Anderson Ranch, the internationally known hands-on contemporary art center, recently opened Finding Place (Snowmass Village, Colorado, December 7, 2015 – January 25, 2016), an exhibition of contemporary pottery by Alleghany Meadows and sculpture by Sara Ransford. Both are former artists-in-residence at Anderson Ranch. Both are accomplished ceramists but for the purpose of this post, which deals with pottery (not sculpture as in Ransford’s), we look at Meadows work.
Above image: Alleghany Meadows, Flora Zuppa, 2015, porcelain with glaze, 13″ diameter x 7.5″ tall
By its very existence, this work is a rebuke of the ignorance and myopia of the New York Times design editors. This was not the show’s mission, but its timing is propitious, providing an antidote to a recent piece in the Times that we discussed in an earlier post.
Click to see a larger image.
Alleghany Meadows, Flora Azzurro, 2015, 2015, porcelain with glaze, 23″ diameter x 9″ inches tall
I am a long time subscriber to the Times and for forty years I’ve looked up to its erudition, authority, and its high journalistic standards. My favorite section (aside from Opinion) is the Friday arts and culture supplement. You will find no better team of reviewers, in my opinion.
However, when it comes to design, the Times promotes amateur hour. Often the social page dictates its design choices based on which Buffy made something or which Muffy bought it. Writers have no sense of design history or standards. It’s been appalling watching the trivializing of design in a world-class newspaper.
Ceramics has fared particularly poorly. On the art side the Times leads the world in accepting, then intelligently and respectfully dissecting ceramics as art. On design they feature the barely competent, mostly from the Brooklyn design community, which is at best a mixed bag.
Alleghany Meadows, Flora la Dolce Trente y Tres, 2015, porcelain with glaze and stoneware, 21″ diameter x 7.5″ tall
I refer to a recent post we presented on ceramics being “white hot.” Do view the Times piece, see their selections, then come back here and enjoy what a real potter can do.
Meadows (yes, a child of the hippie movement) can put many potters, even skilled ones to shame with his talent, sense of form, seductive surfaces and precision throwing. These roundels are sets of plates, cups and bowls and they are breathtaking.
One might ask why the Times did not seek out this kind of excellence to illustrate its recurring bi-monthly warmed-over article on ceramics being hot. The reason for their sloppy treatment of the design world (and the ire is rising in that community) is that, alas, this great news source is like others in print, shrinking. A staffer who spoke to me about conditions described the journalistic departments as a “ghost town.”
Alleghany Meadows, Flora Tazza, 2015, porcelain with glaze, 14″ diameter x 5″ tall. Click to see a larger image.
Design has never been an American issue. Europe dominates and now Asia is rising as well. Design is actually a crucial subject, delivering to homes and tables the objects that make our life functional and aesthetically gratifying. I am sure that many in the design world will be happy to assist the Times gratis in raising their standards and sophistication. We understand the financial dilemma but there is still a little wiggle room for the squeaky wheel. (Pun intended).
Until then ignore the triviality that comes from their pages and go out and find true potters across the country whose work is extraordinary and affordable; the purity of Munemitsu Taguchi, the intentional naiveté of Ingrid Bathe, the while-on-white embossing of Andy Shaw, the pure joy of Sunshine Cobb, the sturdy North Carolina wares of Daniel Johnston, Mark Hewitt, Alex Matisse, Matt Jones, Josh Copus, and many, many, many others. There are a score of shops that stock handmade functional pottery, both for profit and non-profit, and just two suggestions are The Clay Studio in Philadelphia and Santa Fe Clay. A quick Google will reveal scores more.
Alleghany Meadows, Flora Mandala Undici, 2015, porcelain with glazes and stoneware, 21″ diameter x 8″ tall
To return to Meadows, rush to the Anderson Ranch to acquire one of these works, the best of his career. But if you are too late, never fear, he and his gallery partner Sam Harvey (also an excellent potter) run a premier gallery in Aspen for ceramics, Harvey/Meadows, and you can sign up for the fruits of the next firing.
Garth Clark is Editor-in-Chief of cfile.daily.
Love Alleghany Meadows’ contemporary pottery? Let us know in the comments!
Alleghany Meadows, Flora Mandala Primavera, 2015, porcelain with glazes and stoneware, 19″ diameter x 8″ tall
Alleghany Meadows, Flora Azul, 2015, porcelain with glaze, 11″ diameter x 6″ tall
Alleghany Meadows, Flora Blanco, 2015, porcelain with glaze, 20″ diameter x 7″ tall. Click to see a larger image.
Alleghany Meadows, Flora Zuppa Celeste, 2015, porcelain with glaze, 12.5″ diameter x 6.5″ tall
Yes interesting work. The presentation which is mandala like, makes me want to know are these works separable? The stacking and arranging makes them intriguing but as functional works they would be used and placed uncombined. They could all be fired and fused together to make a distinctly unique work for display only and probably for hanging as a wall (art) piece. This information I feel needs to be discussed from my viewpoint as a reader of the article and to inform us from a critics understanding of the work. This information would highlight the skilled throwing accuracy and knowledge of the potter and reviewer of the why the pieces were assembled like this. Most commercial industrial ware could also be assembled like this and arranged to form a kind of Uroboros or eternal return motif which symbolises cyclicality. It does demonstrate the hand making skill which has come full circle to mimic highly industrial clay forming processes.
I belong to a studio that has been in the Kew Gardens/Forest Hills area for over 30 years, with exceptional artists who have appeared in the Pottery Making Illustrated Calendars and the 500 books numerous times. Pottery has always been “white hot” in our small corner of the city, and yet if it’s not in Brooklyn, it’s not happening, according to most of the news outlets in New York.
This work by Alleghany is sublime, and the skill shows, but I’m not sure why it is used to contradict the skill level of the ceramicists mentioned in the NY Times article. It seems to me like you are comparing apples with oranges – art with functional ware. While both ceramic, I think they are quite separate things.
I am not American, I’m from the other side of the world, so I probably I don’t fully understand the journalistic significance the NY Times holds for you, therefore I have no comment on their ignorance and myopia. I would only guess that they have a broader audience to speak to than cfile (which love reading BTW).
I do note many of the examples you give of ‘worthy’ ceramic artists do indeed make functional ware so I see the comparison there, but find the comment made by Garth “…skill sets for those featured in the article vary from capable to wishful but the attention is welcome”, counter productive. We want the attention on ceramics but let’s put down those doing reasonably well at it, but not as well as we would like. I dont understand what the comments like that are meant to achieve.
Thanks Peter, thoughtful remarks and a pleasure to read. The problem is that the New York Times never gets to the exceptional work in our field. Mediocre is not enough for us, our job, right or wrong is to push for higher standards in a hugely competitive market.
Inspirational sense of design that raises the bar aesthetically not only the ceramic objects, but also in the beautiful and astounding presentation!
Beautiful pieces in their own right. That being said, if you can get them to hold together at 25,000 RPM, I know some folks at Boeing who would be very interested.
Excellent response! I recently wrote an academic paper on the “fashionable” moment that ceramics is having, I’d appreciate any feedback.
Check it out at bonedrybodies.com or here (http://bonedrybodies.weebly.com/blog/the-new-it-potters)
Well done and thanks!
Bill, thanks, good article. Harvey Meadows exhibits very good work. I recently saw beautiful cut paper pieces (by an artist who’s name I do not recall I regret.) I do appreciate the Times supplement’s section ‘A Picture and a Poem’.
Andrea Dezsö, I believe, was the paper artist
Thank you! You echo my sentiments about the NYTimes article so well.
Way to go Garth! As for as Alleghany’s pots–sublime
This work is fabulous and deserves recognition. But while you are on the topic of the Times’ lame coverage of design outside of the boroughs, you should also give credit to the photographer of these pieces. They would not shine as much without the talents of a photographer who understands the work and relates to it.
I used to be married to a Times journalist. I can tell you that time and budget restraints were always a frustration when trying to seek out the new and unexplored. But, it is after all, the New York Times. There were meetings about trying to make it a more national paper, but I think of it as a city paper more than ever. I often find more wide reaching news and articles of interest on the BBC site.
Thanks for this piece. So happy to know about these artists. I will look for more of your work.
Lindy Smith, I believe that Alleghany was the photographer. I recognize the lighting and shadows, and how he highlights the crackle glazes, as signatures of his long time ability to document and present his work.
I think that your comment is lovely and informative and hope he reads the comments on this cfile.daily. article.