Opening Reception
Friday, September 12, 5:30 – 7:00 PM

This fall, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft (HCCC) presents In Residence: Work by 2013 Resident Artists, an exhibition of work created by the eight artists who began their residencies at HCCC in 2013:  Christina Carfora, Paris Jomadiao, Lauren Salazar, Caitie Sellers, Delaney Smith, Kamila Szczesna, Demitra Thomloudis, and Grace Zuniga. The show features imaginative objects and jewelry pieces created from clay, fiber, paper, metal and found objects.

As an annual exhibition, the In Residence series celebrates the high level of craftsmanship and creativity reflected within the work produced by artists during their tenure in HCCC’s Artist Residency Program. The program provides a unique and enriching experience for its resident artists, whose open studios encourage the visiting public to engage directly with the artists as they work.  With an open environment and enrichment activities, the residency program encourages collaboration and experimentation and provides a place for artists to consult and exchange ideas with peers. (To learn more about the Artist Residency Program, visit https://crafthouston.org/artists/residents/.)

Originally from Wisconsin, ceramist Christina Carfora channels her travel experiences into her narrative drawings and sculptures. Having visited 23 countries and counting, Carfora contemplates the interplay between change and preservation, as new technologies infiltrate the far corners of the earth into cultures once untouched by modernization. Assuming the position of naïve backpacker, she mimics natural history drawings, connecting her anthropological experiences with those of past explorers. In doing so, she illuminates the positive and negative effects of change in otherwise remote regions.

With a background in photography and digital media, Houston-based artist, Paris Jomadiao, brings her cut-paper illustrations to life through stop-motion animations and short experimental films. Existing in both physical and digital form, Jomadiao’s collages combine found images alongside her own cut-paper illustrations as a method of investigating individual perspective. By pairing different materials and imagery together, she provokes the viewer to draw from his/her own knowledge base to make an interpretation.

Lauren Salazar’s work straddles the line between craft and the formal constructs of painting. The North Carolina native utilizes traditional weaving practices to challenge common notions of craft, tradition, and domestic objects by bringing her weavings into direct conversation with geometric abstraction. Like a canvas melting off of its frame, Salazar’s weavings transcend the wall frames that anchor her pieces, moving onto the floor and reaching up towards the ceiling.

In her jewelry, wall pieces and drawings, metalsmith Caitie Sellers aptly captures Houston’s urban landscape through its highways and power lines. Sellers has always identified with a sense of place through her connection with her surroundings and her observations of architecture, infrastructure, and other human influences on the landscape. She begins her work by sketching, on site, at locations that inspire her. She then transforms the sketches into three-dimensional renderings that will become jewelry and wall pieces. As a result, Sellers takes ownership of each place in a way that is simultaneously personal, through her object’s connection with the wearer, and objective, in its documentation of a particular moment in time.

Working in fiber, papermaking, and the book arts, Delaney Smith reveals the power and capacity of human interaction and interpretation through her interactive book and object-based installations. Smith’s work challenges familiar notions of book handling as she focuses on process rather than printed content. By asking the viewer to mark on, staple, cut, sew, and tear her handmade books, she allows her audience to create the content of her books. Valuing the potential for new narratives, Smith’s work is evolutionary, giving the viewer an outlet to connect with her handmade materials on a tangible and personal level.

Kamila Szczesna’s ceramic sculptures reveal the mystery and poetry that surround a scientific approach to learning.  The artist is attracted to science because it promises a level of comfort that goes hand in hand with knowledge gained through scientific process.  She is most interested in the human drive to learn, coupled with a desire to identify what is unknown. Her work calls attention to the contradictions and paradoxes found in scientific data and the beauty found within the uncertainty that arises from those paradoxes. Szczesna is a native of Poland who lives and works in Galveston, Texas.

Inspired by surrounding architecture and building sites, Demitra Thomloudis experiments with industrial materials—cement, sheet metal, and wood—in a way that allows each material to dictate its composition in her jewelry.  Her newest body of work, Houston Yellow Tape Project, examines Houston’s current real estate climate and reflects the city’s furious state of tearing down and rebuilding. By transforming found fragments from her neighborhood’s demolition sites into wearable artifacts, Thomloudis recognizes a pastiche of old and new architectonic language, while creating a non-polemical space for these opposing styles to coexist. Her project is as much a material investigation as it is archival, marking a pivotal moment in Houston’s development.

In her experimentation with materials and process, Grace Zuniga brings the true essence of material to the forefront through her examination of texture and tactility. Working in handmade charcoal, handmade paper, textiles, and various metals, Zuniga draws from the traditional folk arts and crafts of Texas, as she utilizes labor-intensive processes that reflect a longstanding history and understanding of those materials. Resembling drawings, her linen pieces on paper use a pull-thread technique, called deshilado, to create minimalistic compositions highlighting the interplay between positive and negative space.

In Residence: Work by 2013 Resident Artists was curated by HCCC Curatorial Fellow, Kathryn Hall.

Above: (1) Christina Carfora, “Invasion of a New Environment,” 2014. Stain, underglaze and glaze on ceramic. Photo by Christina Carfora. (2) Christina Carfora, “Invasion of a New Environment,” 2014. Colored pencil on paper. Photo by Christina Carfora. (3) Paris Jomadiao, “Last First Flight,” 2011. Mixed media stop-motion animation film still. Photo by the artist.* (4) Paris Jomadiao, “Sincerely,” 2012. Mixed media stop-motion animation film still. Photo by the artist. (5) Lauren Salazar, “Grid Overflow,” 2014. Handwoven cottlin, maple frame, oil paint. Photo by Rick Wells. (6) Caitie Sellers, “Highway Earrings,” 2014. Argentium silver, steel, and handmade paper by Grace Zuniga. Photo by the artist.* (7) Caitie Sellers, “Highway Drawing,” 2014. Digital Drawing.* (8) Delaney Smith, “Mark the Loss,” 2013. Set of three interactive books. Photo by Matt Golden.* (9) Delaney Smith, “Mark the Loss, Detail 1,” 2013. Set of three interactive books. Photo by Lauren Well.*  (10) Kamila Szczesna, “Drive No. 3,” 2014. Porcelain, gold leaf. Photo by the artist. (11) Kamila Szczesna, “Drive No. 4,” 2014. Porcelain, gold leaf. Photo by the artist. (12) Demi Thomloudis, “Houston Yellow Tape Project,” 2014. Mixed media. Photo by the artist. (13) Demi Thomloudis, “Houston Yellow Tape Project,” 2014. Mixed media. Photo by the artist. (14) Demi Thomloudis, “Houston Yellow Tape Project,” 2014. Mixed media. Photo by the artist. (15) Grace Zuniga, “Dual,” 2014. Linen. Photo by the artist.* (16) Grace Zuniga, “Tug of War,” 2014. Linen. Photo by the artist.*

(*) Note: These images are not in the exhibition, they are representative images of the artists’ work.

“My work of recent years seems to some to have taken a dark turn, finding expression in forms that represent suffering: bones that are silent, tongues that try to speak, feet that struggle to find their path. I have internalized the experiences of many and found myself advocating their cause with an aesthetic that I hope will touch the souls of perpetrators, as well as victims, to act as a healing force through understanding. The human-bone simulations allow me a form of prayer as the clay is pulled and formed, always curved to show stress.”

“Tangled Garden was painted by E. H. MacDonald in 1919—it was an image of his own neglected garden. What in his life distracted him from the usual bucolic, serene representations of landscape? The contrast of bright reds and yellows to the dulling of greens and the dry, wrinkled, twisting, tangled vegetation gave me a visual for my installation for Color Up/Color Down. Soldiers who die in war, commit suicide, or return to their families different, altered, disturbed or neglected may have metals to hang on their chests but are no longer the same. They are not the people whom loved ones described as enthusiastic, idealistic, eager to action, quick to judgment, wanting to go to war to fight for their country’s honor and glory. So, the tongues speak, and the changing voices resonate from the garden as the feet try to find their pathway forward in their altered lives.”

–Jo Zider

Above: (1-4) “Color Up/Color Down: Voices from Tangled Garden” in the Craft Garden at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft. Photos by HCCC.

Opening Reception
Friday, May 30, 5:30 – 8:00 PM
The opening will also feature La Frontera in the Main Gallery and Texas Masters Series: Sandie Zilker in the Front Gallery. Open studios by current resident artists to follow talks.

An Inside Look at “Taking Shape: Celebrating the
Windgate Fellowship:” A Discussion with Juror,
Cindi Strauss, and Featured Artist, Kathleen Janvier
Saturday, August 16th, 2014, 1:30 PM

Houston Center for Contemporary Craft (HCCC) is pleased to host Taking Shape: Celebrating the Windgate Fellowship, an exhibition that recognizes the considerable emerging talent in the field of craft. Organized by The Center for Craft, Creativity & Design (CCCD) in Asheville, North Carolina, Taking Shape is the first group display of Windgate Fellows’ work, spanning a range of approaches, media, and processes. The exhibition features a selection of recent objects, completed by 2006 – 2010 CCCD Fellows, revealing a cross section of up-and-coming perspectives on craft.

CCCD asked Cindi Strauss, Curator of Modern and Contemporary Decorative Arts and Design at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, to jury the exhibition. Strauss notes, “Craft continues to shift and respond to cultural and economic changes in the world, with younger artists often taking the lead in forging new paths to address these fundamental differences. Taken as a whole, the work in the exhibition clearly embodies the maxims used to describe craft in recent years.”

The Windgate Fellowship provides essential resources and experiences to the next generation of makers at an influential stage in their careers. To this day, the Fellowship, supported by the Windgate Charitable Foundation, remains the largest source of funding for emerging American craft practitioners. Since 2006, CCCD has annually awarded a total of $150,000 to 10 undergraduate seniors working in craft.

HCCC also receives support from the Windgate Charitable Foundation. With this funding, HCCC is able to award a three-year curatorial fellowship that allows a recent graduate student to assist with the coordination, installation, art handling, and registration of exhibitions. To date, two fellowships have been awarded. Current Fellow, Kathryn Hall, has played an instrumental role in bringing Taking Shape to HCCC and has curated six exhibitions in the past year and a half, gaining a wealth of experience in her brief tenure.

Taking Shape is a testament to the success of the Windgate Fellowship and the commitment of the Windgate Charitable Foundation to help organizations like CCCD and HCCC foster the craft community and shape the future of craft.

Taking Shape Featured Artists
Tom Alward, Josh Copus, Andrea Donnelly, Dustin Farnsworth, Jenny Fine, Erin Rose Gardner, Kathleen Janvier, JooHyun Lee, Aaron McIntosh, Nate Moren, Alexis Myre, Elizabeth Staiger, Amelia Toelke, and Thoryn Ziemba.

About The Center for Craft, Creativity & Design
Located in its new home in Asheville, North Carolina, The Center for Craft, Creativity & Design is a 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to advancing the understanding of craft by encouraging and supporting research, critical dialogue, and professional development. CCCD’s programs strive to support the best examples of research and practice in the field. Learn more at https://www.craftcreativitydesign.org/.

Above: (1) Andrea Donnelly, “Blot #3: Blot and Stain,” 2009. Handwoven cotton, textile pigment. Photo by Taylor Dabney. (2) Jenny Fine, “Mourning Ole Sister,” 2008. Tintype. Photo by Jenny Fine. (3) Erin Rose Gardner, “Engagement Ring Brooch,” 2010. Found Rings, cz, steel, silver, rhodium plated. 3 x 3 inches. Photo by Richard Gehrke. (4) Kathleen Janvier, “We Carry Volumes—All These Empty Pages, 2013.” Copper, rose gold plate. Photo by Kathleen Janvier. (5) JooHyun Lee, “Untitled: 23’ (twenty three minutes),” 2012. Labradorite. Photo by Philipp Dorl. (6) Aaron McIntosh, “Fragment # 3 (Roses are Red),” 2012. Digital textile print, vintage fabric, piecework. Photo by Aaron McIntosh. (7) Nate Moren with Tandem Made, “Topographic Rocker,” 2012. Masonite, plywood, nylon spacers, hardware. Photo by Nate Moren. (8) Nate Moren with Tandem Made, “Topographic Rocker” (alternate view), 2012. Masonite, plywood, nylon spacers, hardware. Photo by Nate Moren. (9) Alexis Myre, “Landscape of Flight,” 2013. Acrylic, thread, pencil, wire, and paint (mixed media). Photo by Kevin Noble. (10) Elizabeth Staiger, “Unhappy Family,” 2012. Silver, 14k gold, shell, glass, cameo, pearls, coral, quartz, crystal, garnet, cubic zirconia, blue topaz, moonstone. Photo by Elizabeth Staiger. (11) Elizabeth Staiger, “Unhappy Family” (detail), 2012. Silver, 14k gold, shell, glass, cameo, pearls, coral, quartz, crystal, garnet, cubic zirconia, blue topaz, moonstone. Photo by Elizabeth Staiger. (12) Amelia Toelke, “Voici/Voila,” 2010. Powder-coated steel, copper, chain. Photo by Nic Wynia.

Opening Reception
Friday, April 4, 5:30 – 7:00 PM
5:45 – Artist Talk

Lecture Event: Discovering Fractal Geometry in Art & Nature
Saturday, May 24, 1:30 PM
More details

Houston Center for Contemporary (HCCC) presents Topsoil, an exhibition of work by three artists who harvest their creative sustenance from the mathematics, science, and aesthetics of the planet’s waters and terrains. As the most vibrant and rich portion of the Earth’s soil, topsoil yields the highest concentration of organic matter. This fertile ground fosters the growth and production of the living organisms that thrive on its nutrients just as it nourishes the imagination of these artists.

Houston artist and designer, Kate de Para’s trompe l’oeil fiber-based Rock Collection delightfully fools the eye. A camouflage of surface texture and form add mass to the collection, concealing the fragility of the lightweight Abaca fiber. Grains of salt mimic the gritty quality of a hard exterior, while complementing the beauty found within the layers of texture, pattern, and color of natural rock formations.

Drawing ties between earthly macrocosms and microcosms, New Orleans ceramist Sarah House interprets fractal geometry in nature to demonstrate the interconnectedness of the natural environment. This type of geometry identifies patterns found under the lens of a microscope, as well as those charted topographically. In the Ad Infinitum series, her sculptures represent waves of water that line the wall like a mountain range. In her composition of these water studies, House calls attention to the connection between fractal patterns in the minute ripples of the water’s surface, as well as the depths of the mountains.

Working in Richmond, Virginia, Sarah Rebekah Byrd Mizer’s mixed-media pieces replicate organic forms found in nature.  By placing these forms in unnatural environments, she raises questions about the semantics of what is natural and what is manmade. Like a vine on a trellis, the delicate, glass root systems of Forced Roots push through Solo-cup bottoms that frame their irresistibly fine construction, demonstrating a vital resilience to their surrounding environment.

Kate de Para
Kate de Para is the owner and designer of Evens clothing and teaches Textile Science, Surface Design, and Textile Design at the Art Institute of Houston. She received an MFA in fibers from Savannah College of Art and Design (2012) and a BS in apparel, with a focus in textile science and business administration, from Baylor University (2007).

Sarah House
Practicing in New Orleans, ceramist Sarah House creates functional wares and sculptural installation work. House received an MFA in studio art from Tulane University (2012) and a BFA in ceramics from Temple University’s Tyler School of Art (2006). She has participated in several residency programs, including Baltimore Clayworks, Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts, the International Ceramics Studio, Tainan National University of the Arts, and the International Ceramics Research Center. She has received numerous awards, including the Windgate Fellowship, the Nyburg Fellowship, and the Baker Artist Award.

Sarah Rebekah Byrd Mizer
Sarah Rebekah Byrd Mizer received an MFA from Virginia Commonwealth University in craft and material studies (2007) and a BFA from New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University (2003). From billboards to small glass objects, Mizer’s professional practice is eclectic and her work knows no bounds.  Recently, she had a solo exhibition, My Pleasure, at Greymatter Gallery (Milwaukee, WI) and participated in a group exhibition, entitled Ambiguity and Interface, at the Taubman Museum (Roanoke, VA). Living in Richmond, Virginia, Mizer is currently the Administrative Director of the Art Foundation program at VCUarts, and she also serves on the Board of Directors for 1708 Gallery. This summer, Mizer will be a resident artist at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft.

Topsoil was curated by Kathryn Hall, Curatorial Fellow at HCCC.

Above: (1) Kate de Para, “Translucent Rock,” 2012. Overbeaten Abaca. Photo by Carson Sanders. (2) Kate de Para, “Salt Rock,” 2012. Overbeaten Abaca, sea salts. Photo by Carson Sanders. (3) Kate de Para, “Black Rock,” 2012. Overbeaten Abaca, graphite, salts. Photo by Carson Sanders. (4) Kate de Para, “Lavender Rock,” 2012. Overbeaten Abaca, lavender salts. Photo by Carson Sanders. (5) Sarah House, “Ad Infinitum 3,” 2012.  Porcelain. Photo by Sarah House. (6) Sarah House, “Ad Infinitum 6,” 2012.  Porcelain. Photo by Sarah House. (7) Sarah House, “Water Study 1,” 2014.  Stoneware, glaze. Photo by Sarah House. (8) Sarah House, “Water Study 1” (alternate view), 2014.  Stoneware, glaze. Photo by Sarah House. (9) Sarah House, “Water Study 2,” 2014.  Stoneware, glaze. Photo by Sarah House. (10) Sarah Rebekah Byrd Mizer, “Forced Roots,” 2011—2012. Glass, plastic solo cup bottoms. Photo by Sarah Rebekah Byrd Mizer. (11) Sarah Rebekah Byrd Mizer, “Inorganic Ions,” 2009—2012. Glass, red oak, lacquer. Photo by Sarah Rebekah Byrd Mizer. (12) Sarah Rebekah Byrd Mizer, “Silver Nugget,” 2010. Glass, mdf, gouache. Photo by Sarah Rebekah Byrd Mizer.

Opening Reception – Friday, May 30, 5:30 – 8:00 PM
5:45 – Artist Talk by Sandie Zilker (Texas Masters Series)
6:00 – Curator’s Talk by Mike Holmes (La Frontera)
The opening will also feature Texas Masters Series: Sandie Zilker in the Front Gallery, and Taking Shape: Celebrating the Windgate Fellowship in the Artist Hall. The current resident artists will open their studios to the public following the artist talks.

La Frontera Mural (Title Wall) by Daniel Anguilu

Migrating Perspectives: A Conversation with Artists from La Frontera
Featuring Houston artists, Edward Lane McCartney,
Olga Starostina and Demi Thomloudis
Tuesday, June 17, 2014,
6:00 PM

Readings from the Border:
A Bilingual Literary Event with Hipolito Acosta & Sarah Cortez
Saturday, July 26, 2014
1:30 – 3:00 PM

Death by Policy: A Conversation in Partnership with the
South Texas Human Rights Center
Wednesday, September 3, 2014
6:00 – 7:30 PM

Houston Center for Contemporary Craft is proud to present La Frontera (The Borderlands), an international exhibition of contemporary jewelry that explores the physical space where the complex relationship between Mexico and the United States is most evident. With startling results, 90 artists from the U.S., Mexico, Europe, Australia, and Latin America explore the underlying currents of the border environment within geographic, political, social, cultural, and ideological contexts.

At 1,969 miles long, the U.S.-Mexico border has the largest number of legal and illegal crossings in the world. An estimated 11.2 million unauthorized immigrants currently live in the United States, according to studies by the Pew Hispanic Research Center. Concerns about illegal immigration, combined with the increase in drug trafficking and violence, instigated the controversial construction of the border fence, which is now 700 miles long and counting. This timely exhibition occurs as the U.S. Congress is considering an immigration reform bill that would extend the Border Wall an additional 700 miles and add another 20,000 U.S. Border Patrol agents. Still, the border is a vibrant and vital corridor, and its extremely porous nature allows not only the passage of illegal arms and drugs but also valuable ideas and projects, families and culture.

Inspired by the border’s tumultuous environment of deserts, mountains, rivers, and flow of diverse nationalities, the artists of La Frontera created 150 pieces of contemporary jewelry. The materials range from canvas, polyester, porcelain, water bottles, photos, and paint to more precious ones, such as steel, copper, silver, and gold. Cristina Celis, one of the participating artists from Mexico, explains her necklace, Dactilar, made of porcelain, gold, and silver: “The practice of erasing the information on fingers is common.  Knives, acid, fire, and even surgery are some of the mechanisms that undocumented immigrants are turning to in order to erase their fingerprints and avoid deportation.” The dangers of the border are also explored in U.S. artist Julia Turner’s brooch, Three Days Walking (Mourning Brooch), which features red dots that refer to the NGO Humane Borders’ map identifying the places where people die while attempting to cross the border.

In his essay for the exhibition catalog, Mexican writer, Benito Taibo, poetically described the show as “conceptual art that uses the body, the neck, the wrist, and the shoulders as a canvas to shape, in all its splendor, the bewitched, the fantasy, and also the sadness that is the frontier and what it signifies. It’s a final frontier that eats its children and the children of other territories and then spits them all over the land, transforming [them] into different beings, with different passions, all in search of a place in the world.”

La Frontera includes work by three celebrated Houston jewelry artists—Edward Lane McCartney, Olga Starostina, and Demitra Thomloudis—all of whom have shown work at HCCC in exhibitions or in the Asher Gallery.  HCCC Curator, Elizabeth Kozlowski, commented, “The works included in La Frontera cannot be easily categorized.  There is an impressive range of techniques, materials and personal interpretations regarding border issues. The exhibition comes to Houston at the perfect time, when immigration and U.S.-Mexico relations are at the forefront of current sociopolitical issues.”

La Frontera was curated by Mike Holmes and Elizabeth Shypertt, founders of Velvet da Vinci gallery in San Francisco, CA, and Lorena Lazard, from Mexico City, who has been a practicing jewelry artist for more than 20 years. The exhibition opened at the Franz Mayer Museum in Mexico City in June, 2013, to wide critical acclaim from press and visitors.

Participating Artists

Rameen Ahmed, Pakistan | USA
Mayte Amezcua, Mexico
Eliana Arenas, Mexico | USA
William Austin III, USA | The Netherlands
Iacov Azubel, Argentina
Maria Fernanda Barba, Mexico
Brooke Battles, USA
Ela Bauer, Poland | The Netherlands
Victor Beckmann, Mexico | USA
Kristin Beeler, USA
Aline Berdichevsky, Mexico | Spain
Elvira Bessudo, Mexico
Raquel Bessudo, Mexico
Linnèa Blakèus & David Alexander Calder, Sweden | Mexico | Norway
Arturo Borrego, Mexico | Ireland
Sandra Bostock, Mexico
Alejandra Bremer, Mexico | USA
Gabriela Campo, Mexico
Jorge Castañon, Argentina
Cristina Celis, Mexico
Celeste Christie, USA
Thea Clark, USA
Kate Connell & Oscar Melara, USA
Bruno Cuervo Aceves, Mexico
Jessica Davies, USA
Alberto Dávila, Mexico
Clementine Edwards, Australia
Beate Eismann, Germany
Danielle Embry, USA
Nicolas Estrada, Colombia | Spain
Brenda Ligia Farias Lomeli, Mexico
Sol Flores, Argentina
Andrés Fonseca, Mexico Christine Forni, USA
Eduardo Graue, Mexico
Monica Guerra, USA
Elisa Gulminelli, Argentina
Pierce Healy, Irland
Heidemarie Herb, Germany | Italy
Thomas Hill, UK | USA
Holland Houdek, USA
Marta Hryc, Poland
Kevin Hughes, USA
Mary Frisbee Johnson, USA
Tammy Young Eun Kim, Korea | USA
Barbara Knuth, USA
Alejandra Koreck, Argentina
Claire Lavendhomme, Congo | Belgium
Lorena Lazard, Mexico
Ria Lins, Belgium
Criselda Lopez, USA
María Eugenia López, Puerto Rico | USA
Jorge Manilla, Mexico | Belgium
Alix Manon, Belgium
Carmen Marcos Martínez, Spain
Gigi Mariani, Italy
Judy McCaig, Scotland | Spain
Edward Lane McCartney, USA
Emma Messer, USA
Molly Mitchell, USA
Katharina Moch, Germany
Nancy Moyer with Mark Clark, USA
Dawn E. Nakanishi, USA
Alja Neuner, Austria
Brigid O´Hanrahan USA
Mabel Pena Argentina
Chiara Pignotti, Italy | Spain
Ramón Puig Cuyàs, Spain
Kerianne Quick, USA
Alexander Romero Reyes, Colombia
Poleta Rodete, Mexico
Jacqueline Roffe, Mexico
Zinna Rudman, Mexico
Elizabeth Rustrian, Mexico
Carmen Lucia Sandoval, Mexico
Chiara Scarpitti, Italy
Agnes Seebass, Germany | Mexico
Marina Sheetikoff, Brazil
Alejandra Solar, Mexico
Maria Solórzano, Mexico | Argentina
Martacarmela Sotelo, Mexico
Olga Starostina, Russia | USA
Rachelle Thiewes, USA
Demitra Thomloudis, USA
Sabina Tiemroth, Argentina
Julia Turner, USA
Martha Vargas, Mexico
Elizabeth Wilson, Australia |USA
Jette Zirpins, Mexico

For more information and photos of the Border Wall:

• https://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2013/05/on-the-border/100510/
• https://smithsonianeducation.org/migrations/bord/intro.html 

Reviews of the La Frontera opening at
Museo Franz Mayer, Mexico City

Time Out Mexico
“La Frontera” review, ★★★★, by Alejandra Villegas, 6/21/13
https://www.timeoutmexico.mx/df/arte-cultura/la-frontera
“La Frontera is proof that art and beauty are not at odds when trying to raise public awareness about social issues. This collection of contemporary jewelry translates ideas of social, economic and political aspects in an intelligent and subtle way.”

El Pais
“La frontera de México es un collar” by Raquel Seco, 6/22/13
“Diego and Pachilú, visitors to the exhibition, are people of the border. They have lived in Nogales, Mexicali, Ciudad Juarez and Tijuana. It is not strange to them to see immigrants hiding in the streets waiting for the opportunity to make the jump, fences and helicopters, and other complexities of living in a passage zone. But they are moved looking at the show and she sheds a tear. It is not just because they are the aunt and uncle of one of the artists, they can’t help but be touched by the experience.”

Vogue Mexico
June 2013 and https://www.vogue.mx/articulos/agenda-vogue-junio-2013-ciudad-de-mexico/2505
“When art is universal it has no limits. This is demonstrated by “La Frontera,” a dialogue among different artists who use jewelry to express how they understand this geographic reality…”

The Monitor
“Surface Tratment: La Frontera” by Nancy Moyer, June 24th 2013
“These modestly scaled works explode with big ideas, as La Frontera offers relevant and often poignant viewpoints regarding the social, economic and transient nature of the U.S.-Mexico borderland.”

Above: (1) Cristina Celis, “Dactilar,” 2013. Neckpieces. Modeled high-temperature porcelain, 24k gold leaf, silver. 3.2 cm x 5.1 cm with different length chains. Photo by Francisco Velázquez. (2) Beate Eismann, “Landscape III,” 2012. Brooch. Copper, gold. 7.1 cm x 12.1 cm x 1.8 cm. Photo by the artist. (3) Nicolas Estrada, “Suffering,” 2013. Necklace/Collar. Silver, quartz, wood, iron. 8 cm x 8 cm x 2.7 cm. Photo by Manuel Ocaña Mascaro. (4) Tom Hill, “Milagros: Black-spotted Newt,” 2013. Pendant. Copper, enamel. Approx 7 cm x 12 cm. Photo by the artist. (5) Marta Hryc, “Symbiomorphosis: Libert,” 2013. Pendant. UV hardened resin, silver. 8.2 cm x 2.4 cm x 3 cm. Photo by Emil Stankiewicz. (6) Kevin Hughes, “Untitled,” 2013. Necklace. Plastic water jug, duct tape, silver. 10.1 cm x 15.2 cm x 4.4 cm. Photo by the artist. (7) Judy McCaig, “No-Man’s Land,” 2013. Brooch. Steel, silver, tombac, perspex, paint, Herkimer diamond, taramita. 8.8 cm x 12.6 cm x 1.5 cm. Photo by Eduard Bonnin. (8) Edward McCartney, “If Bullets Were Jewels,” 2010. Brooch. Reclaimed sterling silver and 14k gold, cubic zirconia, reclaimed red gemstone. 8.8 x 4.8 x 1 cm. Photo by Jack Zilker. (9) Nancy Moyer with Mark Clark, “Border Fence Series: Border Scenarios (Mexican View),” 2013. Reversible neckpiece. Sterling silver, digital prints, glaze, steel, rubber cord. 7cm x 24 cm x 1 cm. Photo by the artist. (10) Ramón Puig Cuyàs, “Silent Conversations Beside the Wall III,” 2012. Brooch. Nickel silver. 5.5 cm x 11 cm x 2.5 cm. Photo by the artist. (11) Kerrianne Quick, “Vicente Carrillo Fuentes alias ‘El Viceroy,’ ‘El General,’” 2013. Key Fob. Leather, steel. 10 mm x 5 mm x 0.5 mm. Photo by the artist. (12) Alejandra Solar, “Murmullos 1,” 2012. Brooch. Onyx, slate, photo transfer, silver. 7.2 cm x 10 cm x 0.7 cm. Photo by the artist. (13) Maria Solórzano, “3185cm,” 2013. Necklace. Silk thread, ceramic. 0.1 cm x 31.85 cm. Photo by Paola Lambertini. (14) Olga Starostina, “The End of a Desperate Journey…,” 2013.Brooch. Recycled aluminum, copper, leather. 10.2 x 25.4 x 1.2 cm. Photo by Cara Murray. (15) Rachelle Thiewes, “Slipstream,” 2013. Necklace. Steel, auto paint. 28.5 cm x 30.5 cm x 2.2 cm. Photo by the artist. (16) Demitra Thomloudis, ‘Reconstructed: Framed,” 2012. Brooch. Cement, sterling silver, resin, steel, pigment, thread, duck tape. 8.9 cm x 6.4 cm x 4.4 cm. Photo by Seth Papc. (17) Julia Turner , “Three Days Walking” (Mourning Brooch), 2013. Brooch. Steel pins, vitreous enamel, steel, wood. 5 cm x 5 cm x 0.7 cm. Photo by the artist. (18) Martha Vargas, “Sueño y Realidad,” 2012. Choker. Sterling silver. 24 cm x 15 cm x 1.5 cm. Photo by tempusdesign.com.mx.

Opening Reception Friday, September 26, 5:30 – 8:00 PM
At 6:30 PM, three artists will be presented
with the jurors’ Award of Merit prizes.
The evening will also feature open studios by
HCCC’s current resident artists.

To read the CraftTexas 2014 catalog, click here.

This fall, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft presents CraftTexas 2014, the eighth in a series of biennial juried exhibitions showcasing the best in Texas-made contemporary craft. Featuring 49 works by 44 Texas artists, the exhibition includes everything from sculpture, jewelry, textiles, installations, and furniture to concepts that include vernacular architecture, formal elements of design, and man’s relationship to nature.

The CraftTexas series, which is hugely popular with visitors, provides artists the unique opportunity to have their work seen by three established jurors and included in an exhibition that seeks to broaden the understanding of contemporary craft. The show features exceptional work in clay, fiber, glass, metal, wood and mixed media. HCCC Curator, Elizabeth Kozlowski, says that the show serves as an excellent introduction to the impressive array of media, techniques, and skill inherent in the Texas contemporary craft community: “All of these artistic practices come together to create an outstanding showing of what Texas has to offer.”

Kozlowski finds that three pieces in the show stand out for her. In Binary, artist Nancy Slagle adopts a cross-disciplinary approach to her jewelry making. She incorporates rubber materials and laser technologies to replicate binary code that is transcribed into a historical form of adornment, the radial collar. Slagle employs objects as metaphor through formal elements of repetition and color. Thick translucent glazes and Nerikomi patterns envelop Katherine Taylor’s colorful ceramic piece, Packed Under the Sky. Her forms illustrate Texas architecture and landscapes, while documenting the experience of a place. Many of her sculptures are literal in translation, and others are altered by the artist’s memory and perceptions. In Seasons in the Rice Field, Ryu-Hee Kim constructs topographical layers from copper and wood, in order to emulate the time span of human history. The artist is inspired by her culture’s mythology and memories of life and death, past, present, and future. The highly polished surfaces of her work evoke the physical act of Korean ceremonial rituals and embody a reverence for her ancestors.

CraftTexas 2014 was juried by Carol Sauvion, the visionary behind the PBS TV series, Craft in America, and HCCC Texas Masters, Piero Fenci, Ceramics Department Head, Stephen F. Austin State University, and Clint Willour, Curator of the Galveston Arts Center. The jurors were tasked with selecting the finest works from a pool of 176 applicants and 477 pieces.

Sauvion noticed some similarities among the artists’ works, most notably, “a sense of responsibility to the thoughtful use of materials and to the environment, dedication to skilled work, content that includes social conscientiousness, and the pure joy of the creative process.” Fenci said the show demonstrates, “the current blurring of borders among the traditional art disciplines and confirms that craft can no longer remain relegated to a preordained rigid definition of art practice.” Willour summed up the jury process: “It is always interesting to see how selection by committee works–particularly when the committee has no communication with each other while jurying. I think the high caliber of craftsmanship and the originality of ideas and concepts wins out every time.”

CraftTexas 2014 Artists

Above: (1) Susan Budge, “Teal Cut Form,” 2014. Ceramic. 49 inches x 16 inches x 8 inches. Photo by Seale Studio/Susan Budge. (2) Harlan W. Butt, “Blue Jay Vessel #7,” 2013. 4.5 inches x 4.5 inches x 4 inches. Copper, enamel, silver. Photo by Harlan W. Butt. (3) Daniel Esquivel-Brandt, “Imaginate,” 2013. Cast glass and metal. 4 feet x 5 feet. Photo by Itzel Equivel. (4) Jean Fernandes, “Intrusion,” 2013. Glass. 3 inches x 3 inches x 9 inches. Photo by the artist. (5) Terry Fromm, “Eastern Dreams,” 2013. Pewter and bronze. 6 inches x 3 inches x 3 inches. Photo by Gregg Jacob. (6) Heidi Gerstacker, “Child’s Rattle,” 2014. Sterling silver, coral. 6 inches x 1 ¼ inches x 1 inch. Photo by the artist. (7) Jan Arthur Harrell, “Valentine Box and Candies-Offerings: Gifts for the Muse,” 2012. Enamel, copper, gold foil, sterling silver, tin box with gold leaf, Box 17 inches x 17 inches x 6 inches, Candies 4 inches x 4 inches x 3 inches. Photo by Jack Zilker. (8) Daphne Roehr Hatcher, “Three Portals,” 2013. Woodfired stoneware. 40 inches x 3 inches x 12 inches. Photo by Gary and Daphne Hatcher. (9) Melannie James, “Vines,” 2013. Copper plated thread, spray paint. 60 inches. Photo by Clyde Johnson. (10) Danny Kamerath, “Kampa,” 2013. Afzelia wood, glass. 48 inches x 26 inches x 17 inches. Photo by Danny Kamerath. (11) Ryu-Hee Kim, “Seasons in the Rice Field,” 2014. Copper, wood, resin. 6.5 inches x 11.5 inches x 7 inches. Photo by Robly A. Glover. (12) Susan Fletcher King, “Moon Drunk,” 2012. Quilt: hand-dyed, commercial fabric, various threads. 60 inches x 24 inches. Photo by Rick Wells. (13) Ana M. Lopez, “Attic Turbine Vent (Shoulder Brooch),” 2012. Sterling silver. 3 inches x 3 inches x 2.75 inches. Photo by the artist. (14) Caitie Sellers, “Houston Necklace,” 2014. Sterling silver, steel. 18 inches x 2.5 inches x .5 inches. Photo by the artist. (15) Nancy Slagle, “Binary,” 2014. Laser cut rubber. 15 inches x 15 inches x 1/16 inches. Photo by Robly A Glover. (16) Delaney Smith, “Signatures #5,” 2014. India ink, paper. 68 inches x 34 inches x 5 inches. Photo by Matt Golden. (17) Kamila Szczesna, “Drive No. 6,” 2014. Porcelain, gold leaf. 20 inches x 18 inches x 16 inches. Photo by Kamila Szczesna. (18) Katherine Taylor, “Packed Under the Sky,” 2013. Colored porcelain and glaze. 9 inches x 12 inches x 9.5 inches. Photo by Harrison Evans, Dallas, TX. (19) Joy O. Ude, “Clark Dolls (Nwanta Olu Ume Umirimanta),” 2013. Vinyl, African wax cloth, wood, cotton fabric, copper, embroidery floss. 10.625 inches x 7.625 inches x .75 inches (each doll). Photo by Joy O. Ude. (20) Grace Zuniga, “Sag,” 2014. Linen. 50 inches x 17 ¾ inches. Photo by the artist.

Opening Reception – Friday, May 30, 5:30 – 8:00 PM
5:45 – Artist Talk by Sandie Zilker
6:00 – Curator’s Talk by Mike Holmes (La Frontera)
The opening will also feature La Frontera in the Main Gallery, and Taking Shape: Celebrating the Windgate Fellowship in the Artist Hall. The current resident artists will open their studios to the public following the artist talks.

Texas Masters Series: Sandie Zilker
Essay by Elizabeth Kozlowski

Celebrating The 2014 Texas Master: Sandie Zilker
Members-Only Event
Wednesday, August 20, 6:00 – 7:30 PM

This summer, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft (HCCC) is pleased to present a solo exhibition by Houston metalsmith and educator, Sandie Zilker, the fifth artist to be featured in HCCC’s Texas Masters Series. The Houston native joins the roster of former Texas Masters—Harlan Butt, Cindy Hickok, Rachelle Thiewes, and Piero Fenci—nominated by their peers and recognized for their roles as career artists in Texas who have made a significant impact on the field of craft.  As the 2014 Texas Master, Zilker’s work is featured in this solo show, and she will serve as one of three jurors for the CraftTexas 2016 biennial exhibition at HCCC.

As evidenced by her jewelry, Zilker is no stranger to experimentation in color, contrast, texture, pattern, and form.  Using the body as a frame of reference, she pulls from elements of illusion and surprise to elevate adornment to its fullest potential.  Each of her pieces is packed with personality, increasing the wearer’s senses and creating a unique relationship between wearer and object.

Zilker’s exhibition at HCCC serves as a retrospective of her jewelry work over the past four decades.  The show includes an exploration by the artist of newer technologies, including video, as well as installation.  She sums up her philosophy: “I’m kind of noisy, and so is my work.  There is usually something loud about everything I do or make.  Being boring or bored is my worst fear.”

This year marks Zilker’s 40th anniversary teaching at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston’s Glassell School of Art, where she is head of the Jewelry and Enamel Department and the Three Dimensional Design Department. She also serves as the School’s Coordinator of Student Events and Exhibitions, which requires her to organize and oversee lecture series, as well as faculty and student exhibitions on and off site.

Zilker holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Design and Metalsmithing from the University of Houston and a Master of Fine Arts in Metalsmithing at Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.  Her work has been exhibited worldwide and is included in the collections of The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; The Racine Art Museum, Wisconsin; Designmuseo, Finland; and Norden Feldske Kundiondustrimuseum, Norway.  She has exhibited at HCCC in several juried shows, such as Fresh Metal, CraftHouston: Texas 2006 and Metal Moods. Her jewelry has been published in numerous books, including 500 Brooches, 500 Bracelets, 500 Plastic and Resin Objects, and Showcase 500 Art Necklaces.

Zilker has twice served on the Board of The Society of North American Goldsmiths and co-chaired the organization’s 2010 Annual Conference in Houston. She recently served as the liaison for Metalsmith Magazine and now serves on the Exhibition Committee.  She has been an Honorary Board Member of the Houston Metal Arts Guild and serves on the Advisory Committee at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft.

In addition to brief teaching positions at institutions such as Penland School of Crafts in Penland, North Carolina, and Haystack Mountain School of Crafts in Deer Isle, Maine, Zilker’s professional life has included other passions, such as co-owning a catering company, that she feels have enhanced her work and teaching.  She continues to do both limited-series work and precious-material commissions at her studio in Houston.

Texas Masters Series: Sandie Zilker was curated by Elizabeth Kozlowski, Curator at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft.

Above: (1) “Fence Finials Reconsidered—Chartreuse,” 2014. Sterling silver, brass, copper, enamel, polymer clay, resin fence finials. Photo by Cara Murray. (2) Exhibition view of “Texas Masters Series: Sandie Zilker” at HCCC. Photo by Logan Beck. (3) “PetalPoint Series,” 2004. Sterling silver, enamel on copper. “Leaf Bouquet Series,” 2006. Sterling silver, enamel on fine silver, obsidian, chrysocolla, quartz, garnet, fossil coral, cuprite, rhodonite. Photo by Logan Beck. (4) “X/O Series,” 1994. Sterling silver, copper, brass, pencil, acrylic, Astroturf, roof tile. Photo by Logan Beck. (5) “Long Dangling Points,” 2014. Sterling silver, Styrofoam, multimedia. Photo by Logan Beck. (6) “Off the Grid,” 2014. Image still from video, featuring “Gold Heel Collar,” 2012. Bronze, shoe heels, magnet. Model: TiShuan Scott. Photo by Abdiel Urcullu. (7) “Cone with Points Series,” 2014. Brass, copper, enamel, auto paint, sterling silver, pearls. Collaboration with Humberto Quintanilla, Jr. Photo by Logan Beck. (8) “Black Heel Collar,” 2010. Bronze, cubic zirconium, shoe heels, synthetic garnet. Photo by Logan Beck. (9) “Off the Grid,” 2014. Image still from video, featuring “Wine Wear: Multi-Color,” 2006. Sterling silver, onyx, wine-glass bases. Collection of Dan & Mina Graur. Model: Alice Dennard. Photo by Kelly Heather. (10) “Armored Car Elbow Ornament,” 1975. Sterling silver, plastic tubing, moonstone. Collection of Richard and Carol Hutchens. Photo by Logan Beck (11) “Zig Zag Series,” 1989. Sterling silver, turquoise, emerald, garnet, amethyst, sponge. “Zig Zag Green” and “Red” are from the collection of Nana Booker. Photo by Logan Beck. (12) Sandie Zilker. Photo by Roswitha Vogler. (13) “Fence Finials Reconsidered Series,” 2014. Sterling silver, stone, pearls, moonstone, brass, copper, enamel, polymer clay, plastic and resin fence finials. Photo by Logan Beck.

Opening Reception
Friday, February 7, 5:30 – 8:00 PM
5:30 – Artist Talk by Adrian Esparza
6:00 – Artist Talk by Christine Nofchissey McHorse
The opening will also feature Dark Light: The Micaceous Ceramics of Christine Nofchissey McHorse in the Main Gallery. Open studios by current resident artists to follow talks.

Houston Center for Contemporary Craft (HCCC) presents Spectra, a site-specific installation by El Paso native, Adrian Esparza. Through his transformation of low-cost mass-produced products, such as T-shirts, serapes, and posters, Esparza combines traditional Mexican-American craft-based practices with the universal language of geometric abstraction. Permeating HCCC’s Front Gallery, his deconstructed serape installation brings Mexican-American identity to the forefront by calling into question the serape’s function as Mexican icon. Through a process of unweaving and reconfiguration, Esparza dilutes the textile’s potency as a clean-cut symbol of Mexican heritage. Taken as an aesthetic platform, Esparza’s installation opens up a conversation that addresses the socio-economic and political issues of living in a border town. On a broader level, the work connects Mexican-American identity to a global heritage.

Living in his hometown of El Paso, Texas, a melting pot of varied traditions, Esparza acknowledges the complex identity that one is faced with growing up in a border town. And, yet, popular culture boils down Mexican-American identity into a series of stereotypes rooted in immigration prejudices, drug trafficking, Speedy Gonzales, and old Westerns. While growing up, Esparza had little exposure to art history and was first introduced to art through DIY craft activities. In his house, objects were reused again and again, and materials gained a new sense of purpose. The artist takes the same approach to the recyclables that he collects for his installation work.

By unraveling a serape that hangs from a gallery wall, Esparza functions as a prism, as he separates the fibers of the textile into a colorful abstract composition that radiates around the room. Recognizing the material for its aesthetic potential, he takes the wall as his canvas. Punctuating the surface of the wall, nails stretch the fibers into obtuse and acute angles, straddling the line between landscape and pattern. Repetitive forms articulate distance and space, as lines extend from one point to another.

Through his installations, Esparza’s source material moves beyond kitsch into the realm of cultural empowerment. By displacing the serape from its familiar context of Mexican tradition, the artist connects the object to a universal heritage through line, color, and shape. The installation relates to the architecture of Ancient Egypt, the linear perspective that defines Renaissance painting, and the simple geometric forms of Modernism. In Spectra, Esparza provides a portal into a new global territory that provokes his audience to accept Mexican-American identity as part of an international visual culture.

Adrian Esparza received a BFA degree from the University of Texas at El Paso in 1996 and an MFA degree from the California Institute of the Arts in 1998. He has held solo exhibitions at Cindy Rucker, New York, New York (2013); the Taubert Contemporary, Berlin, Germany (2012); and Artpace, San Antonio, Texas (2009), among others. He has also participated in many international group exhibitions, including the 12th Instanbul Biennial-Untitled, Instanbul, Turkey (2011); Lines of Thought, Parasol-Unit, London, United Kingdom (2012); Volver, San Francisco Museum of Craft and Folk Art, San Francisco, California (2010); and Phantom Sightings: Art after the Chicano Movement, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Los Angeles, CA (2010). His work may be found in the collections of the Perez Miami Art Museum, the Dallas Museum of Art, the El Paso Museum of Art, and the Rubins Center for the Visual Arts.

Above: (1-5) Exhibition view of “Spectra: Work by Adrian Esparza,” in the Front Gallery at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft. 2013. Photo by Kim Coffman.

Opening Reception
Friday, February 7, 5:30 – 8:00 PM
5:30 – Artist Talk by Adrian Esparza
6:00 – Artist Talk by Christine Nofchissey McHorse
The opening will also feature Spectra: Work by Adrian Esparza in the Front Gallery. Open studios by current resident artists to follow talks.

In Dark Light: The Micaceous Ceramics of Christine Nofchissey McHorse, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft (HCCC) presents works by one of the most innovative contemporary forces in Native American pottery. Working from traditional materials and techniques, Christine Nofchissey McHorse’s vessel-based art blends the boundaries of pottery and sculpture, erasing the line between function and form. As the Navajo artist’s first traveling exhibition, the show exhibits the unadorned sophistication of the sultry curves, black satiny surfaces, and modern forms of her Dark Light series, created from 1997 to present. An amalgam of Puebloan, Navajo, and contemporary influences, each sculpture possesses a cultural splendor that is as fertile as the Northern New Mexico riverbeds where McHorse harvests her clay.

Through the unadulterated beauty of micaceous clay and with Puebloan construction techniques learned from her Taos mother-in-law, McHorse transforms her sketches into voluminous shapes that swell upwards like a natural spring. Dismissing the rudimentary forms that define Native American ethnic identity in craft, she returns to primordial shapes, akin to the modern aesthetic of Henri Moore. Experimenting with shape, mass, volume, and line, she creates organic vessels in the vein of her ancestors, who recognized the spiritual power of water, air, and earth.

To complement her natural forms, McHorse gives each piece its own unique skin by pushing the boundaries of a raw material. Traditionally used for cookware and valued for its structural integrity, micaceous clay permits McHorse to build thin-walled structures that can withstand high temperatures, yielding a black satiny finish. The darkness of the fired clay provides a dramatic contrast to the tiny bits of reflective mica, glistening as light dances across each piece. Using light gradation as her palette, McHorse controls the presence of light by creating differently textured surfaces that either catch or reflect the light.  When combined with the elegance of each sculpture’s form, the element of light in McHorse’s works renders a captivating visual experience.

Dark Light: The Micaceous Ceramics of Christine Nofchissey McHorse is organized by The Ceramic Arts Foundation, New York, NY, and curated by Garth Clark and Mark Del Vecchio.

Artist Bio

Born in Morenci, AZ, in 1948, Christine Nofchissey McHorse is a first generation, full-blooded Navajo ceramic artist. After marrying Joel McHorse, a Taos Pueblo Indian, she learned to make pots through his grandmother, Lena Archuleta, who taught her to work with micaceous clay, a rare but naturally occurring clay high in mica content that can be found in the Taos area. McHorse has since become one of the most admired and successful Native potters, working with traditional techniques but making the kind of reductive, sculptural pots that one would have expected Brancusi to make, were he alive today.

From 1963 – 1968, McHorse studied at the Institute of American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, NM, where her studio is now located.  She has received numerous awards from the SWAIA Indian Market, Santa Fe, and the Inter-Tribal Indian Ceremonial, Gallup, as well as the Museum of Northern Arizona. Her works are in the collections of the Denver Museum of Natural History, the Museum of New Mexico, the National Museum of American Art of the Smithsonian Institution, the Navajo Nation Museum, and the Rockwell Museum of Western Art. McHorse also has the unique distinction of winning Best in Show for both pottery and sculpture at the annual Santa Fe Indian Market.

Above: (1) Christine Nofchissey McHorse, “Black Swan,” 2006. Micaceous clay. 17.5” x 9.” Collection of Bill and Sara Morgan. Photo by Addison Doty Photography. (2) Christine Nofchissey McHorse, “Black Swan” (detail), 2006. Micaceous clay. 17.5” x 9.” Collection of Bill and Sara Morgan. Photo by Addison Doty Photography. (3) Christine Nofchissey McHorse, “Spine,” 2010. Micaceous clay. 17.25” x 13.” Collection of Barbara & Bill Weldon. Photo by Addison Doty Photography. (4) Christine Nofchissey McHorse, “Spine” (detail), 2010. Micaceous clay. 17.25” x 13.” Collection of Barbara & Bill Weldon. Photo by Addison Doty Photography. (5) Christine Nofchissey McHorse, “Spontaneous Combustion,” 2011. Micaceous clay. 15” x 10.” Collection of Buffalo Thunder Resort & Casino. Photo by Addison Doty Photography. (6) Christine Nofchissey McHorse, “Spontaneous Combustion” (detail), 2011. Micaceous clay. 15” x 10.” Collection of Buffalo Thunder Resort & Casino. Photo by Addison Doty Photography. (7) Christine Nofchissey McHorse, “Nautilus,” 2006. Micaceous clay. 18.5” x 10.5.” Collection of Garth Clark & Mark Del Vecchio, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. Photo by Addison Doty Photography.

Opening Reception
Friday, January 31, 5:30 – 7:00 PM
5:45 PM Artist Talk

As a participating space of the FotoFest 2014 Biennial, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft presents Cyan Silhouettes: Works by Anna Mavromatis & Thea Clark, on view January 31 – March 30, 2014. Captured by rays of ultraviolet light onto silk, paper, and linen, fragments bearing an uncanny familiarity and a collection of photographs and mementos take the form of Prussian-blue and dark-brown silhouettes. Through handmade books, jewelry, quilts, and clothing, Anna Mavromatis and Thea Clark employ the cyanotype process to expose the memories and associations assigned to personal possessions. Used to shape identity and strengthen ties with the past, the significance of these objects is as transitory as the photographic process used to render their likeness. While each cyanotype marks an impression, these imprints, and the viewer’s relationship to them, evolve over time like the silhouettes created by exposure to the sun.

Houston-based artist Anna Mavromatis draws from her knowledge of printmaking, book arts, and fashion design to stitch together stories and reflections of her Greek heritage and family history in her installation-based work. Narrated through the blue and white colors of her homeland, Mavromatis expresses her emotional connection to photographs and mementos that she keeps.  Raised in Greece and having lived in the UK, Italy, and, currently, the United States, Mavromatis’ work reflects a life full of rich cultural inspiration. In her printmaking, cicada wings echo the shape of Byzantine ornamentation, creating a unique rhythm throughout the collection. When looking at these patterns, the viewer can almost hear the loud collective humming of the cicadas.

In comparison, New Jersey metalsmith Thea Clark’s series, Fluidity + Form addresses the changing self by translating metal, fiber, and wood forms into silk cyanotypes, which are the inspiration behind her collection.  Echoing the shapes of the resulting blue and white compositions, metal and wooden structures, coated in pink plastic, work to create a palpable relationship between viewer and object. Clark relies on the viewer’s subconscious to project narratives and associations onto her brooches and necklaces.  While many of her pieces call attention to a feminine identity, with pearls and forms that resemble lace and hair rollers, certain works take on a more masculine role through images of wood fragments and shavings.

Cyan Silhouettes was curated by Kathryn Hall, Curatorial Fellow at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft.

FotoFest 2014 Biennial
The FotoFest 2014 Biennial marks the Fifteenth International Biennial of Photography and Photo-related Art, which runs March 15 – April 27, 2014. Taking place in spaces throughout Houston, Texas, FotoFest is the oldest and longest running photographic event in the United States. The FotoFest 2014 Biennial includes over 100 museums, art galleries, nonprofit art centers and corporate spaces. For more information and related events, visit www.fotofest.org.

Above: (1) FotoFest 2014 Logo. (2) Thea Clark, “Cyan Chain,” 2010. Cyanotype on silk, paper, nickel silver, plastic grid, tinted plastic, wood, pearls. Photo by Terry Green Photography. (3) Thea Clark, “Cyan House,” 2012. Wood, brass, cyanotype on silk, nickel, silk cord, silver, tinted plastic. Photo by Larry Sanders. (4) Thea Clark, “Cyan Square,” 2010. Wood, copper, plexiglass, cyanotype on silk, tinted plastic, nickel silver. Photo by Terry Green Photography. (5) Thea Clark, “Root,” 2011. Wood, found plastic, nickel, cyanotype on silk, cotton thread, silver chain, tinted plastic. Photo by Steven Brian Samuels. (6) Thea Clark, “Six Degrees,” 2011. Wood, copper, plexiglass, pvc, cyanotype on silk, tinted plastic. Photo by Steven Brian Samuels. (7) Anna Mavromatis, “Night Rhythms” (detail), 2013. Cyanotype on paper. Photo by Anna Mavromatis. (8) Anna Mavromatis, “Night Rhythms” (detail), 2013. Cyanotype on paper. Photo by Anna Mavromatis. (9) Anna Mavromatis, “Stitch by Stitch I,” 2013. Embroidered cyanotype on linen square. Photo by Anna Mavromatis. (10) Anna Mavromatis, “Stitching Words of Wisdom…,” 2013. Embroidered cyanotypes on linen squares. Photo by Anna Mavromatis. (10) Anna Mavromatis, “Summer Samplings,” 2013. Cyanotypes assembled into a two‐side concertina. Photo by Anna Mavromatis. (11) Anna Mavromatis, “Summer Samplings,” 2013. Cyanotypes assembled into a two‐side concertina. Photo by Anna Mavromatis.