"I am curious about our culture’s conceptions of the “everyday object” and find myself wanting to playfully challenge those notions within the parameters of pottery. While my work aligns itself with the detail, sophistication and beauty of a bygone era, my desire is to evoke an air of 21st century, daily extravagance (like a silk bra). I question the parallel that seems to exist in our current consciousness between function and adornment, and challenge myself to make the connection.
My latest curiosity in the reciprocation between function and decoration is based in the idea of beauty, a banal subject until teased open and questioned. The intrigue of unending layers comprising beauty (layers I wish for my own work) has lead my influence of clothing toward the suggestive. Clothing and fabric—Elizabethan to contemporary evening wear—with their contours and patterns have long been underlying allusions for my work. My latest forms reveal my forays into more intimate layers of beauty—the sensuousness underneath.
I have begun to subvert the ostensible beauty of my own work through implied denotations of lingerie. These ideas have only begun to manifest and are translated through form and surface texture with ornamentation signifying buttons, clasps and boning. The slip-trailed “buttons,” stamped undulations and sprigging lend the forms to be held and caressed, as sensuality is obviously not only visual, but tactile.
Form, function and ornamentation are of equal importance to me as a potter. My hope is that the forms will invite closer inspection revealing the surfaces, which in turn entice the viewer to fondle the pieces with desire to use them. There is something intriguing about an object at first glance exuding sheer beauty, but on closer inspection translating a hint of eroticism…an idea I still find humorous to insinuate through pots".

Kristen Kieffer is a full-time studio potter at The Fire Works Clay Studios and a Ceramics Instructor at the Worcester Center for Crafts both in Worcester, MA. She received her BFA from the N.Y.S.C.C. at Alfred University and MFA from Ohio University, Athens both in ceramics. She has been a studio assistant to John Glick and an Artist-in-Residence at Arrowmont and the Worcester Center for Crafts, as well as a pottery intern at the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village, Dearborn, MI. She has exhibited her work around the country in juried and invitational exhibitions and received published mention most recently in The Art of Contemporary Pottery and 500 Teapots books.

Current Positions
’03 to present Studio Potter & Charter Member, The Fire Works Clay Studios, Worcester
‘01 to present Ceramics Instructor, Worcester Center for Crafts, Worcester, MA

Professional Experience
2003
Resident Artist, Guldagergård, Museum of International Ceramic Art, Skælskør, Denmark
2001-2003
Resident Artist & Workshops Coordinator, Worcester Center for Crafts, Worcester, MA
2001
Assistant to Brad Schwieger, Penland School for Crafts, Penland, NC
1998-2001
Teaching Associate & Assistant, Ohio University, Athens, OH
1997-1998
Resident Artist, Ceramics Instructor, Gallery Assistant, Visiting Lecturer, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts and Sevier County Schools, TN
1996-1997
Assistant to John Glick, Plum Tree Pottery, Farmington Hills, MI
1995-1996
Pottery Intern, Greenfield Village and Henry Ford Museum, Dearborn, MI

Education
1998-2001
Ohio University, Master of Fine Arts in Ceramics, Athens, OH
1993-1995
New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University, Bachelor of Fine Arts in Ceramics, Alfred, NY
1990-1993
Montgomery College, Associate Art Degree in Studio Arts, Rockville, MD

Published Mention
2004
“Gallery”, Ceramic Review: International Magazine of Ceramic Art & Craft, Jan/Feb, Issue 205, p.16
2003
“Emerging Artists 2003”, Ceramics Monthly, May issue, Volume 51, Number 5, p. 74
“Kristen’s Secret: The Lingerie Connection”, Clay Times, by K. T. Anders, Jan/Feb, Volume 9, Number 1, pp. 16-19
2002
“Old Church Cultural Center 28th Show”, Ceramics Monthly, by Judy Schaefer, December issue, Volume 50, Number 10, p.53
500 Teapots: Contemporary Explorations of a Timeless Design. Lark Books: Random House Press, pp. 271, 404 & 411
“The Gallery”, Clay Times, March/April, p. 40
2001
The Art of Contemporary Pottery. Krauss Publications, p. 87
2000
“A Touch of Porcelain", Clay Times, by Susan Filley, May/June, pp. 25 & 50
1998
The Ceramic Design Book: A Gallery of Contemporary Work. Lark Books, p. 26
“Monarch National Competition”, Ceramics Monthly, April issue, p. 37

Exhibition Record
2005
(scheduled) Gender Show, Baltimore, MD (NCECA)
2004
Art of the Pot, Studio tour & sale, Invitational, Austin, TX
Ceramic Invitational, exploding head gallery, Sacramento, CA
Service: An Unconventional Approach, Ceramic Invitational, Chester Springs Studio, Chester Springs, PA
The Big Show, Four Star Gallery, Clay Invitational, Indianapolis, IN (NCECA)
Power of Pottery Invitational Exhibition, Dunedin Fine Art Center, Dunedin, FL
2003
29th Invitational Pottery Show & Sale, Old Church Cultural Ctr., Demarest, NJ
Faculty Biennial, Krikorian Gallery, Worcester Ctr. for Crafts, Worcester, MA
Functional Pottery Invitational, Santa Fe Clay Gallery, Santa Fe, NM
Women in Clay: Pots for Daily Use, Odyssey Gallery, Invitational, Asheville, NC
Fresh A-I-R, Krikorian Gallery, W.C.C., Artists-In-Residence Exhibition, Worcester
Kristen Kieffer & Sam Morgan: New Work in Porcelain, Fifth Element Gallery, Two-person Invitational Exhibition, Portland, OR
Hundreds of Cups, Santa Fe Clay Gallery, National Invitational, Santa Fe, NM
Contemporary Ceramics: Kristen Kieffer & Vincent Burke, Two-person Invitational Exhibition, Napa Mill, Napa, CA
Form + Function: New Work by Kristen Kieffer & Sam Chung, Baltimore
Clayworks, Two-person Invitational Exhibition, Baltimore, MD
NCECA Clay National Exhibition, David Zaph Gallery, Tradition of Excellence
Purchase Award, JURORS: Jeff Oestreich, Patty Warashina & Joe Bova, San Diego
An Affinity for the Cup, exploding head gallery, Invitational, Sacramento, CA
DinnerWorks Exhibit, Louisville Art Assoc., Invitational, Louisville, KY
DessertWorks ’03, Ronald Barr Gallery, IU Southeast, Invitational, New Albany, IN
2002
28th Invitational Pottery Show & Sale, Old Church Cultural Ctr., Demarest, NJ
Mastery in Clay: New Work, The Clay Studio, Invitational Exhibit/Auction, PA
Red Heat: Contemporary Work in Clay, JUROR: Richard Notkin, Tulsa, OK
North American Dishmakers, Airstream Nomadic Gallery, Fall Tour/East Coast
RSVP: The Dinnerware Invitational, Penland Gallery, Penland, NC
4 Hands/2 Minds/1 Object: Artists’ Collaborations, Penland Gallery, Invitational with Joe Bova, Penland, NC
Fresh A-I-R, Krikorian Gallery, W.C.C., Artists-In-Residence Exhibition, Worcester
10th Annual Strictly Functional Pottery National, JUROR: Jack Troy, Lancaster, PA
The Vase, Peck Gallery, JUROR: Jacquelyn Rice, Providence, RI
NCECA Silent Auction, Endowment Invitational, Kansas City, MO
Utilitarian Ceramics National, Ameen Gallery, JUROR: Ron Meyers, Thibodaux, LA
Prevailing Winds, Young & Constantin Gallery, Ceramic Ex., Wilmington, VT
2001
Faculty Biennial, Krikorian Gallery, Worcester Ctr. for Crafts, Worcester, MA
Le Grand Buffet, The Clay Studio, Invitational Exhibit/Auction, Phila., PA
Ceramic Trends, Trish Higgins Fine Art, Wichita, KS
Annual Holiday Show, The Clay Studio, Invitational Exhibition, Phila., PA
Ostensibly Ornate, MFA Thesis Exhibition (solo), Trisolini Gallery, Athens, OH
10 Years of Clay—Arrowmont Resident Artists, Charlotte, NC (NCECA)
Six Degrees, Trish Higgins Fine Art, Ceramic Invitational, Wichita, KS
The First Ten Years Exhibition: Arrowmont’s Artist-In-Residence Program, TN
2000
Winterfest 2000, Baltimore Clayworks, Ceramic Invitational, Baltimore, MD
Impressions In Clay, Chester Springs Studio, Juried Ceramics Exhibition, JUROR: Linda Christianson, Chester Springs, PA
Couplets: Duality in Clay, The Clay Studio, Invitational, Philadelphia, PA
Utilitarian Clay III: Celebrate the Object, Invitational Ex. & Symposium, TN
8th Annual Strictly Functional Pottery National, Lancaster Museum of
Art, Juror’s Choice Award, JUROR: Ken Ferguson, Lancaster, PA
A Touch of Porcelain, Red Rocks Community College, Invitational, Denver, CO (NCECA) & The Signature Shop & Gallery, Atlanta, GA
artsinterface2000, Fine Arts Center, Ceramics Exhibition, Camden, SC
Chef John Folse Culinary Inst. 2nd Annual Utilitarian Ceramics National, Ameen Art Gallery, Nicholls State U., Purchase Awards (2), JUROR: Bill Griffith, Thibodaux, LA
1999
Candlesticks, Native Soil Gallery, Ceramic Invitational Exhibition, Evanston, IL
The Ground Floor, Greer Museum, Ceramics Exhibition, Rio Grande, OH
National Teapot Show IV, Cedar Creek Gallery, Invitational, Creedmoor, NC
Ceramics '99, The Guilford Handcraft Ctr., JURORS: John & Andrea Gill, Guilford, CT
NCECA 1999 Juried Student Exhibition, Fort Hayes Metropolitan Arts Center,
JURORS: Margaret Bohls & Arthur Gonzales, Columbus, OH
The Next Wave, BLD Studios, Juried Clay Exhibition, Columbus, OH (NCECA)
1998
Working With Function, Chester Springs Studio, 15th Annual Exhibition, JUROR: Linda Sikora, Chester Springs, PA
Earthy Treasures Invitational, Pewabic Pottery, Detroit, MI
Common Ground, Smith Galleries, Invitational, Hilton Head Island, SC
Resident Artist Exhibition, Atrium Gallery, Arrowmont, Gatlinburg, TN
6th Annual Strictly Functional Pottery National, Market House Craft Center,
JUROR: Cynthia Bringle, Ephrata, PA
1997
Monarch National Ceramic Competition, Kennedy-Douglass Center for the Arts,
JUROR: Michael Monroe, Florence, AL
Earthy Treasures Invitational, Pewabic Pottery, Detroit, MI
15th Annual Women's National Juried Art Exhibition, Joy Pratt Markham Gallery, Walton Arts Center, JUROR: Nancy Farrell, Fayetteville, AR
5th Annual Strictly Functional Pottery National, Market House Craft Center,
JUROR: Val Cushing, Juror Award, Ephrata, PA
All Fired Up, Gallery One, Clay Exhibition, JUROR: Josh DeWeese, Boise, ID
1996
Art and Function, L. B. I. Foundation, Juried Exhibition, Loveladies, NJ
National Ceramics Competition Exhibition, Laumeier Sculpture Park, JURORS:
Ruth Duckworth, Robert Turner, Cynthia Bringle, and David Shaner, Merit in Ceramics, St. Louis, MO
Container/Containment, 16 Hands Gallery, First Place, Ann Arbor, MI

Workshops & Lectures
2004
Clay Art Center, Workshop Instructor, Port Chester, NY
Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts, Workshop Instructor, Gatlinburg, TN
2003
92nd Street Y, Workshop Instructor, New York, NY
Napa Valley College, Visiting Artist, Napa Valley, CA
2002
University of Hartford, School of Art, Visiting Artist, Hartford, CT

Teaching Experience
’01 to present
Ceramics Instructor, Worcester Center for Crafts, Worcester, MA
Instructor for Beginning , Advanced Wheel throwing, Soda-firing, Mold-making and Porcelain classes; Beginning Hand building and Wheel throwing for Adult Education Programming and MA students through Fitchburg State College
1998-01
Teaching Assistant & Associate, Ohio University, Athens, OH
Instructor and Assistant for Beginning and Advanced Wheel throwing, and 3-D Design
1997-98
Ceramics Instructor & Guest Lecturer, Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN
Instructor for Adult and Children’s Beginning and Advanced Wheel throwing

Honors & Awards
2003
Tradition of Excellence Purchase Award, NCECA Clay National Exhibition
2002
Professional Development Grant through the Mass Cultural Council
Local Cultural Council Grant through the Worcester Cultural Commission
2000
Juror’s Choice Award, 8th Annual Strictly Functional Pottery National
Purchase Awards (2), Utilitarian Ceramics National
98-01
Tuition Assistantships for Graduate study, Ohio University
1997
Juror, Merchandise Award, 5th Annual Strictly Functional Pottery National
1996
Certificate of Merit in Ceramics, National Ceramics Competition Exhibition First Place, Container/Containment
1993
Toshiye Tanada Ceramic Scholarship, Montgomery College

Public Collections
Nidec-Shimpo America Corporation, Itasca, IL
Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN
Clay Times, Waterford, VA
John Folse Culinary Institute, Thibodaux, LA
Southern Pottery Equipment, Thibodaux, LA
Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village, Dearborn, MI

Gallery Representation
exploding head gallery: Contemporary Art & Ceramics, Sacramento, CA
The Signature Shop & Gallery, Atlanta, GA
Worcester Center for Crafts Giftshop, Worcester, MA

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