Ceramics Archives - ArtsMendocino - Serving Mendocino County CA

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Susan Blackwelder

Visual Arts: Ceramics, Painting

I am primarily a painter but enjoy dabbling in ceramics, especially clay sculpture. I specialize in portraits of people and pets in oil or pastel though I also enjoy doing landscapes and still life painting. My training in drawing has given me skills that I use in every medium. See more on Susan Blackwelder’s Corner Gallery web page.

Doug Browe

Visual Arts: Ceramics, Functional and/or Decorative, Mixed Media, Sculpture, Visual Arts Instructor

Doug Browe, Potter, Ceramic Artist and Sculptor My work focuses on history, problem solving, and relationships. Humankind both anthropomorphizes vessels, to the point of manifesting them with power as if surrogate humans; and employs them as metaphors for humans and manifests them in architectural form, they become a protected sanctuary of containment. It excites me to be part of this connection and help move this timeless conversation forward. From the dawn of civilization humans have had a relationship with vessels; we have from the beginning, anthropomorphized them, manifesting in them the power and honor of being surrogate humans. In turn we use them to mimic our many archetypes. My intrigue of this relationship between humans and the vessel moves my work. Currently, I lead the Ceramics and Sculpture Department at Mendocino College in Ukiah CA and have a studio practice making utilitarian ceramics and sculpture in Elk CA. “I am intrigued by the relationship between the vessel, architectural form and the human figure, that place where the human figure finds form in vessels and architecture and architecture and vessels finds form in figuration. I use these narratives to express a variety of personal and social issues in my work”.

Sabine Brunner

Visual Arts: Ceramics, Crafts, Printmaking

My name is Sabine Brunner. I am a ceramic artist and mom of 2 toddlers (Luka is 6 and Logan is 4 years old). I studied Graphic Design in Aachen/Germany and for my master thesis I designed a tableware with the whole alphabet from A-Z written in calligraphy. After moving to California in 1996, I started doing Ceramics and became a Ceramic Artist. I love giving my ceramic pieces a whimsical feel. In 2015 my family moved to Little River, CA next to Mendocino from the San Francisco Bay Area. We are living our dream of a rural life with lots of space and many animals. We currently have 3 dogs, 2 cats, 4 goats and 9 chickens. More to come… My work has been influenced by living our dream farm life. I am creating whimsical dishes with lots of different, colorful designs on it. My new studio is also housing an antique Pearl Golding Letterpress. You can come and print your own cards on my Adana 8×5 or take a class. My studio is located in Fort Bragg, California. Come and visit me if you are in the area and take a class in ceramics or printing! 223 East Redwood Ave., Fort Bragg, CA 95437

Kristin Coddington-Gordon

Visual Arts: Ceramics, Sculpture

Kristin Coddington-Gordon of What Now Ceramics is a ceramic sculpture living on the Mendocino Coast. She is a fierce fighter for the environment, a mother of three creative half wild daughters and married to a guy who knows not to get in the way of her clay. With a back ground in natural history and scientific illustration and most importantly a love for the planet and the self taught, unobstructed time to create Kristin sculpts expressive pieces that seem to be asking for your help. Each sculpture is made by hand without the use of a mold making each piece unique and individual. The sculptures are raku fired and waxed with bees wax. The wood used in Kristin’s sculptures is in collaboration with her husband Bob Gordon who mills local, salvaged wood. By creating sculptures of struggling species, Kristin gives animals a voice. The message is left undefined but is clearly in reference to environmental collapse. She hopes her art stirs up an emotion prompting others to do what they can. The question is asked. What now? See more at WhatNowCeramics.com Also Kristin’s sculpture can be seen at the Lansing Street Gallery in Mendocino & Northcoast Artists Gallery in Fort Bragg.

Meg Courtney

Visual Arts: Ceramics, Sculpture

William de la Mare

Literary Arts; Performing Arts: Spoken Word; Visual Arts: Ceramics, Photography, Sculpture

Growing up in the vicinities of London and New York, and coming from a family of artists and art lovers, I’ve been exposed to the arts all my life. I received my first camera as a child and developed the interest through high school. I was scouted in high school and given a scholarship to attend art school. Transferring into a more photography-specific path, I earned my Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with high honors from RIT. By that time, I was concentrating on photographing water and glass as a means of visually depicting spiritual/philosophical ideas pertaining to concepts of infinity. Along the way, I became a lawyer, ultimately focusing on global risk management, but continued to photograph, wrote the first book in a trilogy of epic novels on the theme of life, and also picked up practices in wood sculpture and porcelain pottery. More recently, I have returned my primary focus to art and water, concentrating on water’s various forms – snow, ice, rain, stream, sea, mist, steam, fog, cloud – and, for more than two years now, the Pacific Ocean from the Mendocino Headlands. Since being in Mendocino I have written the second part of my trilogy called Archetypes (Books I and II are now for sale in the Water Gallery) on the theme of death, and am currently working on the third – on the theme of Rebirth.

Judith Edwards

Visual Arts: Ceramics, Crafts, Glasswork, Jewelry, Mixed Media, Sculpture, Works on paper

My relationship with clay began at Grove Street College in Oakland in the 1970s and at Chico State I received a BA in Ceramics. My work is influenced by Mayan Art, Botany, my Marine Science studies & an attraction to Mysticism. Some of my early work also incorporated ceramic sculpture with textiles. Currently, the figurines, tiles and decorative pieces I have been working on are inspired by nature and the mystical use of spirit totems.

Perry Hoffman

Graphic Arts; Multi Arts; Visual Arts: Ceramics, Crafts, Glasswork, Graphic Arts, Painting, Photography, Sculpture; Mosaics

I am Perry Hoffman, artist, photographer, mosaic maker, tile maker and creator of the Tile House in the Mojave desert… specifically in wOnder valley, east of Twentynine Palms. Born in 1953 in Los Angeles, California, at the Queen of Angels Hospital. My parents were New York Jews, Rose & Ben, who always taught, peace, love, understanding and compassion for all people and had a love of art and music. You learn these things early. Grateful. Studied art in first grade and got in trouble for drawing a nude. Studied art at California Institute of the Arts in Valencia in the early seventies. Played with Paul Reubens and David Hasselhoff. Causing a ruckus, with a few regrets but otherwise a fun time. Migrated in 1975 to San Francisco, doing color xerox collage and mail art, photography and clay and small backyard gardens. Great classes with Toby Klayman in San Francisco, who taught Business and Visual Artist. Forever grateful being introduced to POSTCARDS… Participated in a few group shows with copy art artists in the Albany State Museum and a few in various locations in San Francsico, like La Mamelle Gallery. Those were the days. This part requires a book. Now on the Mendocino Coast in Gualala, with bees and garden and forest mushrooms.

Jan Hoyman

Visual Arts: Ceramics

Jan Hoyman Studio has been making pots since 1984, every piece is handmade and hand crafted. Care is given to every piece whether it is a mug for drinking coffee or a wedding platter to cherish forever. Our team includes valued employees that have been with us for over 20 years with a range of experience and artistry leaving room to grow. We work together to produce timeless pieces that are passed through generations. Continuing the Ukiah tradition for over 30 years. The studio embraces serving the community at the heart of Mendocino County. Please enjoy our pieces of Jan Hoyman Pottery daily.

Ling-yen Jones

Multi Arts; Visual Arts: Ceramics, Crafts, Glasswork, Graphic Arts, Jewelry, Mixed Media, Photography, Printmaking, Sculpture, Textiles, Works on paper

The Coast Highway Artists Collective (CHAC) was formed in March, 2012. The Collective includes artists working in various genres and media. Most of us live on or near the coast of the Pacific Ocean, in an area called “Mendonoma,” which includes the adjacent southern Mendocino County and northern Sonoma County in California. Our gallery in Point Arena has a long art history. The building, which is easily recognizable by its red paint and bright yellow sun logo, was originally a home for a family with five children. Decades ago, the building was converted into an art gallery and was known as City Art. Many artists in the local community contributed to creating the gallery and hosting art exhibits. Years later, the gallery became inactive and stood vacant for a time. CHAC was then formed and refurbished the building to use it for year-round displays of local members’ art. Guest artists are often invited to exhibit at the gallery. Our Collective member artists take turns staffing the gallery on its open days, usually four, including weekends (see our current schedule on the Home page), so that whenever anyone visits, there will be one of our artists there to serve them. The building, with its charming garden, is oftentimes used for community events. .

Mary Rose (Redwood Mary) Kaczorowski

Literary Arts; Performing Arts: Spoken Word; Visual Arts: Ceramics, Mixed Media, Painting, Photography

Mary Rose “Redwood Mary” Kaczorowski resides on the Mendocino Coast. She studied photography at Maine Photographic Workshops in Rockport, Maine; fine arts at Mason Gross School for the Arts/Rutgers University; at U.C. Berkeley Extension and at College of the Redwoods in Fort Bragg. At San Francisco Art Institute she studied photography with Larry Sultan and Linda Connors. In the 1980s Kaczorowski co-curated/produced “Artists at the Rock Project and Exhibition” in cooperation with the National Park Service Golden Gate National Recreation Area. This interpretive exhibition was the first of its kind in the Western U.S. Kaczorowski was a member of several artists’ groups including ArtLab (San Francisco), Secession Gallery (San Francisco), Ft. Bragg Center for the Arts (Gallery Artist) and the Women’s Caucus for Art. She took part in the San Francisco feminist protest group known as the Guerrilla Girls–originally formed in NYC to protest discrimination against women artists and artists of color in the art world. Kaczorowski’s works range from large scale to smaller paintings, photographs, oil pastels, drawings and watercolor. She states, ” My art delves into another way of seeing. I push beyond the boundaries between what is considered “fine art” and abstract expressionist-style.” She is a published poet & is a member of The Fort Bragg (CA) Poets. Her framed photos/art cards are available at Indigo in Mendocino Village.

Heather Law

Heather Law was raised in rural Northern California. In 2004, she received a Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University, Chico. After graduating, she spent several years as an apprentice at Hoyman-Browe pottery studio in Ukiah, California. From 2007-2009 she attended graduate school in Rochester, New York, at the School of American Crafts at Rochester Institute of Technology, where she obtained a Master’s of Fine Art degree with a concentration in Ceramic Sculpture. Currently she is a studio production artist and small business owner in Ukiah, CA. Law’s work is a social commentary on American consumerism, personal identity through material goods, and the waste that material consumption creates in our commodity culture. Her work is a tangible and direct representation of mass consumerism/waste and her molds are a friendly reusable reminder of the importance of being aware of our carbon footprint.

Marta MacKenzie

Visual Arts: Ceramics, Sculpture

James Maxwell

Visual Arts: Ceramics, Functional and/or Decorative, Graphic Arts, Illustration, Mixed Media, New Media/Technology, Painting, Printmaking, Sculpture, Visual Arts Instructor, Works on paper

Multi-media Artist, Author, Arts Educator, James Maxwell moved to the Mendocino Coast in 1973. A few examples of his prolific creative work can be seen below. Top of The Fen (From Visual Essay on Our Local Wilderness) 2’ X 4’ acrylic paint Some details: James E. Maxwell Born: June 15, 1941 Riverside, California Drew and Painted at an early age Riverside School District 1946 thru 1959 Childhood summer vacations with immediate family: 1949 thru 1958 Pacific Northwest and Western Canada Joined US Air Force 1959 After military testing for skills Studied Pattern Recognition and types of Military Codes Assigned Bremerhaven, Germany US Security Service Three years duty. My own one room painting studio in Germany 1960-1963 Traveled extensively throughout Western Europe Museums, and artists’ open studios College: BFA, MFA Art Center College of Design 1963 -1969 William Zacha’s Geranium (Brought Home) 3’ X 4’ oil paint w/copper and faux gold leaf Work: The Hollywood Chapter of The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Los Angeles Area Television Academy Awards 1970 Honors JAMES MAXWELL Graphics For Contributions to the winning of an Area Television Academy Award OUT OF THE SHADOWS KNBC-TV june 26, 1970 PBS-TV Staff Artist Los Angeles 1974-1976 One Man Showings: La Cieniga Blvd – Hollywood, CA each year 1973-1976 1976 Moved to Mendocino, Northern California Fine Arts-illustration Painting/Sculpture instructor Mendocino Art Center & College of the Redwoods Retired at 68 years of age Returned to Europe when 70 for six weeks visiting friends in England, France, Switzerland, Northern Italy. At 72 returned to England and Northern Scotland, Isle of Sky Traveled with painting supplies South Pacific, Hawaii, American Samoa, Western Samoa, Kingdom of Tonga, and New Zealand, Ireland East West and South for six weeks spring Summer 2016 Returned home overlooking Fort Bragg, CA’s Pudding Creek “I focus on what I can learn from images that question me as much as I question them.” JM

Sonya Popow

Visual Arts: Ceramics, Earthworks, Functional and/or Decorative, Sculpture

SONYA POPOW I’ve had my hands in clay for more than fifty years. I was rigorously trained as a production potter, spending two years as an apprentice to Charles Counts in Appalachia, then studying with his teacher, Marguerite Wildenhain at Pond Farm Pottery in Guerneville. In mid life I returned to graduate school and worked on a series of monumental sculptures. I enjoy making sculpture to fire in local atmospheric kilns. Many of my sculptures have come from explorations of the plants in my garden with various lenses. Lately I’ve been inspired by whale vertebrae and the amazing shapes of bones. I always wander in pictures of pots and sculpture ancient and contemporary. My wood fire pots are fired in either Leslie Campbell’s Albion/Aum Anagama or in Nick Schwartz’s Cider Creek Anagama. These Anagama kilns are fired entirely with wood for up to 7 days with a community of potters stoking constantly in 6 to 8 hour shifts. The pots may have a liner glaze, but the subtle ‘glaze’ on these pots is from the volatile atmosphere of the very hot wood fumes and ash in the kiln interacting with the clay body. SHAPESHIFTERS These small sculptures have no ‘right side up’. They can be hung, played with, turned and displayed in many directions. The series began as a symbolic Buddhist ‘mala’ of 108 prayer beds. Each piece is still made and fired with a quote from the Dalai Lama inside. During the firing process, the paper quote is burned but perhaps the energy remains or maybe you have some words of your own. “My religion is kindness” Dalai Lama I hope for pieces that evoke some mysterious found object – a seed, a leaf, a shell, a bone. If I am successful the viewer will ask, “Where did you find it?” and, “Can I touch? I continue to make medium fire (cone 5) functional pottery at my home/studio in Fort Bragg. Call for a visit at my outdoor showroom -707-964-5128.

Robert Rhoades

Visual Arts: Ceramics, Mixed Media, Painting, Printmaking, Sculpture

Creekwood Studios is a fine art and art travel business. As a recently retired professor of art, Bob continues to produce and show original art. For nearly 20 years, he and his wife have arranged and led small, upscale, art and culture trips abroad. Content, context and craft, the {“three C’s”} developed over decades of teaching is the technique Bob uses to help others understand and appreciate art and architecture. Bob makes both classical and contemporary work accessible to all. His vast knowledge of art processes is a unique approach to appreciating and understanding both art and culture As a skilled teacher, lecturer, scholar and storyteller, Bob will enable you to advance whether you are a beginner or an advanced artist. His instruction will push you to higher levels of accomplishment. On past trips we have created paintings from ochres gathered from the ancient quarries of Roussillion. We have strolled the streets of Florence where the rivalries between the Medici and the Strozzi families shaped the Renaissance. We have shared an afternoon glass of wine before a classical concert at St. Nicolas Cathedral in Prague, and joined in a local party for dancing after a home cooked meal in our villa in Tuscany. These are but a few of the experiences Creekwood Studios has created with new experiences waiting to be made.

Sophia Sutherland

Visual Arts: Ceramics

Sophia Sutherland has lived in Elk CA since 1968. She has wored in stone, clay, bronze and cement, adding watercolor and pastel to the creative equation. Now Sophia moves between the 2nd & 3rd dimensions, exploring, breathing and continuing to saunter through fields of paradox and possibility.

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