Esoteric Survey

  This past weekend AMOCA hosted a Panel discussion as part of the  Architectural Pottery: Ceramics for a Modern Landscape exhibition. It was a packed house. Someone from the museum said it was the most people they've had for an event like this. The first panel included three people who were personally connected to the Architectural Pottery.  Jo Lauria on the far left curated the exhibition and moderated the talk. To her right is Lee Whitten, then Marilyn Kay Austin in the middle and Damon Lawrence is on the right. Lee Whitten earned a master's degree in 1964 at UCLA under Laura Andreson and Bernie Kester. His first job in ceramics was at Architectural Pottery working under David Cressey. He was recommended to David by Andreson. This photo is a planter Cressey let Lee buy for $1.50, his hourly wage at the time. Lee said he liked the process of pushing the clay out from the interior of the form. Earth Cells were another favorite of his.  Although he was only at ...

Architectural Pottery: Ceramics for a Modern Landscape Curated by Jo Lauria, at AMOCA Jo, Dan Chavkin, Jeffrey Head, Gary Wexler and the AMOCA team put together a wonderful exhibition. Displaying this many pots is not an easy undertaking. The wall graphics and photos are great as well. It all started with La Gardo Tackett in 1949.  Tackett assigned his students at the California School of Art to create forms for modern homes. They held an exhibition of their work at a Evans & Reeves nursery, where Max and Rita (pictured with Tackett above) Lawrence saw the work. In 1950, the Lawrences partnered with two of the students, John Follis and Rex Goode, on a company they named Architectural Pottery.   LaGardo Tackett with a group of his designed Totems; Photo: George Szanik, 1957 Courtesy of Monacelli Press from the accompanying book, Architectural Pottery Ceramics for a Modern Landscape.   by Daniel Chavkin, Jeffrey Head, and Jo Lauria From the collection of JF C...

  Breaking Ground: Women in California Clay at AMOCA , celebrating 44 artists who have defined—and redefined—ceramics over the past 100 years. Many of the Golden State’s most innovative and impactful ceramic artists in the 20th and 21st centuries are women who faced adversity due to gender inequality and were often ignored or overlooked in favor of their male counterparts. These incredibly determined women pushed forward, driven by creativity and tenacity. The exhibition is co-curated by Beth Ann Gerstein (Executive Director), Jo Lauria (Adjunct Curator), and Edith Garcia (Professor, California College of the Arts and University of California, Berkeley). The exhibition is arranged chronologically, with the first group named "breaking ground." This includes Vivika Heino. A pretty great Heino. Heino glaze tests. I love this. Marguerite Wildenhain Wildenhain's production porcelain airplane cup from her Bauhaus days. Laura Andreson Another Andreson piece. Ruth Rippon Elaine K...