Follow on Google News News By Tag Industry News News By Location Country(s) Industry News
Follow on Google News | HAM Exhibition Explores the Universal Language of ClayEast & West ceramics exhibition features artists from Japan, South Korea and the United States.
The Hunterdon Art Museum will feature the group’s art in its main gallery in an exhibition titled “East & West Clay Works.” It runs until March 10 with artists gathering for a closing reception. East & West was formed more than a dozen years ago by South Korean Professor Gil Hong Han. Han, then a professor at Seoul National University of Technology, was a visiting instructor at Long Island University when he began traveling the northeastern United States, sharing his dream of forming a group comprising ceramic artists from South Korea, Japan and this country. “Professor Han’s basic idea was not to bring together the best known ceramic artists from America and Korea, but to foster friendships and a spirit of volunteerism and cooperation,” Jacobson has witnessed this spirit of cooperation in action. “When I went to Korea, I never saw a show go up like that in my life. They had about 50 students wheel everything in, unpack it, and the show was set up in an hour. That’s the spirit of cooperation and friendship, and how everyone participates that makes this group special.” East & West is a core group of artists with a number of guest artists invited to participate in each show. Since its inception in 1998, ceramic artists have participated in biennial exhibitions in New York City, Seoul, Princeton and Mashiko, Japan. At the Museum, the works of 26 artists will be featured. The Universal Language Of Clay Viewers of the East & West Clay Works Exhibition will discover close up how ceramics from these divergent cultures influence each other, and what different cultures can accomplish through the spirit of cooperation. While the exhibition concentrates on small-scale sculpture, the variety of work casts light on the multiple ways in which artists approach clay today. “You can see whether the work done by the Japanese artists influences what’s done in America,” Jacobson said. “This exhibition shows how the works relate and speak to each other. We don’t have a theme. You can learn from each culture, see what’s important to them, how they do the work and what they’re doing right now in ceramics.” Jacobson noted, for example, one distinction between eastern and western ceramic art: “Even though [artists in the East] draw from contemporary influences, their work is very rooted in their culture,” Jacobson said. “But what is our tradition in our country? We have one, but we’re very much a melting-pot culture, and our ceramics reflect that.” And while remaining distinct, the works speak a common language, Jacobson said. “It’s the material that is going to speak,” Jacobson said. “Clay is universal; it’s in all cultures. And it speaks. It speaks to you.” Jacobson’s involvement with East & West began when one of her ceramic pieces was part of an exhibition at the Hunterdon Art Museum. Several East & West members viewed the exhibition, including Jong Sook Kang, who telephoned her and asked if she could visit her studio. “At the time I didn’t know who she or Professor Han was,” Jacobson said. “I felt like I should put food on the table, but I didn’t know what to offer; I didn’t know who they were, or what they eat or if they were vegetarians. So, I put out some cake and tea and coffee expecting only two people, when this big van pulled up and all these people started spilling out.” The visit went wonderfully as Professor Han chatted with Jacobson, visited her basement studio and offered to buy one of her pieces. “I told him it was a gift. He told me no and said in Korea the first time we meet someone we buy something. And I said this is America and the first time we give gifts, so I’m giving you this as a gift. He accepted the gift, and then his wife said ‘But I want to buy this.’ See, but then it was equal, so it was OK.” A year later, Jacobson received another phone call inviting her to exhibit with the group in New York City. The artist still finds the experience enriching and rewarding a decade later thanks to the friendships that have developed across the ocean and the spirit of cooperation the group shares. “It’s a wonderful opportunity to see these three cultures in one place in the clay tradition,” Jacobson said. “And it’s a wonderful story about how different cultures can get together and produce this show. I hope viewers won’t dash by each piece in two seconds. The work isn’t gimmicky or full of new technical innovations. It’s genuine, honest work, and it’s worth taking a long look at.” Find the Museum on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ GENERAL INFORMATION FOR THE PUBLIC The Museum is at 7 Lower Center St. in Clinton, New Jersey, 08809. Our website is www.hunterdonartmuseum.org and our telephone number is 908-735-8415. Hours are Tuesday through Sunday, 11 am – 5 pm and suggested admission is $5. ABOUT THE HUNTERDON ART MUSEUM The Hunterdon Art Museum presents changing exhibitions of contemporary art and design in a 19th century stone mill that is on the National Register of Historic Places. Founded in 1952, the Museum is a landmark regional art center showcasing works by established and emerging contemporary artists. It also offers a dynamic schedule of art classes and workshops for children and adults. Programs are made possible in part by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, and by funds from the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the Hunterdon County Cultural & Heritage Commission, New Jersey Cultural Trust, The Horizon Foundation of New Jersey and corporations, foundations, and individuals. The Hunterdon Art Museum is a wheelchair accessible space. Publications are available in large print. Patrons who are deaf, hard of hearing or speech impaired may contact the Museum through the New Jersey Relay Service at (TYY) 1 (800) 852-7899. End
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Account Phone Number