Sebastopol Center for the Arts

Beyond Pond Farm

2011-02-22T14:45:00.000-08:00

This posting comes from the 2007 archives of exhibitions at Sebastopol Center for the Arts. A slide show of the exhibition can be found in the right side bar.

Beyond Pond Farm

The Legacy of Marguerite Wildenhain

January 11 – February 11, 2007

Two exhibitions in two venues bring together the work of Marguerite Wildenhain and her students. With Beyond Pond Farm: The Legacy of Marguerite Wildenhain at Sebastopol Center for the Arts, and Marguerite Wildenhain: Bauhaus to Pond Farm at the Sonoma County Museum, we highlight the significance of this collective group of artists to the study of ceramics and local history as well as the broader connection to artistic and historic world events.

Marguerite Wildenhain
Marguerite Wildenhain, an internationally known ceramist, author, and teacher, is considered to be one of the most accomplished ceramists in the United States during the twentieth century. Ceramics Monthly recognized Wildenhain as one of the world’s greatest living potters or ceramic artists. For four decades she lived and worked at Pond Farm, an artist’s enclave, located in what is now the Austin Creek State Recreation Area, Guerneville, California. Here she taught yearly summer sessions from 1949 until her retirement in 1980. She continued to live at Pond Farm until her death in 1985 at age 88.

Marguerite Wildenhain was born in France in 1896 of German Jewish extraction. The family moved to Berlin when she was a child, and there she attended the School of Fine and Applied Arts. After graduating she apprenticed as a pattern designer for a porcelain factory. It was there that she decided to study pottery. Upon discovering the newly formed Bauhaus school of art and design, founded by Walter Gropius in Weimar, Germany, Wildenhain moved and began studying at the Bauhaus in 1919, where artists such as Paul Klee, Wassily Kandinsky, and Gerhard Marcks were on the faculty. When the Nazi party took majority in parliament, Gropius moved the school to Dessau in 1925, however, the pottery department did not follow.

In 1926, Wildenhain took a position as head of the Ceramics Department at the Municipal School of Fine and Applied Arts in Halle-Saale. Here she remained true to the Bauhaus principle that artists should design quality wares that could be easily mass-produced, and thus stay true to their craft as well as being valued members of society. During this time she developed a collection of models for Royal Berlin and was certified as a master potter by the German government.

In 1930 she married Franz Wildenhain, one of her students. With the growing Nazi power it was necessary for her and Franz to move to the Netherlands in 1933. There they opened and operated a successful pottery studio. With the German invasion of Poland in 1939 Marguerite decided to go to America, and as a French citizen she was able to do so, however, Franz, a German citizen, was not.

Marguerite arrived on her own in New York in 1940. Shortly after her arrival she heard from her friends, Gordon and Jane Herr. The Herr’s had recently purchased 160 acres in Northern California with the intention of creating an art colony, and invited her to join them. She immediately headed to San Francisco, and after arriving took a position teaching ceramics at California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland (now CCA).

In 1942 she resigned from her position at CCAC and moved to what was now called Pond Farm. Here she lived in a tent while helping to rebuild a nineteenth-century livestock barn into a pottery studio, eventually building a small cabin for herself. Eventually, after becoming a U.S. citizen, she was able to bring Franz to America. By 1949 other artists, both American and European, began arriving at Pond Farm.

Pond Farm
Pond Farm continued as an artist’s colony until about 1952, when a number of things, including the death of Jane Herr, caused a gradual dispersal of the group. While many of the artists moved away, Marguerite Wildenhain stayed on and continued to teach summer sessions each year. She traveled around the country at other times, teaching seminars and workshops at various schools and institutions.

Students came from around the country and the world to study with her, where she taught “basic and fundamental elements that go into making a good piece of pottery.” During the two-month summer sessions twenty-some students worked on wheels designed by Wildenhain, based on those used at the Bauhaus. She expected her students to work hard and be dedicated to their craft, teaching the importance of “grounding your life in your craft and your craft in your life.” While firm in her teaching style, she developed a following of devoted and life-long friends. The students became a family—her family—and many remain in contact with each other to this day.

Many Pond Farmers, who are located throughout the country, continue to create, teach and sell their artwork. Some have moved on from ceramics to other media such as sculpture or painting, but the influence of their experience at Pond Farm remains a strong element in their work and in their lives.

Today, Pond Farm Pottery Studio remains substantially unchanged from its appearance during its active years, 1940s to 1980. While not open to the public, the entrance can be seen from the road through Austin Creek State Recreation Area.

– Satri Pencak, Curator

Director of Exhibitions

Sebastopol Center for the Arts

January 2007

Chronology
1896 Marguerite Friedlander born in Lyon, France, October 11.
1919 Enters Bauhaus art school in Weimar, Germany.
1926 Becomes head of ceramics department at Municipal School for Arts and Crafts at Halle, Germany.
1930 Marries Franz Wildenhain.
1933 Marguerite and Franz move to Holland and set up a pottery studio.
1940 Marguerite flees Europe, arrives in New York, then settles in Northern California to teach at CCAC in Oakland. Franz is unable to follow.
1942 Moves to Pond Farm, helps Gordon and Jane Herr develop the studios.
1949 Other artists arrive and classes begin at Pond Farm in various disciplines, including ceramics.
1952 Jane Herr dies, other artists begin to disperse, Wildenhain teaches summer sessions in pottery on her own.
1963 California State Parks acquires Pond Farm, Wildenhain has permission to remain on the property, where she continues living and teaching.
1980 Last summer session and kiln firing, Wildenhain retires from teaching but stays on the land.
1985 Marguerite Wildenhain, age 88, dies at Pond Farm.
2002 CSU San Bernardino mounts Ripples, an exhibition of the work of Wildenhain and her students.
2007 Sebastopol Center for the Arts presents Beyond Pond Farm: The Legacy of Marguerite Wildenhain, in collaboration with Marguerite Wildenhain: Bauhaus to Pond Farm, curated by Patricia Watts for the Sonoma County Museum.

Changes at the Center

2011-02-11T16:20:00.000-08:00

I'm letting everyone know that I recently resigned from my position as Director of Exhibitions at Sebastopol Center for the Arts. After eleven great years it's time for me to more on. I will be developing my business as an Independent Curator and I will be staying very much involved in the art community, both near and far. I'll be at SCA through the end of February.
Best to all, Satri

SCA Members Show Runs Through 12/30

2010-12-16T13:04:00.000-08:00

The SCA Members Show is in the Gallery with over 200 pieces in a variety of media. A number of pieces have already sold, so if you're looking for a fantastic gift this is the place to shop. And if you don't find anything in the gallery, there is always the "Store" with cards and jewelry and other things that glitter.

SCA Annual Members Show Coming Up

2010-12-02T16:05:00.000-08:00

Don't forget to submit your artwork for the Annual SCA Members Show & Holiday Sale. This is a nonjuried exhibition and the deadline is Tuesday, Dec. 7, 3 to 6 p.m. The maximum size limit is 25" wide, but please get a copy of the prospectus for complete guidlines, they are available on our website or at the Center.

The show opens on Friday, December 10, 6 to 7:30 p.m. and runs through December 31.

Also, Dine to Donate! On the day of the reception, Dec 10, the Brown Street Grill, just a block away from the Center, will be hosting a Dine to Donate fundraiser for us. They have great food, so please support them and help them support the Art Center. The coupon is available at the center and on our website.

New Website!

2010-11-12T11:06:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, it's been a while since my last post, but now I want to announce the NEW Sebastopol Center for the Arts website. Go to http://www.sebarts.org/ and see for yourself. If you have a shortcut on your computer that you used before you may have to refresh or redo the shortcut. In any case get to the new site however you can, it really is nice.

The next question is what do you want to see on this Blog? What is the best use for it?

SCA Members Show (A Show of Our Own)

2009-11-16T14:40:00.000-08:00

Hi Blog visitors, The Annual SCA Members Show is coming right up. This is a nonjuried show with a focus on sales of artwork for the holidays. If you are not a current member you can sign up when you bring your piece in. There is a size limit so you will want to get the prospectus and read it carefully. You can get a prospectus on our website, http://www.sebarts.org/, or request one via e-mail to satrip@sonic.net, or come into the Gallery and pick one up. The deadline is Monday, November 30, 3 to 6 pm.

Dualities Exhibition -- Slide Show

2009-11-02T14:49:00.000-08:00

Here is a sampling of work in the Dualities exhibition, which continues through November 29.

DUALITIES

2009-10-16T15:50:00.000-07:00

The Dualities exhibition is opening on Thursday, October 22, 6 to 7:30 p.m. Expect the unexpected and be sure to check out the Yangtze River. I will post photos from the installation next week.

Dualities Take-in & Jurying

2009-10-08T11:35:00.000-07:00

We took in almost 200 works for the Dualities exhibition. Juror, Claudia Chapline, selected 60 pieces. There is some really interesting work and it should be a great show. If you entered work into the show and would like to know if it was selected, please go to the SCA website, http://www.sebarts.org/, and then to the Visual Arts page.

Call to Artists for DUALITIES

2009-09-22T15:50:00.000-07:00

Our next juried exhibition is DUALITIES. For this exhibition we are seeking artwork that depicts both sides of a duality, e.g. birth/death, yin/yang, war/peace, serious/foolish, light/dark, movement/stillness, soft/hard, etc. Open to all media including video and installation.

The juror, Claudia Chapline, is an international multi-media artist, writer, and curator. She was the recipient of the 2006 Northern California Women’s Caucus for the Arts Lifetime Achievement Award. She is owner of the Claudia Chapline Gallery, and she is currently President of Art at the Cheese Factory.

I'm looking forward to all the creative and imaginative work that will come in for this show. You can download a prospectus from our website, www.sebarts.org. Deadline to enter is Monday, October 5, 3 to 6 pm.

Portraits and Vessels in Wood

2009-09-15T15:23:00.000-07:00

Here is a slide show from the current exhibitions. Portraits in Main Gallery. Ancient Shapes: Vessels in Wood in Gallery II.

Ancient Shapes: Vessel in Wood

2009-09-11T12:38:00.000-07:00

Ancient Shapes: Vessel in Wood, work by Robert Gauthier, opens in Gallery II with a reception on Friday, Sept. 11, 6 to 7:30 PM. Gauthier's work is stunning and photos don't capture their exquisite detail and alluring presence, so you have to come in and see them in person.

Portraits exhibition opening

2009-09-11T12:28:00.000-07:00

Portraits, an exhibition of over 70 pieces opens with a reception in the Main Gallery on Friday, Sept. 11, 6 to 7:30 PM, and will run through Oct. 18. Come in and see who you know, or would like to know. Next week I will post a slide show of the installation and some of the pieces.

PORTRAITS

2009-08-10T15:37:00.000-07:00

Our next juried exhibition is all about portraits, actually it's called "Portraits", and will be juried by Lucinda Barnes, who is chief curator at the Berkeley Art Museum. We are looking for artwork that expresses the likeness, character and uniqueness of a person in any media including video and installation. We are looking for traditional portraits as well as not so traditional. You can get complete guidelines on the prospectus which is available on the SCA website, or in the gallery, or we can e-mail one to you by sending a request to satrip@sonic.net.

Wide Open: National Juried Exhibition

2009-08-05T15:43:00.000-07:00

Wide Open, a national exhibition juried by Philip Linhares, chief curator of art, Oakland Museum of California, will continue through September 6. Mr. Linhares selected Where's Mom, by Inez Dorfman, as Best of Show, and Merit awards went to Drill it, Pump it, Bury it, Carry it, by Allegra Burke, Treasure Maps, by Gael Fitzmaurice, and Apple Orchard, by Alicia Oceguera. The show coordinators selected three pieces by Rebecca Graham, Last, Volpe, and Lupo, for the Coordinators award. Congratulations to all the winners and thanks to all the artists who entered their work for this exhibition.

Wide Open -- Jury Results

2009-07-16T16:15:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday, Philip Linhares spent several hours here at the Art Center giving careful consideration to the 370 submissions for the Wide Open exhibition. At the end of the day he had selected approximately 72 pieces for the show. There were a lot of hard choices, and there were many more that he would have liked to include if we had the room to display them.

This is the first exhibition for which we are doing online posting of jury results, so we hope you will be patient with us as we try to make this a smooth process. The prospectus stated that the results would be here, however, since then we have been able to post them on our website, which is a better way to do it. So, for jury results go to http://www.sebarts.org/, Visual Arts, and follow the instructions for Jury Results. That should do it. I hope. Let me know how it works.

Gallery Talk with Donna Seager

2009-07-06T14:09:00.000-07:00

This Thursday, July 9 at 7 PM, Donna Seager will be here to give a talk on The Book As a Medium for Art. Donna was the juror for the Bibliophoria exhibition, currently on view in the gallery. This will be a great opportunity to meet Donna and hear what she has to say about book art. Admission is $5 for SCA members and $7 for nonmembers. Hope to see you here.

Bibliophoria: through July 26, 2009

2009-06-22T14:45:00.000-07:00

We had a fun opening for the show, it's always nice to have people come from a distance to attend the openings, and we always love our regulars. Here are some photos of the installation. But come see the show, if you haven't already, and plan to take some time looking at the books.

Bibiophoria -- Opening

2009-06-10T11:33:00.000-07:00

Bibliophoria, a juried book arts exhibition, with nearly 70 pieces juried by Donna Seager, opens Thursday, June 18 6 to 7:30 pm. The show includes work by artists from around the country, but most from Northern California and many from Sonoma County. Here are a couple of the pieces in the show, next week I will post some installation shots.

Call to Artists -- Bibliophoria

2009-05-26T12:30:00.000-07:00

Our next juried show is Bibliophoria, a national book arts exhibition. Deadline for submitting entries is Monday, June 1, 3 to 6 pm. Go to our website www.sebarts.org to download a prospectus, or send me an e-mail at satrip@sonic.net and I will send you one. Or, you can always come into the Art Center to pick one up.

Art at the Source -- Preview Exhibition

2009-05-20T12:05:00.000-07:00

Opening this Friday, May 22, 6 to 8 PM is the Preview Exhibition for the Art at the Source Open Studios. The open studios event will take place on two weekends, June 6 & 7, and June 13 & 14. Excellent opportunity to see and talk to artists in their studios and buy work directly from them. The Preview Exhibition is a great way to see samples of their work and plan your tours.

Art in Iron -- a wild and fun 2-day event

2009-05-20T11:52:00.000-07:00

The Art in Iron 2-day exhibition in the gallery was an amazing event, May 16 & 17. A dozen hand-made, one-of-a-kind custom motorcycles filled the gallery and made it sparkle with all the chrome and metalic paint. Also, on the walls we had the iconic work of Stanley Mouse, who was there on both days signing posters and greeting his fans. Take a look at the slide show in the side bar, because if you missed the event you wouldn't believe how beautiful the gallery looked.

Art in Iron

2009-05-05T15:02:00.000-07:00

The galleries are currently closed for cleaning & repairs, but hold on to your seat, and hat, because on Saturday, May 16, we will hold our annual benefit auction event -- "Art in Iron".

This year we have added an outstanding new twist with an exhibition of custom motorcycles! These are truly one-of-a-kind works of art. Some of Northern California’s hottest custom builders have been invited to show their work in this special exhibit, paired with the counter-culture art of Stanley Mouse, creative genius behind the artwork for The Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin and others.

This two-day event will begin on Saturday May 16 with a motorcycle ride that starts in the morning at Michael’s Harley-Davidson in Cotati and concludes at the Art Center, kicking off the Gala Event where all are welcome from 2 to 5pm. This event includes a silent and live auction, custom motorcycle exhibition, raffle, food and music. Tickets for the Exhibition Gala and/or Ride are $20 advance/ $25 door.

The motorcycle exhibition will also be open for public viewing on Sunday, May 17 from 10am – 4pm. Admission on Sunday is $3.

For information or tickets contact: Linda Galletta, 707-829-4797, at lindag@sonic.net, or www.brownpapertickets.org.

Out of A Box is closing

2009-04-16T12:36:00.000-07:00

The Out of A Box exhibition will be closing on Sunday, April 19. If you haven't seen it yet or want to bring someone to see it, now is the time.

Also, if you have a piece in the show, please come pick up your work on Monday, April 20, 12 noon to 5 PM.

Out of A Box -- Slide Show

2009-03-27T13:57:00.000-07:00

Here is a mini slide show with some of the wonderful work in this exhibition. Enjoy, and then come see all the intriguing pieces. The show continues through April 19.

Out of A Box

2009-03-26T11:29:00.000-07:00

Out of A Box, mixed-media exhibition opened on March 19 and will run through April 19. Juror, Lisah Horner, executive director of ACCI gallery in Berkeley, selected 58 pieces for the show. Best of Show Award went to Monty Monty for "Photo Block Set".

Art Residencies Within Reach

2009-03-12T15:07:00.000-07:00

Tonight, March 12, Archana Horsting, of the Kala Art Institute in Berkeley, will present a discussion of local, national and international residency opportunities for artists. The event is free and begins in the Gallery at 7 pm.

If you missed this informative talk, you can get information on the subject by going to the Kala Art Institute website, http://www.kala.org/

Out of A Box; Jury Results

2009-03-10T16:26:00.000-07:00

Listed below are the pieces selected by the juror for the Out of A Box exhibition. If your name is not on the list, we thank you very much for taking the time to submit work to this exhibition. Work not selected can be picked up at the gallery beginning Friday, March 6, through Sunday, March 15, 1 to 4 p.m. If you submitted work by slides, they will be returned in the SASE you provided. Please check the Visual Arts Calendar on our website: http://sebarts.org/ for upcoming juried shows.

If your name is listed below, please click here for additional information. http://www.scribd.com/doc/13152269/Notification-LTR

This is a test page and not all information is available.

Take in for Out of A Box

2009-02-26T13:49:00.000-08:00

Take-in of artwork for Out of A Box juried mixed media exhibition is Monday, March 2, from 2 to 6 p.m. You can download a prospectus from the SCA website: http://www.sebarts.org/ Visual Arts / Calendar.

Impressions 2009

2009-02-23T14:06:00.000-08:00

Two pianos have been a wonderful temporary addition to the gallery allowing for several concerts to take place during the Impressions 2009 printmaking exhibition, which continues through March 15, 2009.