Who has seen the
wind? On the prairies, we stand in a sea of wind. The wind touches every
aspect of your life. From a cool summer evening breeze that gently
rustles the leaves of trembling aspens to a thundering Chinook wind that
can change the temperature from minus 20 to plus 20 in an hour,
everything on the prairies is connected by the wind. Wind creates some
of the most startlingly beautiful skies in the world and dances atop the
amber waves of grain. The wind masterfully mixes the blue, grey, greens,
and purples of our endless horizons with the tans, amber, rusty reds,
and winter wheat of our rolling plains. The wind is the brush on the
canvas that is the prairies.
It is through making pots that I strive to connect
myself to this place and time. My pots are a constant exploration of
form, surface, and glaze. I try to balance these elements to create
something that begins to tell a story; a story that is revealed over
time through use and mutable observation. Using prairie icons such as
the old grain elevators and the buffalo, which are both all but gone, I
hope to immediately draw in the viewer so that more subtle elements can
reveal themselves. A slightly rippled edge of a bowl that suggests a
gentle breeze, the drip of a slip line that looks like a furrowed field
and fits your finger just right, or the transition of a glossy to a
matte glaze surface that alludes to the shoreline of a slough. These are
some of the narrative elements that I am seeking to expose in my work.
Pottery’s unique place in our cultural milieu captured
my interest right away. It has the enviable ability to be imbued with
meaning and then place itself in the closest possible relationship to
the viewer, in their homes and as a functioning part of their lives.
Through use it dispenses meaning over time, often becoming more
meaningful the longer the pot is used and appreciated. It adds warmth,
comfort, and meaning to our daily rituals and our most important
traditional festivities. In doing so, the circle is complete. The hand
and mind of the maker are linked to the hands and minds of the user.
Born: Camrose, Alberta, 1968.
Education:
1992-1994
Alberta College of Art and Design (BFA with Distinction).
1990-1992
Nova Scotia College of Art and Design.
1985-1989
University of Calgary, B.Sc. in Zoology.
Selected
Exhibitions Group:
2004, Clay Creates Culture,
Alberta Potters' Association, VAAA Gallery, Edmonton, Alberta,
Honourable Mention.
2003, Mugs and Jugs, Vessels of
Libation, Alberta Craft Council Gallery, Edmonton
2002, Art vs Craft, The Great Debate,
Alberta Craft Council Gallery, Edmonton
Bradley Keys
Pots, Generations Gallery, Stony Plain, AB
2001, Terra
Sections, Willock and Sax Gallery, Waterton Lakes National Park, AB.
2000, Artwalk 2000, Eclectibles, Calgary,
AB.
Home on the Range, The
Station Cultural Centre, Okotoks, AB.
Cover Stories, Alberta Craft
Council Gallery, Edmonton, AB.
1999 Vanishing
Icons, Provincial Museum, Edmonton, AB, travelling
Tea for the Taking, Alberta Craft Council Vault Gallery,
Edmonton.
1998 Clay
Invitational, West End Gallery, Victoria, B.C.
Clay, Spirits from the Earth, Alberta Craft Council Vault Gallery, Edmonton.
1997 Artwalk
97, Provenance Gallery, Calgary.
Quality Trademark Show, Alberta Craft Council, Edmonton
1996 Vessels
in Celebration, APA 25th Anniversary Show, Glenbow Museum, Calgary,
travelling.
1995 Treetop
Art Walk, Invermere, B.C.
Half Dozen of the Other, Marion Nichol Gallery,
Invitational ACA Alumni show, Calgary.
Made in Alberta, APA juried show, Karuna Gallery, Calgary.
1995 Earth
Shines, Sunlife Plaza, Calgary.
Birthday
Show, Provenance Gallery, Calgary.
FLUX, Ceramics Department Graduating Show, Art is Vital,
Calgary.
ACA Graduating Show,
Alberta College of Art.
Awards:
1994 The Board of Governor's Award, Nominee; Louise
McKinney Post Secondary Scholarship, Nominee; 1993 Louise McKinney Post
Secondary Scholarship for Academic Excellence; Culpepper and Mile-Hi
Ceramics Prize; Dr. J. C. Sproule Memorial Scholarship; 1985 Alexander
Rutherford Scholarship;
Publications:
2005, “Making Marks”, Robin Hopper, KP Books
“500 Cups”, Lark Publishing.
2004, “ Profiles, Alberta Craft, Culture in the Making," January
2000, “Contemporary Potters”, Rockport Publishing.
1999, “Where Magazine”, Rocky Mountain Edition, Summer 1999.
“Albertans”, Alberta Report, Feb. 1, 1999.
1998, The Best Of Pottery 2, Rockport Publishing, U.S.A
“Fete of Clay”, Legacy Magazine, Nov. to Jan. 1998.
1995, “Defining Design”, City Scope, March/April.
1993, “Throw and Altered”, Contact Magazine, by Bradley
Keys, Autumn 1993, No.94.
Conferences
Attended:
2002, NCECA Conference, Kansas City, Mo.
Aesthetics of Skill, Red Deer, Alberta
2001, 1000 Miles Apart, Alberta College of Art and Design, Calgary,
AB.
1995, Calgary Ceramics Seminar, Calgary, Alberta.
1994, NCECA Conference, New Orleans, Louisiana.
1993, Calgary Ceramics Seminar, Alberta College of Art.
NCECA Conference, San
Diego, California
Professional Organizations:
2000-2002 Member of the
Board of Directors of the Alberta Craft Council.
Temporary
Image