Keith Ekstam and Geoffrey Kunkler
Keith Ekstam on his work
I am committed to clay as my primary art making material for many reasons. It is simultaneously one of the most fragile art media, yet also one of the most permanent and enduring. The simple, direct act of working with clay in one’s hands is the polar opposite of the complex, transformative nature of the kiln firing. I am certain that these opposing but vital characteristics are what drives me to choose this material. My most recent work is focused on sculptural forms that are landscape oriented and which embrace the many possibilities of clay from the raw and earthy to the colorfully glazed and finished. This work was inspired by my interest in Chinese Scholar Rocks. These rocks are generally viewed as small landscapes which embody utopian ideals. While grounded in ideas specifically associated with Scholar Rocks, this work has a larger context in which I reference a diverse range of items. These are as far reaching as children’s toys to tools, architectural elements to geology, exalted objects to everyday mundane items. I employ mixed ceramic media by assembling variously fired ceramic objects, and occasionally other elements, onto the landscape bases. This is done to provide content and visual contrasts as needed.
About Keith Ekstam: Keith Ekstam is a Professor of Art and Design at Missouri State University in Springfield. He has maintained a career as an active ceramic artist and dedicated art educator at MSU since 1987. He received his MFA degree in ceramics and drawing from The University of Michigan School of Art in 1987 and his BFA degree in ceramics and painting from Minnesota State University-Mankato in 1982. Professor Ekstam has exhibited his artwork in some two hundred fifty exhibitions including the Röhsska Swedish National Crafts Museum in Goteborg, Auckland Museum in New Zealand, Yingge Wu-Yao Artspace in Taipei, Taiwan, Celebrated Art Gallery in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, the Clay Studio in Philadelphia and Perimeter Gallery in Chicago. His artwork can be found in numerous public and private collections and it has been reproduced in several prominent publications within the field. Professor Ekstam has also been a visiting artist at numerous art organizations both abroad and in the United States. Recent residencies include the Arctic Ceramic Centre in Finland, Guldagergaard International Ceramic Research Center in Denmark, Tainan National University of the Arts in Taiwan, HDK Design College at the University of Goteborg in Sweden, the Pottery Workshop in Jingdezhen, China, and the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana.
About Geoffrey Kunkler: Kunkler is clay artist who manages Phoenix Fired Art, a community clay center in his hometown of Joplin, Missouri. He received an MFA in Ceramics from the University of Kansas in 2011 and his BFA in Ceramics from Missouri State University, where he studied with Keith Ekstam.