The Undergraduate Fine Arts Program at the University of Pennsylvania is pleased to announce “Clay@Penn 2014: Pervasive Clay,” an exhibition of ceramic works by thirteen local and regional contemporary artists at the Charles Addams Fine Arts Gallery on the Penn campus. During the exhibition’s run the gallery will also host two evenings of Clay Salons, informal talks by eight distinguished scholars and art professionals from Penn and Philadelphia.
“Pervasive Clay” invites visitors to re-envision clay as an art practice in a rapidly evolving world of contemporary art and culture. Though often considered an archaic material, clay persists in shaping our everyday needs and desires, and its movement continues to traverse history, geography, and many bodies of knowledge. “Pervasive Clay” showcases the rich variety of creative directions taking place in the world of ceramics today, and reveals the power of clay as a social medium.
Two evenings of Clay Salons will be held in the gallery during the exhibition. These reception-style gatherings are designed to engage visitors in after-hours conversations with scholars, artists, and professionals, and to explore the many aspects of clay – practical, aesthetic, historical, social, digital – that inspire and inform our lives, our art, and our culture.
“Clay is not just a material for art,“ says Ken Lum, Professor and Director of Undergraduate Fine Arts Program, “but fundamental to creativity in art.” Participating artists in the exhibition are Ruth Borgenicht, Molly Hatch, Bryan Hopkins, Jane Irish, J.J. McCracken, Don Nakamura, Liz Quackenbush, Jenny Sabin, Paul Swenbeck, Matthew Courtney, Ryan Greenheck, Sumi Maeshima, and Raymond Rorke.
The Clay Salon presenters on October 14 are Ann Blair Brownlee, Frank L. Chance, Jane Irish, and Jenny Sabin. Elisabeth Agro, Marie-Claude Boileau, J.J. McCracken, Christopher R. Taylor will speak on October 22.
“Pervasive Clay” is free and open to the public. The exhibition will be on view from October 13 through October 28, 2014, at the Charles Addams Fine Arts Gallery, 200 S. 36th Street, Philadelphia, PA. Gallery hours during the exhibition are Monday through Friday from 9 am to 5 pm, and Saturdays from noon to 4 pm. An opening reception will be held on October 14 at 5:30 pm. The evening Clay Salons will be held on October 14 and October 22 at 5:30 pm.
“Clay@Penn 2014: Pervasive Clay” is also, in part, a celebration of The Clay Studio’s 40th anniversary as one of the nation’s premier centers for the development of ceramic art and artists.