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CONTACT: Leslie Wright, 802-985-3346 x 3331 lwright@shelburnemuseum.org
Download images at www.shelburnemuseum.org
ALL FIRED UP FEATURES SIX CERAMIC ARTISTS
EXHIBIT SHOWCASES CONTEMPORARY CERAMIC ARTS IN VERMONT
SHELBURNE,Vt.(April 22, 2010) A new exhibit at Shelburne Museum showcases Vermont’s top ceramic
artists and offers a window on contemporary ceramics in the state.
All Fired Up: Six Ceramic Artists from Vermont features unique artist-designed installations displaying a
diversity of work that, while contemporary, echoes aspects of the museum’s own collections from the
18th through 19th centuries.
Included are works by Ray Bub of Pownal, Aysha Peltz and Todd Wahlstrom of Town Hill Pottery in
Whitingham, Laura Zindel of Guilford, Stephen Procter of Brattleboro and John Brickels of Essex
Junction.
The exhibit opens on May 16 and runs through October 24.
“From the whimsical reassembled tea pots of Ray Bub and fanciful characters created by John Brickels to
the outsized vessels of Stephen Procter, All Fired Up highlights the depth and breadth of creative talent
of the artists who choose to make Vermont their home,” said Associate Curator Kory Rogers, who
organized the exhibit.
Each artist brings his or her unique perspective and approach to the medium, exploring issues of form,
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function, and decoration. Aysha Peltz, for example, uses her body to create large-scale pieces. Laura
Zindel employs a modern adaptation of a technique called transferware, first introduced in the 1700s,
to place her intricate drawings of flora and fauna onto her ceramic pieces.
The works also tie into Shelburne Museum’s collection. Procter’s vessels evoke the museum’s Mammoth
Jugs circa 1790-1830. Wahlstrom’s slip decoration techniques mirror that of the museum’s Mochaware
collection from late 18th and early 19th centuries.
Artists included in the exhibit are as follows:
Laura Zindel of Guilford, Vermont has earned national acclaim for her nature-inspired dinnerware.
Zindel’s scientifically-rendered drawings of insects, reptiles, and birds are inspired by the biological
specimens commonly found in Victorian curiosity cabinets. She transfers her black and white drawings
into ceramic decals that she arranges into beautifully symmetrical patterns.
Ray Bub of Pownal, Vermont has dedicated the last fifteen years of his career to exploring the form
potential of his reassembled ring teapots. Bub starts by throwing the ring vessels that he dissects and
reassembles into imaginative, dynamic and functional teapots.
John Brickels of Essex Junction, Vermont creates the illusion of transforming clay into weathered wood
and riveted sheet metal that he uses to fabricate his dilapidated barns and life-size robots.
Stephen Procter of Brattleboro, Vermont throws his mammoth-sized garden urns by hand on the
potter’s wheel. His massive and delicate forms are testaments to Procter’s tremendous technical skills
and understanding of clay as a material.
Aysha Peltz and Todd Wahlstrom of Whitingham, Vermont are partners in Town Hill Pottery. Peltz uses
her entire body in the creation of the abstract forms of her large scale pottery, which references Asian
influences. Informed by European, Asian, and Near Eastern ceramic traditions, Wahlstrom’s pottery
explores the relationship between aesthetics, human needs and form.
About Shelburne Museum: Shelburne Museum in Shelburne, Vermont, is one of the finest, most diverse
and unconventional museums of art, design and Americana. Over 150,000 works are exhibited in a
remarkable setting of 39 exhibition buildings, 25 of which are historic and were relocated to the
museum grounds. The museum’s collection includes works by the great Impressionists Claude Monet,
Edouard Manet and Edgar Degas as well as a prized collection of folk art including trade signs,
weathervanes and quilts. The museum is open daily from May 16 through October 24.
IMAGES:
ABOVE: Ray Bub, Sunrise Reassembled Ring Teapot, Pownal, Vermont, 2007, stoneware. 10” h X 22” w
X 7” d
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Laura Zindel, Ravens Small Oval Platter, Guilford, Vermont, 2010, earthenware. 14”w x10” h
John Brickels, Milliamp, Essex Junction, Vermont, 2006, stoneware with meter, glass eyes, vacuum
tubes. 72” h x 20” w x 20” d
Aysha Peltz, Blue Bud Vases, Whitingham, Vermont, 2009, porcelain. 10 ½” h x 3 ½” d; 12” h x 3 ½”d;
14 ½” h x 4” d
Steven Procter , Banded jar, Brattleboro, Vermont, 2008, unglazed stoneware. 35”h x 22”w
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Todd Wahlstrom, Syrup Pitchers, Whitingham, Vermont, 2010, stoneware. 4"h x 6"w x 3"d
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