Celebrating the Diversity of the Clay Medium across Texas
February 5 - 28
Opening Reception February 6
The Feb. 5–28 Rockport Center for the Arts’ (RCA) show features four Texas clay artists, each bringing their unique perspective of the medium: Alejandra Almuelle and Rory E. Foster from Austin, Roy Hanscom from Houston, and local favorite Stan Irvin of Rockport.
"This exhibition celebrates the many ways clay media can be used to create form, texture, mood, and narrative,” said Elena Rodriguez, exhibitions curator for Rockport Center for the Arts. “From the rough to the smooth, the functional to decorative, and the joyous to the contemplative — the works in this exhibit showcase the diversity of clay art in Texas. Clay is a wonderful medium because of its tactile experience, which makes it accessible and versatile. The work in this exhibition ranges from the purely decorative and narrative to the functional, and everything in between."
The exhibition will be viewable and for sale both in person and online at rockportartcenter.com. A public reception with the artists in attendance will be held Saturday, Feb. 6, from 5–7 p.m. to officially launch the show, which is free and open to the public. A maximum of 50 attendees will be admitted at any one time in the galleries, and all attendees, including visitors, staff, and volunteers, are required to wear face masks and maintain social distancing.
In addition to “The Many Shapes of Texas Clay,” there will also be a special clay show in Galería Dos featuring the work produced by RCA’s open studio pottery group, known as the “Rockport Clay Artisans.” Featuring aspiring local artists Chris Dawson, Susan Fest, Linda Frank, Susan Myers, Genie Mysorski, Ken Reese and Janette Sims, the show will introduce their work to the public while paying tribute to their impressive achievements over the past year. A third exhibit at Rockport Center for the Arts will feature recent work from the membership in the Members Gallery.
About the Artists
Although Alejandra Almuelle was born in Arequipa, Peru, where the abundance of clay makes the medium a language of artistic expression, it wasn’t until she moved to Austin many years later that she began working with it. Almuelle’s pottery and sculpture, including several series in which the common thread is the human shape, has been showcased in gallery and museum shows as well as art fairs. As a base medium, Almuelle says she believes “clay is appropriate for expressing the human journey because it is the material we are made of.”
In the fall of 2017, Rory E. Foster changed careers, shifting her world into the “magical land of pottery,” where she enjoys combining nature and her personality to create earthy ceramics as both functional and contemporary art. Foster draws much of her inspiration from negative space in objects and nature — including landscapes, sunsets, insects, and birds — which also guides her choice of colors. Her pieces begin as a slab of high-fire stoneware clay, which she hand-builds into its final shape; the work is then bisque fired and sanded to create a canvas for her favorite part: the design and glazing.
Currently a Professor of Ceramics at Lone Star College-North Harris in Houston, Roy Hanscom says he enjoys working with clay because it is a material that sets no limit and practically no boundaries in its ability to adapt to his ideas and designs. Growing up on Long Island, N.Y., Hanscom began his ceramic studies in 1972 at Friends University in Wichita, Kansas where he received his Bachelor of Fine Arts, continuing with his studies at Instituto Allende, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, and Ohio State University. In 1980 he received his Master of Fine Arts in Ceramics at Bowling Green State University in Bowling Green, Ohio.
As a potter, Stan Irvin is primarily concerned with the vessel’s potential as a metaphor and as a vehicle for the expression of form and ideas with nature, machines, and architecture frequently providing inspiration. A Professor Emeritus from St. Edward’s University in Austin where he taught ceramics and clay figure sculpture courses while maintaining a robust studio practice, Irvin now lives in Rockport where he maintains a downtown studio and gallery, specializing in altered, wheel-thrown and hand built vessel forms while expanding his techniques of forming and surface development. The award-winning artist’s work has been included in numerous state and national juried competitions, as well as the Art of the Pot studio tour in Austin.
“The Many Shapes of Texas Clay” exhibition would normally coincide with the annual Rockport Clay Expo, which was cancelled this year due to COVID-19 concerns. Featuring dozens of clay artists, demonstrations, food and more at various locations throughout Rockport, the plan is for the event to return in 2022.
“The Clay Expo brings such an energy to Rockport, it is unfortunate that we are not able to hold the event this year,” said Luis Purón, executive director for Rockport Center for the Arts. “We are looking forward to working with Aransas County Council on Aging to revive the event in 2022. The Clay Expo is an important tourism driver held during a typically slow first quarter, which makes it an economic boon for our community.”
Rockport Center for the Arts is located at 401 S. Austin Street at the Baker Law Building, first level. Hours of operation are Tuesday–Thursday from 10 a.m.–4 p.m., Friday and Sat 10 a.m.–5 p.m., and Sunday, noon–4 p.m. Admission is free. Visit rockportartcenter.com, follow RCA on Facebook, or call (361) 729-5519 for more information.