding the appropriate class, via phone or email: 612.339.8007 x309 or samanthalongley@ northernclaycenter.org. Beginning Throwing—Wheel 201 Take the next step on your journey with the potter’s wheel to build on your foundations and discover the secrets of making great pots. Improve your skills and learn new techniques for throwing such forms as cylinders, bowls, vases, and more using the pottery wheel as a tool. You will learn surface treatments such as glazing, staining, and slipping, and be introduced to firing procedures. Dress for mess, bring an old towel, a bucket no larger than one gallon, and a beginner’s set of pottery tools to the first class. Tool kits are available for purchase at NCC. These classes are designed for those with some previous wheel-throwing experience, who have taken one or two Wheel 101 sessions, or equivalent, and feel comfortable navigating basic forms on the wheel. W1: Wednesdays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Jennica Kruse June 16 – August 18 Fee: $340 + $40 lab fee (members receive 5% discount) W2: Thursdays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Lucy Yogerst June 17 – August 19 Fee: $340 + $40 lab fee (members receive 5% discount) W3: Saturdays, 10 am – 1 pm Instructor: Risa Nishiguchi June 19 – August 21 Fee: $340 + $40 lab fee (members receive 5% discount)
Intermediate Throwing—Wheel 301 Take your skills to the next level as you learn additional techniques for throwing more complicated forms. Refine your skills and continue to define your voice in clay. Each section has a specific focus but leaves room for personal interests and development. Each course will also include more information about surface decoration, firing procedures, and the differences between low- and hightemperature clay bodies and glazes. Designed for those who have taken several Wheel 201 classes or equivalent. W4: Mondays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Erin Holt, Focus on Surface Techniques June 14 – August 16 Fee: $340 + $40 lab fee (members receive 5% discount) W5: Wednesdays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Leila Denecke, Focus on Function June 16 – August 18 Fee: $340 + $40 lab fee (members receive 5% discount)
HANDBUILDING Match the relaxed pace of summer in the studio as you embrace the s-l-o-w philosophy of handbuilding. This rhythm of working with clay might draw your attention in new ways and broaden your breadth of understanding of the clay process. Challenge your knowledge of making this summer and explore new color palettes, processes, and fresh approaches to a familiar material. Livin’ Large: Modular Building Join Erin Paradis, 2019 Jerome Ceramic Artist Project Grant recipient, for five weeks of dreaming and building big in clay. Create the larger works, functional or sculptural, that you’ve always
Veronica Torres centering clay on the potter's wheel.
imagined and bring them to life with integrity by learning from a modularbuilding artist and honing handbuilding techniques. Absorb and practice new techniques to push the dimensions of your work and practice building in smaller considered and sound sections to create larger, more substantial pieces. Expect class and individually guided demonstrations, one-on-one discussions, and group critiques, as well as helpful resources and suggestions from the instructor to push your concepts and skills to a new level. Students are encouraged to come prepared with an idea so projects can begin quickly. Intermediate to advanced levels. H1: Wednesdays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Erin Paradis July 21 – August 18 Fee: $170 non-members + $20 lab fee (members receive 5% discount)
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Free-Play During this ten-week open-ended handbuildling course, get guidance and support from your instructor and your classmates for whatever project fires up your imagination—the kiln’s the limit! Follow your inclination towards sculptural forms, embrace your devotion and refine your technique for function, or dabble with a bit of both and see how sculpture and function inform one another. Instructor Marion Angelica will offer project prompts to fuel your curiosity to get your head, heart and hands going; from there, she’ll be available to guide and inform your technical steps as you go. Handbuilding and surface technique demos will occur each week and be based on student interest. Intermediate to advanced levels. H2: Thursdays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Marion Angelica June 17 – August 19 Fee: $340 + $40 lab fee (members receive 5% discount)
SPECIAL TOPICS Plates & Platters Prepare for all the future potlucks, dinners and picnics you’ll host with plates and platters worthy of gathering around. In this five-week class, you’ll use primarily slab-building techniques to create sets or individual plates and platters and learn tips and tricks that help your forms to defy warpage and cracking. Practice using molds to form plates, as well as creating the molds themselves—design and cut basic foam slump molds, and work with plaster molds, bisque, or found object molds. You’ll also explore a variety of texture tools and surface design
techniques to elevate your plate’s design to suite your table and serve your family and friends. Open to all levels of clay experience and design skills. T1: Tuesdays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Priya Thoresen June 15 – July 13 Fee: $170 non-members + $20 lab fee (members receive 5% discount) The Woodfire Experience Dive into an extensive, hands-on introduction to the art of firing a wood kiln—from glazing and loading, to the interactions between fire and form. Teaching artists Rob Lieder and Keith Williams will discuss different styles of wood kilns, wood fire philosophy and clay bodies and glazes appropriate for wood firing. Northern Clay Center is excited to announce its continued partnership with Concordia St. Paul, utilizing their Bourry Box-style train kiln for the firing process. This experience is available in eight-week format, with one firing taking place between weeks seven and eight. (Registered students will be required to participate in all dates scheduled at Concordia University.) Full-Class Schedule: Meet at NCC: Tuesdays, June 29 – August 17 6:30 – 9:30 pm July 6 & 20: Independent reserved studio time at NCC (no instructor) Meet at Concordia University: Tuesdays, August 10 & 17, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Glazing, Wadding & Loading: August 10 Kiln Firing: August 14 & 15 Kiln Unloading: August 17
Masked students working in a throwing studio.
Students will have access to NCC open studios from June 13 – July 20. T2: Tuesdays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Rob Lieder & Keith Williams June 15 – August 3 $290 non-members $80 lab fee (members receive 5% discount) Atmospheric Explorations Delve into eight weeks of making with an emphasis on form, design, and materials suited best for an atmospheric kiln. Participants will explore form and surface treatments to further develop their work and take better advantage of varied surfaces that atmospheric kilns provide. Through explorations applicable to both soda- and reduction-firings, students will take part in the loading and firing of two soda kilns and group critiques to better understand the fired results. This class is designed for makers of intermediate to advanced levels of construction with
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interest in exploring and learning about alternative atmospheric firing techniques. Tentative firing schedule: Kiln loadings: July 29 & August 19 Firing and unloading schedule will be discussed during class. Studio meetings all other weeks. T3: Thursdays, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: Joel Edinger-Willson July 1 – August 19 Member Fee: $290 non-members $60 lab fee (members receive 5% discount)
SPECIAL TOPICS WORKSHOPS Color Theory for Clay Join artist Nathan Bray for a two-day hands-on workshop learning about and applying principles of color theory with the use of underglazes, glaze, and lusters on ceramic so you can avail the charisma of satisfying color to serve your own works. Bray will walk you through his process from vessel conception to coloring by demonstrating and teaching how he throws and alters forms, attaches fanciful feet and handles, and will spend a majority of the weekend focusing on his various techniques for applying and layering underglazes. You will have the opportunity to decorate your own ceramic art with Bray’s underglaze techniques—so bring along a few bisqued pots to the workshop! If you don’t have your own bisqueware, pieces will be provided for you. Bray will also explain the process of applying lusters and mother of pearl overglazes and will share with participants a copy of the slip and glaze recipes that he uses in the making of his pottery!
X1: Saturday & Sunday, June 26 & 27, 10 am – 1 pm Instructor: Nathan Bray Fee: $110 + $15 lab fee (members receive 5% discount) Waxing Poetic Waxing doesn't have to be a tedious chore! Spend a few hours getting to know wax—the what, when, where and how of this essential tool in the making process. This one-day workshop covers the basics of employing wax resist as a decorative process on regular and irregular forms and how to effectively layer designs with wax. Explore possibilities of utilizing wax with clay in the leatherhard and bone-dry stage with demos on sgraffitto, banding, and pattern resist with slip and stains, then venture into the effective utilization of wax in the glazing process. Expand your vocabulary with wax as an integral tool, learn practical tips on how to keep your applicators at the ready (and revive the sad ones), and walk away from this workshop with a broader appreciation of wax and greater confidence in using it. Greenware and bisqueware will be available for participants to experiment with, but attendees are encouraged to bring work of their own in these stages. X2: Saturday, August 7, 10 am – 2 pm Instructor: Clarice Allgood Fee: $60 (members receive 5% discount)
PROJECT WORKSHOPS No previous experience required! NCC will provide all materials and tools for these workshops. Clay for Couples Pottery Workshops Looking for a unique date-night activity that is sure to impress your mate? Look no further than NCC’s original Clay for
Long-time student Robin Polencheck working on a sculpture in the handbuilding studio.
Couples. Sign up with your significant other and learn the secrets of throwing pottery on the wheel in a fun and relaxed environment. Already attended a session? Sign up again and take your skills to the next level. The $80 fee includes instruction, materials, and firings for two adults. Completed pieces will be ready to pick up about two weeks later. X3: Friday, June 25, 6:30 – 9:30 pm X4: Saturday, July 10, 6:30 – 9:30 pm X5: Friday, July 30, 6:30 – 9:30 pm X6: Saturday, August 14, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: NCC Teaching Artist Fee: $80 per couple, per session Crafternoon and Crafterdark Pottery Workshops Bring your friends and make a few new ones and get creative as you learn the secrets of throwing pottery on the wheel. This three-hour workshop is a fun and messy introduction to clay. The $40 fee includes instruction and materials
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for one adult. Students can expect to make three-to-five pots and decorate them using colorful slips and textures. Your pots will be ready to pick up after approximately two weeks. X7: Friday, July 9, 6:30 – 9:30 pm X8: Saturday, July 31, 1 – 4 pm X9: Saturday, August 7, 1 – 4 pm X10: Friday, August 20, 6:30 – 9:30 pm Instructor: NCC Teaching Artist Fee: $40 per person, per session Re-leaf Experiment with natural materials and the impressions they leave in clay. Create interesting compositions and combine your designs with stamps and other relief textures, then form into an intentional, functional work of art using handbuilding techniques. As either a fun, one-time afternoon workshop, or the jumpstart to one of your future explorations, this class is for both firsttime and experienced ceramic artists. Bring along your favorite leaves, stems, and natural textures from your garden or yard to personalize your piece. X11: Saturday, July 24 10 am – 1 pm Instructor: NCC Teaching Artist Fee: $40
CLASSES & WORKSHOPS FOR FAMILY & FRIENDS For all family classes, children must be accompanied by an adult. Neither children nor adults will have access to open studio time during the quarter. Weekend workshops are open to all skill levels, ages 6 and up for
handbuilding workshops and 9 and up for wheel-throwing. Confection Perfection Do you have a sweet tooth? Create a dish to display and share your favorite candies. Divided, covered, or on a stand are some ways to spread sweetness. Learn basic construction techniques and decorate your project with colored slips. Ages 6+. All skill levels welcome. One registration covers two participants, one adult and one child. Saturday, June 26 Instructor: Eileen Cohen F1: 10 am – 1 pm F2: 2 – 5 pm Fee: $60 for two people, $25 for each additional participant Wheel-Thrown Pottery Learn to use the potter’s wheel to shape clay with your hands. Try your hand at basic skills like centering, opening, and pulling the clay to make bowls and cylinders. Decorate your projects with colored slip. Ages 9+ and all skill levels welcome. One registration covers two participants, one adult and one child. Saturday, July 17 Instructor: Eileen Cohen F3: 10 am – 1 pm F4: 2 – 5 pm Fee: $60 for two people, $25 for each additional participant Great Awakenings Mornings are better when you enjoy your favorite beverage in a mug made by you! Make a series of mugs using slab construction while learning basic handbuilding skills and decorating techniques. Ages 6+ and all skill levels welcome. One registration covers two participants, one adult and one child.
Saturday, August 21 Instructor: Eileen Cohen F5: 10 am – 1 pm F6: 2 – 5 pm Fee: $60 for two people, $25 for each additional participant
CLAY FOR YOUTH Pottery Punch Card for Teens Teens may purchase eight, 2-hour classes, to be used on any Saturday, 10 am – 12 pm*. Classes will cover the fundamental techniques of throwing basic forms on the potter's wheel and creating surface decoration using glazes, slips, and applied elements, with varied demonstrations and projects for advanced students. Create a series of functional pots with high-temperature clay bodies. Previous experience is not required. Students may attend on a drop-in basis** and the complexity of projects will depend on multiple consecutive classes. Great for students and families with busy schedules. Wear clothes that you don't mind getting dirty; NCC will provide the tools and the clay. Students do not have access to open studio time. For ages 13 to 17. Y1: Saturdays, 10 am – 12 pm Instructor: Erin Holt Classes will meet every Saturday unless otherwise posted*. Students may begin as soon as they register. Student Fee: $265 (members receive 5% discount) Add multiples of 4 additional sessions at a time ($135, students who are members receive 5% discount). *Some Saturdays are not available due to holidays or NCC events. **Due to NCC's COVID-19 protocols, there is a strict capacity in the studios. In order to be guaranteed a place on any given Saturday, teens/parents must notify NCC. Your eight class sessions expire six months after the date of purchase.
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Northern Clay Center
EDUCATION
ART@HAND CLAY FOR OLDER ADULTS
VISITING ARTIST WORKSHOPS & LECTURES
ART@HAND is NCC’s series of accessible programs for enjoyment of the ceramic arts. Intended for individuals 55 years old or greater (and their families), ART@HAND offers lectures, tours, workshops, and handson activities. ART@HAND specializes at meeting people where they are at, this year in their homes, and we are offering distance led workshops.
30 Year Reunion Panel Join Pearl and How It’s Going exhibiting artists for a virtual reunion panel as they share and discuss their past and current approaches to clay, the impact that NCC has had on their careers, and more. Share in the sentiments, laughs, and charisma for clay and clay community.
Wednesday Clay Creativity Afternoon (Virtual)! Join NCC teaching artists this summer as they provide six clay activities to bring a spark of inventiveness to the middle of the week! Sign up for all the sessions and engage with clay over Zoom from wherever you are! Limited to 20 participants. AAH10: Wednesdays, June 23 – July 28, 1 – 2:30pm FREE Summer Fun Virtual Workshop Join NCC for an afternoon of claycentric fun—from the comfort of your own home! Get creative with clay as we engage in some clay games over the internet culminating with a creation that NCC will fire for you! Join us over Zoom for this summer activity! AAH11: Saturday, July 10, 2 pm FREE McKnight Artists Virtual Guided Tour Enjoy a virtual guided tour of NCC’s McKnight Artists from the past two years. There is so much to see and learn from the resident and fellowship artists—this show is packed with amazing works of art! AAH12: Friday, July 23, 2 – 3 pm FREE
X13: Thursday, May 6, 6 pm CT FREE Artist Demonstration: Kevin Kao NCC welcomes back 2014 Warren MacKenzie Advancement award recipient Kevin Kao for a virtual demonstration workshop. Kao will demonstrate part of his clay head-building process as he shares more about the context of his work and his ceramics path that led him to NCC and beyond. X14: Tuesday, May 18, 6 pm CT FREE How It's Going Artist Panel How it started isn't necessarily how it's still going. Join exhibiting artists Aaron Caldwell, Davora Lindner, and Alex Reed for individual artist talks on their ceramic work and beyond. They will focus on how their artistic paths have evolved over the years, and how their ceramic work has influenced their pursuits of adjacent avenues. X15: Thursday May 20, 6 pm CT FREE
Two young artists working on sculptures.
McKnight Artist Resident Lecture: Hyang Jin Cho Join us remotely on Tuesday, July 13, at 6pm CT, where Cho will present a free lecture on her work and development as a maker. X16: Tuesday, July 13, 6pm CT FREE, Remote Login McKnight Artist Resident Lecture: Roberta Massuch Join us remotely on Tuesday, July 20, at 6pm CT, where Massuch will present a free lecture on her work and development as a maker. X17: Tuesday, July 20, 6pm CT FREE, Remote Login
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Northern Clay Center
EDUCATION
Spring Class Registration Opens Tuesday, May 4, 10 am
To Register: Register with cash, check, or any major credit card. NCC accepts registration online at www.northernclaycenter.org, in the gallery, or by telephone at 612.339.8007. Download a paper registration form online, or call the gallery for more information. Member discounts are available online. Due to the high demand for classes, we require full payment with your registration to reserve your seat in class. NCC will send confirmation of registration. If there is insufficient enrollment, we will cancel class, notify registered students, and refund all payments without penalty. Decisions are made approximately one week before classes begin. Please register early or you might find that your favorite class is full or canceled due to low enrollment. Policies: Tools: Standard tool kits for introductory classes are available in NCC’s Sales Gallery for $25.00 + tax. Other specialty tools are available as well. Open Studio: The tuition for regular adult classes includes access to open studio time. On average, adult students enrolled in a qualifying class will have access to our studios between 9 am and 9 pm Wednesday through Sunday, 4:30 to 9 pm on Mondays, and 9 am to midnight on Tuesday and Thursday evenings (subject to other NCC events and programming). To regulate our studios as much as possible out of concerns for safety this term, students will sign up for open studio in advance
via an online sign-up system. Browse our open studio schedule online to check the most up-to-date listing of available studios. NCC reserves the right to close studios for special classes or workshops. Minimum Age Restrictions: Only students ages 18 and up are eligible to register for NCC’s adult classes and workshops. Continuing Education Credits: If you are a teacher in need of CEUs, contact the education department to learn how NCC’s classes and workshops can be taken for continuing education credit. Weather: As a general rule, NCC will remain open during inclement weather. We take our cues from local colleges and universities for canceling or rescheduling classes during particularly hazardous conditions. When in doubt, feel free to call us at 612.339.8007. And please be safe! Tuition, Fees, & Refunds: Please refer to class listings for tuition and fees. Unless otherwise noted, fees for adult classes include instruction, open studio time, 25 pounds of clay, basic glaze materials, and a firing allowance. Tuition may not be prorated. Some students may incur additional expenses if they choose unusual glaze materials or if their work occupies a large volume of kiln space. COVID-19 Cancellations: Given the uncertain nature of what lies ahead of us, NCC will remain flexible when it comes to cancellations as they relate to the current environment and recommendations by both local and national health authorities. In the event of an NCC-initiated
cancellation, students will be issued a refund for remaining sessions without penalty. Cancellations initiated by the student will be handled on a case-bycase basis with individual and community well-being maintained as a top priority. If you are sick or have COVID-19-related symptoms, we ask that you contact us before coming to or entering NCC for any reason. Classes: 100% of tuition (less a $15 processing fee) will be refunded if a student elects to drop or transfer a class no later than one week (7 days) before the day of the first class meeting. 50% of tuition (less a $15 processing fee) will be refunded if a student drops or transfers a class within the seven days prior to the first class meeting or within the first two business days after the first meeting. After this period, if a student elects to drop a class, tuition and fees will NOT be refunded for any reason except documented medical emergencies. There are no other exceptions to this policy. Workshops: 100% of tuition (less a $15 processing fee) will be refunded if a student elects to drop or transfer a workshop for any reason at least one week (seven days) prior to the workshop. No refunds will be given with less than one week’s notice. If you find you need to cancel your enrollment, please contact Samantha Longley at samanthalongley@ northernclaycenter.org or call 612.339.8007 x309.
2424 Franklin Avenue East Minneapolis, MN 55406
Nonprofit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Twin Cities, MN Permit No. 28375
612.339.8007 nccinfo@northernclaycenter.org www.northernclaycenter.org
This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a Minnesota State Arts Board Operating Support grant, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund, and a grant from the Wells Fargo Foundation Minnesota.
NCC Shop/Gallery Hours Open 10 am – 5 pm, 7 days a week. Special Needs Exhibition Group Tours: Available for visitors with mental or physical disabilities and the hearing-impaired. Monday – Friday, 9 am – 4 pm. Please call at least three weeks in advance of the event.
NCC Seeks Clay Camp Teachers and Assistants Northern Clay Center seeks college students and recent graduates, ages 18 and up, for our summer camp positions.
Signed Interpretation: Available for any NCC public event. Please call the Center to request an interpreter at least three weeks in advance.
Each summer, NCC hosts dozens of weeklong, half- and fullday clay camps for youth ages 6 – 17.
Wheelchair Seating for classes or other accommodations: Please call the Center at least two weeks in advance of the event. NCC’s building is wheelchair accessible and includes a wheelchair accessible potter’s wheel.
Clay Camp Instructors create and lead projects through myriad themed camps for up to 14 students in each camp. Instructors work with a Clay Camp Assistant to provide guidance to students and maintain studio cleanliness. Instructors are paid positions.
The information in this newsletter is available in large-print format upon request. Mission: Northern Clay Center advances the ceramic arts for artists, learners, and the community, through education, exhibitions, and artist services. Ongoing programs include exhibitions by contemporary regional, national, and international ceramic artists, as well as historical and architectural ceramics; classes and workshops for children and adults at all skill levels; studio space and grants for artists; and a sales gallery representing many top ceramic artists from the region and elsewhere. Front cover: Mika Negishi Laidlaw
Clay Camp Assistants work closely with NCC's Education Coordinator and Clay Camp Instructors to provide classroom support for weekly summer clay camps. Assistants are valued volunteers who can earn credit toward NCC's adult education classes based on hours worked. If you are interested in learning more, contact us at education@northernclaycenter.org.