Liz Zlot Summerfield
Liz Zlot Summerfield’s pots are functional, but everyday use is not her first concern. Her pots function fully just by being in someone’s home. Liz’s works are diminutive and intimate in size. The handmade objects are constructed with soft slabs and prominently feature the process marks that brought them to their final form. Liz draws color and pattern inspiration from her own collection of 50’s kitchen accoutrements (recipe boxes, aprons, etc.) and uses colored terra sigillata, glazes and metallic lusters to enhance her contemporary works of art.
Available Pieces
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Liz Zlot Summerfield at MudFire
Solo show Liz Summerfield 2011, April 2011
Workshop presenter Elegant & Intimate, March 2011
Gallery group show Constructed, April 2010
Gallery group show Potters of The Roan, April 2009
Workshop presenter Elegant & Intimate, August 2008
Gallery group show Line and Color, April 2008
Gallery group show Miniature Power, July 2007
Gallery group show Put A Lid On It, May 2007
Gallery group show Crisp, March 2006
Liz Zlot Summerfield Artist Bio
Liz currently resides in Western North Carolina with her husband, Scott Summerfield and their daughter, Roby. They are both full time artists working from their studios located at their home in Bakersville.
Liz attended the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis to complete her Masters of Fine Arts in 2001. She has taught at numerous clay facilities and she exhibits her work nationally through exhibitions, galleries, and fine craft shows. She currently works as a full time studio artist from her home.
Liz Zlot Summerfield Artist Statement
I find function a vehicle for expression while also allowing approachability to my work. Creamers and sugars, salt and pepper sets, and lidded containers are my primary subjects. My work is small and intimate in size. These handheld objects are constructed with slabs that softly drape over one another creating three-dimensional drawings throughout the surface of the piece. These lines are kept visible to accentuate the process of the making.
The beauty of utilitarian objects is that they are capable of functioning away from their primary context but also retain their inherent sense of function. A pot, box, or tool may function primarily as a useful object and later retire its usefulness and function as an aesthetic object such as in a collection. In either context, the object has a specific purpose, whether it is to contain or sit among others of its kind. Within a collection, everyday objects gain importance as members of a whole; they start to become more than the sum of their parts and have potential to give value to valueless objects. I view my work as an ever-growing collection, where I am the maker of objects that are similar but also defined by their subtle differences. I draw inspiration from my own personal collectibles such as vintage aprons and hand made boxes. As with many collections I strive to imbed my work with a sense of nostalgia, memory, and past time.
