The "Unearthed: Ceramics Collection" portrayed well-known and new artists. It highlighted women and Indigenous artists and the historical ceramic art that took place over the Western United States.
The artists within this exhibition were from different tribes who could bring their own cultural backgrounds, and alumni from Utah State University ceramics programs, who've gone on to be successful ceramicists.
The Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art showcased various pots so people could see the diversity of this art form.
“We wanted a variety, we want some brown pots, and we want some colorful, and ones that are experimenting, showing concurrently that in any given time, an artist and the work that they're making is a reflection of their experiences, their interests, their play, their cultural traditions, or interest and new ideas that they're bringing into the world," Katie Lee-Koven, the executive director & chief curator of NEHMA said.
As this exhibition comes to an end, a reception will take place this Monday, April 22 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. It is free and open to everyone.
At this reception, special guest Jennifer Sorkin from UC Santa Barbara will be giving a lecture on the methodology for rethinking the ways that ceramics intervene with American art through its unique material, social, and gendered contributions. She will be discussing one of her catalog essays, “Rethinking Contemporary Craft.”
Along with the closing, Unearthed published a book with the ceramic art from the exhibition.
“This is a project I've wanted to do for a very long time. Because Nora, the namesake of the museum, once a ceramicist and the museum was founded initially with a gift for the building and her ceramics collection. I want to share that for ceramicists and collectors of ceramics, to have a resource book that helps them learn about new artists, maybe new ideas,” Lee-Koven said.
