Works from nationally acclaimed pottery artists are part of an exhibit in Dunedin.
By TERRI D. REEVES
Published January 12, 2004
[Times photo: Kathleen Flynn]
Kevin Hluch, professor of art at Montgomery College in Rockville, Md., speaks to a crowd as the guest curator for "The Power of Pottery." "We've gotten away from the idea that beauty is an important part of artistic expression,"said Hluch, who also has an exhibit of his own work on display thorugh Feb. 29.
DUNEDIN - During a gallery talk to open the exhibition "The Power of Pottery," artist, author and professor Kevin A. Hluch posed the question: What is beauty?
"It stirs you emotionally," one audience member suggested.
"It pleases the senses," another said.
One comment, "it goes with the couch," got some chuckles.
Beauty pleases the senses and exalts the mind, Hluch answered, acknowledging that the task of creating beauty can be exceedingly difficult.
Hluch, 54, is a professor of art at Montgomery College in Rockville, Md. He has written several books on the subject of pottery including The Art of Contemporary American Pottery.
Now he has organized a national invitational pottery exhibition at the Dunedin Fine Art Center, 1143 Michigan Blvd. The works of 29 ceramic artists of national acclaim are represented in the exhibit, which runs through March 7.
The pottery is, by most anyone's definition, beautiful.
The works of art on exhibit include bowls, pedestals, vases, covered jars, tumblers, pitchers, casserole dishes, and teapots in a vast array of colors and finishes. They reflect a wide range of techniques and viewpoints.
Some are simple and elegant; others ornate and detailed; a few are whimsical and fun.
"The selections are exquisite. They are quietly beautiful," said Michele Tuegel, executive director of the Florida Craftsmen Gallery.
"I am so impressed by these people's imaginations and what they can do," said Beverly Brown of Safety Harbor, a student at the center.
Participating potters were selected not only for the beauty of their works, but its functionality. These works of art are meant to be touched, rubbed and used in the home.
"When you strip function, it is not pottery, it is sculpture," Hluch said.
The pottery displayed ranges in price from $40 for a hot slot tea bowl to $1,000 for a wood-fired stoneware platter.
Artists include Linda Arbuckle of Florida, Christa Assad of California, Joan Bruneau of Nova Scotia, Canada, Will Ruggles and Douglass Rankin of North Carolina, Chris Staley of Pennsylvania, and Catherine White of Virginia.
"These people are my pottery heroes," said Ira Burhans, a professional potter for 25 years and instructor at the Dunedin Fine Art Center.
In addition to the main display in the Douglas-Whitley Gallery at the center, Hluch has his own exhibition of pottery, which reflects an Asian influence. The exhibit, "Kevin A. Hluch: Recent Works," is in the Entel Family Gallery through Feb. 29.
Pottery instructors of the fine art center and selected students also exhibit their work in an exhibit called "Hands In Clay."
Children's pottery - a delightful collection of coiled snakes, crawling bugs and scaly fish - is exhibited in the center gallery.
Russ Gustafson-Hilton, one of the owners of St. Petersburg Clay, said he was very impressed with the exhibit and the caliber of ceramic artists it has attracted.
"This area has undergone a renaissance and blossomed into a cultural oasis," he said.
If you go"The Power of Pottery" exhibition, composed of works of 29 nationally acclaimed artists, is held in the Douglas-Whitley Gallery in the Dunedin Fine Art Center, 1143 Michigan Blvd., through March 7.
"Kevin A. Hluch: Recent Works," the guest curator's own collection, is held in the Entel Family Gallery at the center through Feb. 29.
"Hands in Clay," pottery by the fine art center's faculty and students, is in the Meta B. Brown Gallery at the center through March 7.
