UN-WEDGED 2011: National Ceramics Competition and Exhibition Opens November 5

Oct. 3, 2011 - PRLog -- UN-WEDGED 2011:   National Ceramics Competition and Exhibition Opens with Gala Reception on Saturday, November 5


Exhibition Runs November 5-26, 2011
OPENING RECEPTION:  Saturday, November 5, 6 pm

Pottery Northwest, the region’s premiere ceramic facility, will host its second annual ceramics competition and exhibition:  UN-WEDGED 2011.  UN-WEDGED is a North American juried show with artists applying from all over the United States as well as Canada and Mexico. Applicants submitted both functional and sculptural work as well as mixed media. The show will run from November 5 through November 26, 2011 in the north gallery of Pottery Northwest’s historic home at 226 First Avenue North (between Thomas and John), just one block south of the Key Arena at the Seattle Center.  An Opening Reception will be held on Saturday, November 5, at 6 pm.  The public is cordially invited to attend.

The 2011 UN-WEDGED juror is Chris Staley, Professor of Ceramics at Penn State University. An award winning artist and well respected educator for many years, Staley is also the recipient of the Jean Griffith Fellowship Residency at Pottery Northwest. As juror for the competition and show, Staley has had to hone down a large pool of submissions to a select group that reflects the show’s ambition of “exceptional work both in concept and execution.” At the same time, he puts his own personal stamp on the interpretation of exceptional by selecting the recipient of the Juror’s Choice Award. This year, the Juror’s Choice Award of one thousand dollars goes to David Hollander of Boulder, Colorado for his piece Horse Head, Hand.

A second Director’s Choice prize of five hundred dollars (selected by Wally Bivins, Pottery Northwest’s director) will be awarded to Dan Molyneux for his piece Xerxes. “We are casting a wide net with this show and defying the idea of a specific trend in the field. The trend in the field that we’re interested in is excellence, and that can come in many manifestations.” Bivins says.

Gallery hours are Tuesday through Friday from 10 am to 5 pm. For further information and high-resolution images, please contact Nana Kuo at nana@potterynorthwest.org.

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Founded in 1966 as a non-profits arts organization, Pottery Northwest is a long time and vibrant source of programming in the Seattle arts community. Artists from around the world come to Pottery Northwest in the spirit of artistic dialog and as a formative step in their professional career. World class professional artist residencies, exhibitions featuring traditional and contemporary work, community classes and an engaging lecture series spanning many years are all features of this fixture at Seattle Center.