DIRECTORS STATEMENT
The Market House Craft Center is very proud to bring the Strictly Functional Pottery National to Lancaster for it's 17th year. This exhibition was the first to provide a venue for sharing what is happening in American functional ceramics. The SFPN continues to draw the best in contemporary functional ceramics. Each year we see new and creative ways of interpreting utilitarian works. The exhibit will continue to be available on our web site, along with the past four exhibits. (www.strictlyfunctionalpotterynational.net)
Each year a highly respected artist in the ceramics field is invited to be juror for the SFPN. This year we are honored to have Pete Pinnell, Professor of Art at University of Nebraska. He is well known as a ceramist, teacher, lecturer, author, and juror. His work in clay has been shown in numerous books and journals, and is represented in museums and collections internationally.
Mr. Pinnell took on the monumental task of selecting pieces for the exhibit. It is a "blind jury" which means the juror is not given the names of the applicants. We send the juror the digital images, and supply the title, size, clay, and firing for each piece. Our instructions are to keep in mind the "Strictly Functional" part of the title, and select a balanced exhibit, featuring different methods, clays, glazes, and firing. A piece may focus on form, color, or texture, or it may express an idea. Because of the need for a balanced exhibition, unfortunately there are many excellent pieces that do not get selected for the show. We received applications from almost every state, and as usual, about a third of the exhibit is from people who have not applied before. We have one person who has been in 16 of the 17 years, and we have several people who have never applied to any exhibit before.
The Strictly Functional Pottery National is a joy for us to work on, and we are pleased to do it. The payoff is the joy of unpacking the pieces and finally seeing the exhibit come together into a cohesive whole. There is a tremendous amount of work behind the scenes, but it is a group effort. We are all volunteers, and without many committed people, our sponsors and our supporters, it could not be done. Enjoy!
