Girl Power

Eight female artists reveal the full range of clay in "Girl Power", opening with an artist reception from 6-10pm on Friday April 15, 2005. The exhibit and sale will be on display through May 7, 2005.

The women of "Girl Power" take their clay seriously, and viewers will be impressed with the quality, power and thoughtfullness of their creations. The diversity of the works is intended to break down pre-conceptions of what well-behaved clay should be, while highlighting the revolutionary impact that female ceramicists around the globe are having on an artistic medium once dominated by high profile male potters.

Several of the artists use narrative and poetry to tackle important issues head on with verve and humor in provocative installation series. Others create functional pieces that are simply great pots...elegant forms with quality construction and luscious glaze work. The show includes elements that are alternately challenging and sublime, visually stunning, playful and occasionally disturbing. This is a springtime celebration of feminine creativity that shouldn't be missed!

Lois Aronow

Lois lives in Brooklyn where she settled leaving after a career in radio and television to begin working in earnest as a potter. Largely influenced by Antonio Gaudi, Eva Zeisel, and Fiesta Ware, Lois's looks toward organic shapes and vivid color for inspiration. She produces functional domestic ware of hand thrown porcelain. Surface is enhanced with beading and glossy glazes, with daring use of underglaze.

"My work is made to be used and enjoyed. Using handmade dinnerware makes the table livelier and more inviting. I want my work to be part of people's everyday lives. That little something that contributes to the uniqueness of one's surroundings."

Daphne Dail

Daphne Dail is participating in the exhibit with an installation piece entitled "Party Girls" comprised of over 50 tumblers, each uniquely decorated to represent women at a party engaged in clusters of conversation.

"I consider myself a potter, not in the traditional, humble, utilitarian sense but rather because I want to serve my audience the visual candy of pop icons, pop culture ad pop disease on functional forms. I employ function for its approachability and because it lends the work the status of "necessary object". I work mainly with porcelain to take advantage of its sensual qualities and to relate this sex appeal to the content of my work. I create slick, sexy, tight pieces that reverberate with an echo of movement. I work mostly in series relying on my viewer's need for an ad-like procession of images. My surfaces question the impact of make-over reality TV shows, Britney, drug addiction, homosexuality; emblems and issues my culture is drawn to, comfortable with and often unbothered and unsympathetic to."

Vanessa Grubbs

Vanessa is participating in the show with a series called Media Mediocrity.

" This series was inspired by my disillusionment with current television programming. Each vase is designed to hold a specific type of flower. Each flower relates in some way to the context of the vase. I use ironic humor to call in to question the validity of the types of programming we are subjected to. This series focuses on both TV commercials and reality television shows. "

Allya MacDonald

Allya MacDonald is nearing the completion of her studio assistantship at Callanwolde Fine Arts Center. This will be her assistantship exit show, an important achievement that caps two years of hard work. Her functional pieces for the show reflect an exporation and indulgence in feminity, honoring softness and vulnerability in defiance of a culture that celebrates force.

Commenting on recent changes in her works, she notes "I have been attracted to pottery forms that lend themselves more easily to sculpture: teapots, vases and jars. I have been experimenting with techniques for altering the roundness and smoothness of pots--faceting, darting, carving and cutting into the pieces. I have been approaching each piece as a puzzle or experiment, setting up problems that I want to solve, both technically and aesthetically. I have been allowing the function to be less of a concern while I explore new techniques and sculptural ideas."

Tammy Marinuzzi

Tammy Marinuzzi is completing her MFA at the University of Florida in the program headed by Linda Arbuckle. Her work is spontaneous and intuitive, starting with functional forms and arriving at expressive figures based on both her imagination and experiences.

"Clay empowers me to work with immediacy and intuition where simple modifications resonate strongly. The physicality of the material, this dynamic interplay allows me to explore the far reaches of my subconscious. It is when I am working in the studio that I am set free, here I can be anybody: man, women, child, alien, animal, king, queen, alive, dead, emotional, or emotionless. I can swim in a stream of wine, fly on a magic carpet, laugh with fictitious characters, and cry with the dying."

Asia Mathis

Asia Mathis creates quirky objects in a variety of series...wall-pods, rocks, and yoga-inspired animal sculptures. All are adorned with a variety of finish materials, abstract designs, and stamped poetry. These works are rich in content and invite undeniably your speculation and contemplation.

"My work is about connection: to one's self, to imagination, to thoughtfulness, and most importantly, to the natural world. It is my hope that my audience will find this within the imagery, poetry, color, and texture of my sculptures, so that my pieces may work as reminders of, and vehicles to, that connection we are all trying to make which gives our lives true meaning . . . We must find a way to quiet ourselves from our own inventions so we will be able to hear again the subtle voices of wildlife we normally block out, choosing instead the radio, phone, TV, etc. I hope this work offers some wisdom, a little humor, but mostly inspiration to purposely seek out the natural world and help preserve it."

Sally Smith

"My work in clay and creating the figure provides an opportunity to express a feeling or tell a story through gestures, expressions, textures and colors. Simply forming and handling the clay allows me to express these things through the unique quality of this medium. I make decisions as I am working on the piece and determine what story or narrative I'm forming. I want people to be able to relate to my pieces, wondering what is happening or perhaps touching and holding them because they feel or see something in the narrative that is familiar. My current work depicts the figure in the form of a doll or toy, worn with love, each having their own story determined by the observer."

Cindy Watson

"I like to keep things simple in my life. Simple ideas tend to be obvious ideas because they have a ring of truth about them. Most people distrust their instincts because they feel there must be a hidden, more complex answer. In my view complexity is not to be admired. It is to be avoided. Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. As a result, my work tends to be simple and organic with natural forms. When I work with clay I am reminded that the possibilities are endless. I begin a piece without the benefit of a sketch and have no preconceived idea of the outcome. I simply begin by forming a shape and let the carving tell me when it is finished. I know my work is going well when I can begin to visualize the finished piece. In the end what I really desire is for people to want to hold and feel my art."