Asheville in Atlanta - 2007

About the Show

The annual "Asheville in Atlanta" show is MudFire Gallery's most anticipated event each year. Guest curator Kyle Carpenter invites a select group of artists from in and around Asheville. This area is known internationally as home to a vast pool of ceramics talent including an intense concentration of the world's top studio potters. For the exhibit, the number of artists is limited so that visitors are able to enjoy a sizeable body of works by each artist, gaining a deep familiarity with each of their styles.

This year's show features elegant and striking work by potter and internationally acclaimed shamisen (banjo) player, Akira Satake. His refined forms are fired in a Japanese Kyushu-style oil-and-wood-fired kiln which he built in NC and feature traditional Japanese kaki, celadon and shino glazes.

Emily Reason is a Resident Artist at the EnergyXchange, a unique landfill initiative project that harnesses landfill-methane gas to fuel the pottery kiln in which she fires her pots. Her work is intricately carved and textured, with a focus on elegant and classic forms, complimented by glazes evocative of colors found in nature.

William Baker's naturally beautiful forms spring from his exploration of the potter's wheel and the use of atmospheric firing methods as primary tools. Vapors from the salt or soda introduced into the kiln travel past the pottery and mix with the ash and flame of the wood kiln resulting in the variation on the surface of the pottery without glaze or other surface adornments.

Kyle Carpenter's work exhibits a fusion of striking contemporary designs with traditional materials & process, noteworthy for his masterful use of slips, brushwork, minimalist glazing, and a warmly inviting finish.