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Upcoming Exhibitions
It Was 20 Years Ago Today... :An Exhibition and Teaching Collection
Gallery M and A
September 25 – November 7
Northern Clay Center announces a special exhibition commemorating its first twenty years. It Was 20 Years Ago Today…:An Exhibition and Teaching Collection will open to the public on Saturday, September 25, 2010. This exhibition is part of a year of special events celebrating the Center's 20th birthday. As part of the festivities, the Center will also host an exhibition reception and Big Birthday Bash on October 16th. 
This exhibition will focus on the past ten years as well as highlighting some of the pieces from our teaching collection, which were acquired during our ten-year retrospective. Since our tenth anniversary the exhibition program has continued to showcase some of the best ceramic work in the world from emerging artists and potters to established masters. Along the way we added an additional gallery space and began to receive support from the Windgate Foundation. Both have had a tremendous impact on the scope and scale of the exhibition program.Pottery, sculpture, installations and other objects by over 400 artists have been included in NCC exhibitions over the past ten years. The Center's exhibition committee worked with the staff to curate a representative sampling of the work of artists who push the limits of clay in form and meaning, such as Nina Hole's monumental temporary sculptures, David East's utopian landscapes, Judy Onofrio's mixed-media exotic ladies and birds. The sampling includes artists whose work epitomizes wonderful utilitarian pots, such as Malcolm Davis, Mary Barringer, and Ayumi Horie. It includes artists and potters whose work has been exhibited at a range of career stages, from emerging Jerome Artists to mid-career McKnight Artists to influential Regis Masters. And, it includes artists from locations as close as studios at Northern Clay Center to as far away as Australia.
Members of the exhibition committee who participated in the selection process were: Kelly Connole, Maren Kloppmann, Jeff Oestreich and Rob Silberman. Staff members were Jamie Lang, exhibition director and Emily Galusha, director. Works by the clay artist members of the selection committee are included in the exhibition.Confirmed participating artists as of June are: Linda Arbuckle, Chuck Aydlett, Mary Barringer, Megan Bergstrom, Margaret Bohls, Andy Brayman, Nino Caruso, Rebecca Chappell, Sam Chung, Kelly Connole, Cynthia Consentino, Malcolm Davis, Andrea Leila Denecke, David East, Gutte Eriksen, Edith Garcia, Arthur Gonzáles, Katharine Gotham, Ursula Hargens, Mike Helke, Tony Hepburn, Nina Hole, Ayumi Horie, Satoru Hoshino, Farraday Newsome & Jeff Reich, Cindy Kolodziejski, Jamie Lang, Beth Lo, Peter Lupori, Janet Mansfield, Tony Marsh, Andrew Martin, Connee Mayeron, Jan McKeachie Johnston, Paul McMullan, Judy Onofrio, Walter Ostrom, Lawson Oyekan, Don Reitz, Nick Renshaw, Mary Roettger, Annabeth Rosen, Irene Saito, Pete Scherzer, Tatsuzo Shimaoka, Forrest Snyder, Patti Warashina, Kurt Webb, Janet Williams, Robert Winokur, Tetsuya Yamada, and Lucy Yogerst.
We plan to publish a catalogue of the exhibition along with an updated history of NCC and selection of essays, for volume 2 of our history in 2011. As we did with the 10th anniversary exhibition, we hope to acquire the objects in the exhibition to add to our teaching collection. In addition to generous donations from a number of the selected artists, we are raising funds to assist the purchase of the remaining objects. If you are interested in contributing to the NCC acquisition fund, please call Emily Galusha or Jamie Lang.20th Birthday Party Bash and Regis Masters Reunion
Northern Clay Center and Minneapolis Institute of Arts
October 16 and 17
Following the 20th anniversary version of the American Pottery Festival we will keep the good and interesting times going with a special weekend in October.Big Birthday Bash
On Saturday night, October 16, from 7 to 11 pm, the Big Birthday Party Bash will be at the Clay Center. This party will mark a return to NCC's history of rollicking parties, with dancing and music and food and drinks. Tickets will be $35, and will include tapas and other small bites from around the world, a champagne toast, celebratory cupcakes and lighting of the birthday candles. In honor of the 20th anniversary signifier of china, we will feature small dessert plates by many of the noted potters represented and exhibited by NCC over the past years. This will be a chance to see all those people you used to see at NCC, the people you still see here, and the people you will see in the future, and to congratulate yourselves for your part in making this the best region in the country for clay people.
NCC's “house band”—the Swamp Boogie Kings—will re-assemble under the leadership of potter/blues man Chuck Solberg. (They may be joined by a surprise and noted guest singer.) We will clear out the wheels, polish the floors, hang the disco ball, and prepare to dance the night away. Fair warning: at least one couple who met and danced at the 10th anniversary party ended up at the alter—if you're looking for love and a good time, come to NCC on the 16th!
Regis Reunion
The birthday party will tickle your toes—the Regis Reunion will tickle your mind. As part of our look back at both the field and NCC, we have invited all the Regis Masters who are still with us to return for the 20th birthday party and two reunion roundtable discussions, similar to the two earlier versions that delighted everyone who heard them. Sixteen of the 23 Regis Masters have been invited to return; as of print date, nine had indicated they planned to attend. They include: Nino Caruso (2004), William Daley (1998), Warren MacKenzie (1997), Janet Mansfield (2002), John Mason (2005), James Melchert (1998), Ron Meyers (2008), Don Reitz (2007), and Patti Warashina (2009).
Our current plan is to schedule two discussions, beginning at 12:30 pm and 2:30 pm, on Sunday, October 17, each running an hour and a half, with a half-hour break in between. These will take place in the Pillsbury Auditorium at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, 2400 Third Avenue in Minneapolis. Tickets will be free, on a first-come, first-serve basis. (Both discussions will be taped, and made available later on the Internet.) As were the first roundtable discussions, these will be informal conversations among the participants and with the audience about old questions and new issues in the clay world, about long lives and creative work, and the need to keep creating. We expect a full house, so we advise arriving early to the MIA. Many of the Masters plan to attend the birthday party, so you will have a chance to talk with them informally there as well.
On Friday, October 15, NCC will honor the returning Masters at a special food and wine tasting event. This event is designed to be a small fundraiser; tickets will be $125 per person. Space is very limited, so we
advise early reservations. The event will take place at the offices of the McKnight Foundation, overlooking the Mississippi River and the Stone Arch Bridge.
Whatever events strike your fancy—join us to celebrate 20 years of showing, teaching, and making ceramic work, and the potters, artists, teachers, students, volunteers, collectors and users, board members, staff and funders who have made it all happen.
'tis a gift... 2010 Holiday Exhibition and Sale
Gallery M and A
November 21, 2010 – January 2, 2011
Start making your lists and checking things off, because you're sure to find one-of-a-kind gifts galore during 'tis a gift, Northern Clay Center's annual Holiday Exhibition and Sale. Just in time for your holiday season shopping sprees, Northern Clay Center stocks its galleries with new pottery and sculpture by more than sixty regional and national ceramic artists. You will find perfect gifts for your “green' friends and family (ceramic mugs may break, but they won't wear out and the only re-cycling you need to be concerned about is re-gifting). Add a personal touch, by making a tile or ornament yourself during our Open House event, Sunday, November 21 from noon - 4 pm.Watch for more information on the Holiday Exhibition and Sale in the Winter Newsletter. (Please note NCC Galleries will be closed for installation November 18 - 20 during normal hours.)