About the Peter David Louis Memorial Ceramics Collection

In the summer of 2005, the VISAC Gallery was donated a collection of ceramics by Trail resident Ed Dulian.

Consisting of 42 pieces, the Collection was donated to the VISAC Gallery in memory of Mr. Dulian’s friend, Peter David Louis.

The Peter David Louis Memorial Collection represents the work of 23 artists from Canada, the United States and Jamaica. The pieces feature a variety of materials, including raku, porcelain, stoneware, earthenware and one piece in glass. 

Mr. Dulian purchased the pieces over a 10 year period, from the mid 1980s to the mid 1990s. The Collection is an eclectic representation of contemporary ceramics from that period. 

In the spring of 2006, VISAC received funding through the Columbia Basin Trust Community Initiatives Program to construct display and storage cabinetry for the conservation of the collection.

The cornerstone of VISAC’s permanent collection, the Peter David Louis Memorial Collection is an important addition to the visual arts community of the Greater Trail Area. 

Nancy Solway

Artist Statement on the Four Pieces

How wonderful to see them again . He had quite an interesting collection . I am especially pleased to see the bowl as it was in a juried exhibition at the Ontario Crafts Council and sold , and I really liked it. It is actually unglazed porcelain . I kept it’s “mate” in my personal collection. The “fish” piece is a playful piece inspired by the work of Bennet Bean. It is pit fired under an open flame, as opposed to raku. The other pieces are raku .

Nancy Solway has been a major contributor to the Canadian pottery scene for over thirty years. Her career has taken her from the country to the city and from sculpture to functional pottery. In 1980 she co-founded Clay Design Studio/Gallery in Toronto , an artist-run urban landmark. For many years Nancy sat on the Board of Directors of the Ontario Crafts Council, and she is one of five Canadians to appear in Peter Dormer’s book “The New Ceramics”.

Nancy now works out of her garden studio in Toronto’s Annex neighbourhood . Her pottery is available from her directly, from Clay Design (at Harbord and Brunswick) and from the Guild Shop of the Ontario Crafts Council.

Greg Payce

Greg Payce is one of the most important ceramic artists working in Canada today. Born in Edmonton in 1956, Payce received his B.A. from the University of Alberta in 1977 and his M.F.A. from the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design in 1987. Payce also undertook winter residencies at the Banff Centre in 1982 and 1984 and from 1984 to 1985 studied art history at the University of Victoria. In 1988 he became a faculty member at the Alberta College of Art and Design in Calgary, where he is now head of the Ceramics Program.

Payce creates provocative works that link contemporary issues with the discourse of ceramics , resulting in works that display an uncanny combination of invention, wit, material beauty and technical skill. Experimental in nature, Payce’s practice has moved from optical illusions in the surface decoration of his earlier pottery to garnitures of vessels that embody illusion in three dimensions. The relationship between objects and the space surrounding them becomes paramount. The history of ceramics, throwing processes, the semiotics of decoration, the study of anthropomorphic vessel forms, music, animation, contemporary art and design, optical illusion and virtual reality are all sources and contexts that have supported the development of Payce’s work. The functional, decorative, historical and conceptual aspects of ceramics remain at the forefront of his explorations.

Linda Bain Woods

Linda Bain Woods is a BC potter. Her work is made from earthenware clay and is glazed using the majolica technique.

My work is influenced by my interest in travel, gardening and the history and culture of food preparation and presentation in other countries. Although my work can exist solely as decoration, its utility is enhanced and completed when it is being used. The idea of my work helping to make an occasion special, or becoming part of individual celebratory or quotidian rituals is very appealing to me.

Peter Cave

Peter Cave, the ceramist responsible for the celebrated Independence Urn presented to HRH Princess Margaret in 1962, died April 2005.The urn was one of eight created by Cave and co-designer Gary John Sharpe as a commemorative item for Jamaica’s Independence.

Cave also created a special dessert service – 24 plates – with a Jamaican shell motif that were also presented to Princess Margaret and her husband , Lord Snowdon, by then prime minister Sir Alexander Bustamante.

A Briton, Cave studied at the Royal College of Art, apprenticed at the Royal Doulton factory at Stoke-on-Trent and taught at the Wimbledon School of Art before going to Jamaica.

His trip was occasioned by the intent of RW Baker, then principal of the Royal School of Arts Ceramics School, to open a similar institution there. After a pilot project was established in the Papine area, the Worcester Porcelain School Jamaica moved to Twickenham Park.

Catherine Carroll

Catherine Carroll has been a studio potter for close to 20 years. She is presently Studio Principal of Fired Earth.

Her degrees and diplomas include a Bachelor in Fine Arts from Nova Scotia College of Art and Design ; Masters in Fine Arts from the Boston University Programme in Artisanry; Craft and Design diplomas from Sheridan College; and a one-year residency at Banff School of Fine Arts – all specializing in ceramics.

John Ikeda

As opposed to other cultures where tradition is primary. “It seems like, you have to be born in the pottery lineage or have years of apprenticeship to be considered a serious potter”. The advantage of ceramics here is that we are open to other cultures and ideas, kids in art schools here are taught art history, poetry, music and architecture, the result is diverse individual expressions. The drawback in a cosmopolitan society, John explains, is that cultures becomes trends, like being the flavour of the month.

John’s approach to his work is simple, make things that is beautiful. Scholars, lecturers and critics will try to dictate what is beauty, you have to be honest with yourself and pursue your idea of beauty.

John has been a potter for many years and has lectured in various schools and universities including University of Alberta’s Fine Arts department. He shows his work in various galleries throughout Canada including The Gardiner Museum , The Guild Shop and Burlington Arts Centre just to name a few. www.kasumipottery.com

Terry Ryals

Terry’s studio and showroom is located near the village of Vesuvius on Saltspring Island. His porcelain work has been exhibited in galleries and craft shows throughout BC. He has had three one-man shows and over twenty group exhibitions in Vancouver, Victoria , and on Saltspring Island.

Terry has a broad educational background which emphasizes his diverse interests . He began the formal learning process with a degree in chemistry from Carleton College in Minnesota . His developing interests in ceramics and sculpture eventually led to an honours diploma in ceramic sculpture from Emily Carr College of Art in Vancouver.

More recently, he studied anthropology and archaeology at UBC with a special focus on Asian ceramics. His interests in arts and crafts have also led him to visit Mexico, New Mexico, Japan, China and Thailand.

He produces finely crafted wheel-thrown porcelain vases , bowls, containers and teapot sets. The glazed surfaces are smooth and inviting to touch , varying in colour from rich matt black and glossy dark blue to matt white and celadon. The white and celadon glazes are specially formulated to crackle into a pattern of fine lines which are emphasized by China ink. The work is high-fired to cone ten (1280 degrees centigrade) in a reduction atmosphere. The temperature and reduction atmosphere give the porcelain clays a whiteness and the glaze a depth and richness unequaled by any other firing method.

Terry’s porcelain work is a culmination of his interests in sculptural form, functionality and technical experimentation. He has always been drawn to pure simple forms with clean lines and rich surfaces whether they are found in early modern sculpture, primitive pottery or the more refined forms of Classical Chinese pottery. In particular, producing high-temperature reduction porcelain pieces reminiscent of Song Dynasty Chinese ware has been his special passion . Solving the inherent problems of claybodies, glazes and firing methods brings of his love of technical experimentation. Combining this knowledge and producing contemporary, functional pottery for all to enjoy is his goal. The challenges remaining could easily fill several lifetimes.

Tim Storey

Teapots in the guise of Giraffes, Elephants, Camels, Zebras and mythical Dragons. Tim Storey’s signature teapot series have been exhibited widely in one man shows and exhibitions in North America and Germany. Instantly recognizable, Storey’s personal style has put him in most major Canadian Ceramics Collections. These include the Kamm Collection [Los Angeles], the Bronfman/Claridge Collection [Montreal], General Foods [Canada] Ltd., and the Canadian Clay and Glass Museum [Waterloo]. For 25 years Tim has concentrated on the “salt glaze” technique. Dating back over 500 years this glaze requires the introduction of salt into the kiln atmosphere, which enhances the depth of detail and complements the subsequent addition of precious metal lustre glazes.

Neil Tetkowski

Gaff Rig is a deconstructed circle that has been re-assembled. The sculpture is part of an ongoing series. It happened that this particular work looked like a sail boat…’sounds corny but true that during that time I was crewing on a yacht that sailed on Lake Ontario. I was living in Buffalo NY during the 80s. 

Tetkowski creates art that communicates beyond cultural barriers. It is with this global perspective that his art is embraced throughout the world. Tetkowski has led many public art performances with community participation. These events and installations reflect his conviction that art can be a vital community process accessible to a broad audience .

Neil Tetkowski is the founder and director of the Common Ground World Project, an international non-governmental organization that uses the arts and education to focus attention on global environmental concerns. In 1997, Tetkowski presented this concept to several offices at the United Nations. Within a few months, the Common Ground World Project was officially endorsed by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. A tremendous effort was required to recruit, motivate and coordinate people around the world, to extract earth from their country and actually send it to New York. The project culminated during the spring of 2000 when Tetkowski built a sculpture on location at the United Nations using these unique earth materials and physically involved people from every country of the world. The completed World Mandala Monument was exhibited at the United Nations in 2002. The Ford Foundation made a generous grant to support the final fabrication and installation of the World Mandala Monument at the UN.

(www.tetkowski.com)

David Zweifel

While studying at the University of Arizona I became fascinated with creating molds for slip-casting . Cacti grow everywhere there and I began making molds of the cactus that grew outside my house. I came to find that the spineless prickly pear cactus produce the best molds as they have a naturally waxy surface. The piece you have is an example of a mold I made of a spineless prickly pear.

I made molds of all phases of plant growth, starting from sprouts, including the fruit. The flower on your teapot is made by hand . The piece is actually made from low fired ceramic which makes it very delicate.

Last year I sold my entire ceramics studio and am now interested in working in oil pastels. I work as the Mitteldorf Preserve Caretaker for the Big Sur Land Trust in California and have worked for BSLT for the past 6 years.

Zweifel majored in fine art at Humboldt Stare University and received a master’s degree in Fine Arts from the University of Arizona as well as an art specialist teaching credential.

Masatada Funo

Masatada Funo was born in Seattle, Washington to parents of Japanese descent but he is a longtime resident of British Columbia. A self-taught potter, Mas has been working in clay since 1971. His distinctive boxes and sculptures have been collected by admirers in Canada , the United States, Europe and Japan.

Raku pottery, characterized by its earthy aesthetic appearance and poros ity from being fired at a relatively low temperature, has long been favoured by tea ceremony masters in Japan. Mas Funo has created his own raku pottery which shares only its low temperature firing with its Japanese and Korean ancestors. The shapes, lines and textures of his sculptures are inspired by nature as well as human symbols of nature.

The work is influenced by mistakes, accidents, and the rapid chemical changes which happen seconds after the pieces are taken red hot from the kiln – those occurrences which lie at the edge of the artist’s control.

The work of Mas Funo has been sought after by collectors and gallery owners from around the world . You can presently find the work of Mas Funo in the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in New York and The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) in Toronto. He is content to show his work in a few galleries where his work will make a difference to the people who are fortunate enough to find it. He says he wants to make a difference to art in British Colum bia so a great deal of his energy is directed to showing his work in the Pacific North-West.

Mas spent some of his growing up years in the high desert of the United States and his love of nature and of serene and simple lines must harken back to these times. He recalls , with a sparkle in his eye, the collecting of the fruits of the prickly pear with his sister in upturned and broken umbrellas.

For the most part, the works of Mas Funo are small, about the size of a man’s heart. They start off as an egg shaped ball of clay and by pinching and cajoling Mas is able to create a beautiful box or figure that is at once unique and alluring . It is fitting that most of his pieces fit in your hand because it is with great pleasure that you can pick them up and turn them over in your hand; your fingers tracing the lines that his own have traced . It is a treat and a privilege to own one or more of these pieces .

Unknown Artists

These pieces were purchased by Ed Dulian and donated to VISAC as part of the Peter David Louis Memorial Collection but he was not able to provide any information about the artists, dates or media.