MARY
LAW I CALIFORNIA
CLICK HERE TO SEE ARTIST'S
WORK
I am and always
have been primarily a functional potter. I flirted with sculptural work
while in graduate school, and enjoyed doing it, but came back "home"
to the strong tradition of making pots the following year. I acquired
those skills initially at Penland, studying with Karen Karnes and Byron
Temple, and then in greater depth as an apprentice to Byron. A later influence
was Betty Woodman, who was an artist in residence at Alfred University
during my graduate study there.
Function continues to provide me with that vital "spark" that
makes me want to go into the studio week after week. Sometimes being a
potter seems anachronistic, but I know there are many people out there
who are moved by the feel of a handle on a cup or the way a plate rim
frames a meal--and who want well-made, inspired pots around them on a
daily basis. They, and my own similar appreciation of my friends' pots,
keep me going.
Within the parameters of function, I am drawn to form before surface.
For this reason I prefer to fire in a sodium vapor kiln or wood kiln,
where the flame tends to enhance the form. When I glaze fire, I gravitate
towards rich monochrome surfaces, like shino, celadon and temoku.
The pots I refer to as “house pots” were inspired by protographs
I saw over 25 years ago of West African granaries made of adobe, often
with thatched roofs. I carried these images in my head for many years,
and finally they began to appear in loose translation in my work in 1984.
I continue to be excited by the seemingly endless variations on the form.
I hope my pots reflect my pottery heritage, as I see it. From Byron Temple,
who was my main influence, I gained a strong sense of form, the worth
of making pots for everyday use, and a love of fresh-looking, quickly
made pots and clean lines; from Betty Woodman, the thrill and spontaneity
of drastically altering the wet pot on the wheel; and from Karen Karnes,
an appreciation of the quiet strength a pot can exude.
Education
MFA in Ceramics, Alfred University, Alfred, NY, 1975.
Apprenticeship with Byron Temple, production potter in Lambertville, NJ, sharing in production of complete line of wheel-thrown tableware, 1969-71.
BA in Humanities/Art, Eckerd College, St. Petersburg, FL, 1969.
Work Experience
1977-present Studio Potter, Berkeley, CA: manage own business producing and marketing functional and decorative ceramics.
1989-present Ceramics Instructor, Contra Costa College, San Pablo, CA.
Summer 2000 Visiting Artist, College of Ceramics, Alfred University, Alfred, NY.
Spring 2000 Senior Ceramics Lecturer, California College of Arts & Crafts, Oakland, CA.
1998-1999 Ceramics Instructor, Solano Community College, Suisun, CA.
1992, 96-97 Ceramics Instructor, San Jose State University, San Jose, CA.
1990-1996 Ceramics Instructor, Civic Arts Education, Walnut Creek, CA.
Summer 1997 Ceramics Instructor, Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN.
Summer 95, 03 Ceramics Instructor, Haystack Mountain School, Deer Isle, ME.
Summer 90, 98 Ceramics Instructor, Penland School, Penland, NC.
1986-89 Education Coordinator, Richmond Art Center, Richmond, CA.
March 1987 Visiting Artist, Kent State University, OH, one-month residency.
Summer 1984 Ceramics Instructor, College of Ceramics, Alfred University, Alfred, NY.
1980-86 Ceramics Instructor, Ohlone College, Fremont, CA.
1975-77 Lecturer in Ceramics, University of North Carolina-Charlotte.
Selected Exhibitions
Women In Clay, Odyssey Center for the Ceramic Arts, Asheville, NC 2003.
American Shino, Babcock Galleries, New York, NY 2001.
Surface Tensions: The Art of Shino, Northern Clay Center, Minneapolis, MN, 2001.
Solo Exhibition, Trax Gallery, Berkeley, CA, 2000.
Crosscurrents, British and American Potters, FreeHand Gallery, Los Angeles, CA, 2000.
Beyond the Northwest, Kobo Gallery, Seattle WA, 1999.
Solo Exhibition, Cedar Valley College, Lancaster, TX, 1998.
One Firing: A Ceramics Invitational, Western Illinois U., Macomb, IL, 1998.
Clay + Strength + Subtlety: Byron Temple & Mary Law, Gallery WDO, Charlotte, NC, 1997.
Nineteen American Potters, Moegi Gallery, Mashiko, Japan, 1997.
Byron Temple, James Makins, Mary Law, The Works Gallery, Philadelphia, PA, 1997.
Shades of Shino, Baltimore Clayworks Gallery, Baltimore, MD, 1997.
Six California Ceramists, Tho Art Space, Seoul, Korea, 1995.
Influence: Byron Temple & Friends, Columbia Art Center, Columbia, MD, 1995.
Cups by California Potters, AMS Seibu Department Store, Sendai, Japan, 1993.
First Cup of the Day: Beauty Through Use, Swidler Gallery, Royal Oak, MI, 1992.
White Heat: Invitational Porcelain Exhibition, U. of Nebraska, Lincoln, 1989.
Clay 86/Form and Function, Perkins Center for the Arts, Moorestown, NJ, 1986.
One Plus One, Free Hand Gallery, Los Angeles, CA, 1985.
Functional Ceramics 1981, College of Wooster, Wooster, OH.
Four-Person Show, Mint Museum of Art, Charlotte, NC, 1977.
Craftsman Invitational, SE Center for Contemporary Art, Winston-Salem, NC, 1976.
National Invitational Craft Exhibition, U. of New Mexico, Albuquerque, 1973.
Collections
Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Publications
Cover article, Ceramics Monthly, January 2003.
Rogers, Phil. Salt Glazing. A & C Black, London, 2002.
Speight, Charlotte and Toki, John. Make It in Clay. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield, 1997.
Speight, Charlotte and Toki, John. Hands in Clay. Third edition, Mountain View, CA: Mayfield, 1995.
Zakin, Richard. Ceramics: Mastering the Craft. Radnor, PA: Chilton, 1990.
Baldwin, J., editor, The Essential Whole Earth Catalog. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1986.
Brand, Stewart, editor, The Next Whole Earth Catalog.
New York: Point/Random House, 1980.