Things have been busy in the studio getting ready for next month - I was pleased to be chosen as one of 31 finalists for the 2013 Elizabeth R. Raphael Founder's Prize by the Society for Contemporary Craft, Pittsburgh, PA.  This year's Raphael Prize focuses on contemporary ceramics and runs April 25 - August 23, 2014, before traveling to other venues.  Here is a process shot of some things in the works...
http://www.contemporarycraft.org/SCC/Raphael_Prize.html

We are pleased to be part of MSU's 2013-2014 Lecture Series.  Looking forward to visiting with the faculty and students in a few weeks!

MSU Department of Art, Art History Design: Daniel Bare + Valerie Zimany

Kresge Art Center 108 Kresge , East Lansing, MI 48823 Phone: 432-3961 Monday, Feb. 10 7:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.  Add to my calendar Ceramicists Daniel Bare and Valerie Zimany collaborate on a regular basis, creating large-scale installations that address issues related to societal and cultural trends of excess with a particular interest in materials seen as non-durable, ephemeral, or short-lived. Zimany and Bare teach at Clemson University. http://search.lansingstatejournal.com/localevents/event/100/139603-MSU-Department-of-Art-Art-History-Design-Daniel-Bare-Valerie-Zimany

Now that Spring semester has begun, we are beginning to look forward to NCECA in Milwaukee!

I will be presenting a lecture about my research project on contemporary artists in Kanazawa who utilize Kutani overglaze in their work.  I am looking forward to introducing these artists to a new audience!

http://nceca.net/static/conference_presenters.php

One of our grads, Nina Kawar (MFA '14) has been selected to exhibit in the National Student Juried Exhibition - congratulations Nina!

Also, three of our grads (Brent Pafford, Nina Kawar, and Lindsey Elsey) will present a topical discussion on Ornament - look for it in the program!  http://www.nceca.net/static/documents/PreliminaryProgram.pdf

The Abstract Invitational, curated by Ann Stoddard of the Harper Gallery at Presbyterian College has traveled to the Spartanburg Art Museum!

SAM will host the opening reception for the exhibition on Friday, January 24 from 5-7pm.  Meet and greet the artists while enjoying light refreshments and beverages.  Daniel Bare and I will be giving a short gallery talk along with a few other of the participating artists.  Hope to see you there...

Abstract Invitational
group exhibition
January 14th - March 29th, 2014
The Abstract Invitational exhibition is a collection of abstract paintings and sculptures, which features artists from the piedmont area of North and South Carolina.  This exhibition is travelling to SAM from the Harper Gallery at Presbyterian College. “This exhibit of works by artists working in their personal visual language to express and celebrate thought-provoking self-expressions released into an abstract and removed art form is one to visit many times to view, study, and explore your own interpretations,” said Ann Stoddard, Gallery Director and College Curator of Harper Gallery.

New design work has been shipped off to CRAFTED at the Society for Contemporary Craft in Pittsburgh, PA!  The exhibition opens on November 8, 2013.

The Store at Society for Contemporary Craft has a selection of my work especially for CRAFTED, and a new stock of other items:

http://www.contemporarycraft.org/SCC/the_Store.html

The Free Times of Columbia reviewed Part 1 of the South Carolina State Biennial at the 701 Center for Contemporary Art, Columbia, SC

Valerie Zimany’s porcelain pieces are easily the most imaginative and beautiful works in the show. She has done a masterful job of merging vessel shapes and mixing up the surfaces. Two very new pieces incorporate figurative elements and point to a promising new direction.  - Columbia art critic Jeffery Day

Thanks!

See more at: http://www.free-times.com/arts/100213-biennial-presents-good-art-but-needs-revamp#sthash.DuTDrVfO.dpuf

Valerie Zimany will discuss her exhibition in an Artalk on Monday, Sept. 30 at Emory & Henry College.

The discussion begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Board of Visitors Lounge of the E&H Van Dyke Center.  The exhibition will be shown in The 1912 Gallery, which will open at 6:30 p.m. and again following the Artalk for a reception with the artist.

Zimany’s work ranges from large-scale installations to sculpture and functional items.  Many objects appear organic. Some have figurative elements added to them in the form of silkscreen decals.  She often draws inspiration from the Japanese tradition, having been to Japan several times as a Fulbright Fellow. 

Zimany discusses how casting organic forms suspends their growth -- creating an artifact or memory out of something that cannot otherwise be preserved.  She also says that she utilizes porcelain for its implicit emphasis on fragility, preciousness, luminosity, and ability to retain fine details.

Zimany is currently an assistant professor of ceramics at Clemson University in South Carollina.

The exhibition is free and open to the public.  Call 276-944-6866 with inquiries.

http://www.ehc.edu/emorynews/emory-henry-presents-ceramics-valerie-zimany

The Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities and NCECA have released a catalog for the Earth Moves: Shifts in Ceramic Art and Design:

http://www.blurb.com/b/4554293-earth-moves

It looks great!

I'm very pleased to have Chigiri-e (Full Leaded) included in NCECA's Earth Moves: Shifts in Ceramic Art and Design exhibition at the Arvada Center.

More information on the exhibition here:

http://arvadacenter.org/galleries/earth-moves-shifts-in-ceramic-art-design

Images from the show can be viewed here:

http://www.flickr.com//photos/arvadacenter/sets/72157634872142923/show/with/9410170730/