Student/Artist’s Name: Kris Redd
School: Lathrop High School
Grade: 11th
Artist Statement: This piece of art is the perfect depiction of me. I love pushing my limits on the wheel and I am in love the ocean. The bowl itself is something that’ve had to constantly work at for the past few years, and behind it is many smaller or thicker bowls. As the old saying goes, practice makes perfect! My love of the ocean probably started in Hawaii, and has has only grown since I moved here to Alaska. The diversity of fish and sea life fascinate me. Together, they make something uniquely wonderful.
Artwork Dimensions: 8 inches High X 12 Inches Wide
Student/Artist’s Name: Fillip Reutov
School: Homer High School
Grade: 12th
Artist Statement: I am a ceramic artist in the Homer High School. All the pottery I’ve done so far is throwing. Most of my pieces I create are inspired by the other student artists, or ceramic magazines. When I throw, I take my time on every single pot, making sure its centered, smooth, and the pots thickness is thin and consistent. When ever I finish my pot I always use a piece of soft plastic to smooth out the rim and make it look nice.
Artwork Dimensions: 5.5 Inches High X 6 Inches Wide
Student/Artist’s Name: Carissa Armstrong
School: Thunder Mountain High School
Grade: 10th
Artist Statement: Generally I am a “hippy”. I love animals and I love nature. I especially love color. I tried to put as much color and designs as possible on this mask to merge my personality in stone. The wolf is one of my favorite animals so I chose this animal to be the base of my mask and decorated with flowers, “free” lines, a peace sign and plenty of color.
Student/Artist’s Name: Aunesty Loyer
School: Palmer High School
Grade: 12th
Artist Statement: The inspiration for the art piece “Inner Beast” was derived from my love of Alaskan wildlife, my favorite creature being the wolf. Wolves are intelligent and loyal pack members, yet fearsome at the same time. For these reasons I wanted to convey to the viewer that wolves are wild creatures that deserve our respect.
I created the candle holder into the shape of a wolf’s head while its eyes and mouth were carved out to reveal the light of the candle within, or “the wild side that burns within every wolf.” The menacing snarl of the mouth, slanted eyes, and flattened ears helps the viewer to understand that a wolf reveals its inner primordial beast when it is hunting, or feels threatened. The colorations of the candle holder itself were created through the process of raku firing. This process created dark, earthy tones, in the fur thus giving off a natural yet somewhat dark feeling. The licks of red help emphasize the inner rage of the wolf which is now being expressed outwardly. The fur textures were created with the use of a fettling knife, cutting multiple strands of hair to produce what appears to be a thick coat of fur.
Student/Artist’s Name: Emily Coble
School: Homer High School
Grade: 10th
Artist Statement: For this project I was inspired by stackable cups that had a continuous image on them. I am interested in how to make something that is decorative and functional. I enjoy working repetitive patterns and textures.
Artwork Dimensions: 4.5 Inches High X 5.5 Inches Wide
Student/Artist’s Name: Rachel Burchard
School: Lathrop High school
Grade: 12th
Artist Statement: I’ve always enjoyed working on the wheel, I started throwing with small pieces of clay and gradually increasing the larger pieces. The most I’ve thrown on the wheel is about 25 pounds. My favorite thing to do is make large vases, they’re always a challenge especially when the clay is fresh and soft. I love throwing tall cylinders and use a rib to shape them into vases with large bodies and small necks. This piece in particular was made with black clay, the white glaze makes a really cool effect following with the dark blue glaze on the inside of the vase, this piece is about 13 pounds.
Artwork Dimensions: 11 inches high x 10 inches wide
Student/Artist’s Name: Jessie Lamson
School: Thunder Mountain High School
Grade: 10th
Artist Statement: I settled with an ocean theme after being inspired by a swirling wave pattern I doodled in class. I chose the setting of an anchor and a lighthouse to show the strength of the wind against the battering of a storm of emotions. The lighthouse search light guided lost sailors in the night. I also couldn’t get an aircraft carrier to turn out quite right:)
Student/Artist’s Name: Hunter McLean
School: Lathrop High School
Grade: 12th
Artist Statement: I started Ceramics my sophomore year and have enjoyed it ever since. I Carved out the rubber press stencil for these pieces and have been using it on most pieces I’ve made. I got the idea for the texture on the purple piece from seeing other professional artists adding texture to pieces to bring out more in the piece.
Artwork Dimensions: 5 inches high X 4 1/2 inches wide
Student/Artist’s Name: Sierra DeLoach
School: Homer High School
Grade: 11th
Artist Statement: Art that takes the human form or expresses humanity through figurative shape connects our reality to a bigger idea. Placing a human trait in a natural element provides bases in which to relate ourselves to the natural world in a way that is usually lost in the Age of Technology.
As an artist, I have opted to explore human emotion. Even in drawings, the concept of human feeling and behavior has always been intriguing. Starting simple, I have begun to add as many realistic details as I can, while still retaining an almost cartoon-like feel. I have built a connection between the techniques I learned in drawing and its 3D counterparts, particularly a knack for proportion. I like adding natural elements to human figures, for example, butterfly wings or landscapes.
I use a variety of techniques to build my pieces, including coils, slabs, carving, and attaching separate pieces into a singular object. I prefer to keep smaller details off the main piece, and glaze them on later. I use a wide variety of low temperature glazes to achieve vivid colors.
Artwork Dimensions: 7 Inches High X 15 Inches wide
Student/Artist’s Name: Chisana Monson
School: West Valley High School
Grade: 9th
Artist Statement: My teapot was inspired by looking through a big stack of ceramics magazines. There were so many fun designs I saw and this inspired me to build a fun and whimsical teapot. It is handbuilt and fired to cone 6 with a glaze called Blue Hares Fur.
Student/Artist’s Name: Paul Butera
School: West Anchorage High School
Grade: 12th
Artist Statement: I am an IB student with West High School. This piece is inspired by my focus on Scandinavian pottery. I used a line design on the top and carved out slots on the bottom form. The top part is a sealed from the bottom carved part, this allows the teapot to be functional.
Student/Artist’s Name: Bradan Tobin
School: Eagle River High School
Grade: 11th
Artist Statement: The earliest known object made from fired earth is a small figurine dated back about 30,000 years. The idea that humans have been crafting pottery for this length of time is mind boggling to me. I’m thankful that as a developing artist I can contribute to the story of this ancient art tradition. As I make pieces for functional use, I try to incorporate the ideas of simplicity and minimal design seen in Asian pottery. I accomplished this by pulling away from vibrant colors and patterns, and using a more balanced complexion. All aspects of this art give me the sense that I have become part of this 30,000 year legacy.
Artwork Dimensions: 12 Inches High x 10 Inches Wide x 8 Inches Deep
Student/Artist’s Name: Rachel Burchard
School: Lathrop High School
Grade: 12th
Artist Statement: Upon entering ceramics I didn’t know that it would come as easily as it did to me, I’ve grown to enjoy working on the wheel and putting a lot of my imagination into my art work, practicing at any free time I had available during school hours. Making my first teapot wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be, the spout was far too low and the lid didn’t fit right. Each time I would make a teapot I would try and imagine a character for it. (Meaning certain glazes to match with its shape or how elegant it would look with certain colors, or details and textures.) Doing this I had started making and putting together teapots everyday, even trying advanced things like stacked teapots. I like the challenge of how well it needs to fit together and making the cups proportionate to the body size of the pots. I even liked starting to challenge myself to make sets of teapots with cups, sugar bowls, creamer containers, plates for the cups to sit on, and trays to set the pieces on. In all making teapots is a good way to challenge my imagination and my different artistic abilities.
Artwork Dimensions: 10 inches high X 5 inches wide