"Polka Dots"
Chris Baumann

MudFire Gallery announces an invitational exhibit of functional and sculptural works in clay with a focus on the lovable polka dot.

The artist reception and exhibit opening will be held Saturday, April 14, from 5-9 pm. The exhibit and sale will be on display through May 5, 2007.

Chris Baumann Artist Statement

Have you ever had stopped to tie your shoe and noticed a wilting flower, a green tipped penny, a crumpled tissue, something that just changed your whole perspective of where you are and how to look at the world? You're down on one knee, feeling the concrete sidewalk digging into your skin, fingers wrapped around the cotton laces and you notice a different world. Focus changes from the far and large to the near and small. Just for a moment you might see the wind blow the grass, feel the sun on your neck, or note the sound of your breath. You might think of a different time and place; you might feel cold or warm, discontent or passion. You're not where you just were.

But then you get up, resume your walk and forget.

This is what happens when I pick up a cup of coffee in the morning. Just for a few minutes I'm completely aware of the mug in my hand. Most likely it isn't my mug, I have very few of my own. A good sturdy mug, a thin delicate cup, a tall handsome mug; all can move my focus from the big picture to the small. I see more than a vessel; I'm aware of the size, texture and the feel of the form. I think of who made it, and why it's important to me. I take a trip away from my kitchen, just for a moment. I strive for a similar response to my work in those who see and use my pottery.

I want my pottery to blend in, comfortably appear to be part of a whole, not stand out and shout. But once picked to be used, or noticed on the table, I want it to engage the audience with a quiet power, move them to a different place and time.

The salt kiln does most of the work for me; it softens harsh lines and adds earthy colors and textures to the flesh of my pots. I stick to simple patterns and images, maybe a touch aboriginal in appearance. In my newest work I fill the negative space of the pottery surface with rhythms of dots, no longer always relying on the good graces of the kiln gods. I'm particularly excited by the tile-like affect of the dots and I see new possibilities looking to the future.

Chris Baumann Bio

I was raised in Appleton Wisconsin, home of Houdini. It was great place to grow up, other than the harsh winters and the long run of bad Packers football I had to endure. After a short drinking binge at Ripon College, I attended Middle Tennessee State University.

It was here that I discovered my passion for clay. While I went on to finish my BS in Art Education and a teaching certification, I stayed for an extra year to finish a BFA in Clay. The following year I moved to New York City, and worked in my brother's framing shop. I wasn't all that happy living in New York, so once I was accepted to the graduate program at Wichita State University, I headed to Kansas. In 1995, I graduated with my MFA in clay.

For the past 12 years I have shared a pottery business with my friend, Stacey Stanhope.

I currently live in Woodstock Georgia with my two cats. No jokes please.

Chris Baumann Resume

University Education

Wichita State University, MFA Clay 1995

Middle Tennessee State University, BFA Clay 1992

Middle Tennessee State University, BS Art Education 1991

Ripon College

Additional Education

National Conference on the Education of the Ceramic Arts 1989-97, 2000, 2002, 2006

Alabama Clay Conference 2005

Indian Church Craft Center, Indian Church, Belize, 2004

Arrowmont School Arts and Crafts Gatlinburg, TN 1990 and 1995

92nd Street YMHA/YWHA "Personal Visions" New York, NY 1993

Honors, Awards and Memberships

Graduate Teaching Assistantship, Wichita State University

Clayton Staples Scholarship, Wichita State University

Phi Beta Kappa Scholarship, Wichita State University

1st place Clay, Blue Ridge Arts Festival, 2002

2nd place and honorable mention, Exposure, 1995

Wichita State Potters Guild (President 1994), Wichita State University

Southern Highlands Craft Guild Member

Georgia Clay Council Member (Vice President 2002-2003)

NCECA Member

Work Experience

Studio Potter, co-owner of the Clay Fetish Pottery, Alpharetta Georgia, 1995 to Present. All facets of running a studio including building kilns, throwing, hand building, mixing clay, inventory, ordering materials, shipment and bookkeeping

Graduate Assistant, Wichita State University, 1993-1995. Taught throwing techniques, built and fired kilns, mixed clay and glazes

Art Instructor/Departmental Head, Camp Sequoia, Rock Hill New York, 1988,1998,1992,1993. Headed large arts program which included photography, Jewelry making, Ceramics, print making, and drawing programs, taught hand building and throwing techniques, responsible for inventory and employee evaluations

Studio Technician, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro Tennessee, 1990-92. Clay and glaze making, fire kilns, assist with workshops, setting up shows

Workshop Presenter

Throwing Techniques, University of Tennessee, Chattanooga 2004

Throwing Techniques, Georgia Clay Council 2004

Kiln Building, Locating Native Clay, and Hand Building Techniques, Belize 2004

Throwing Techniques, Berry College, Georgia 2002

Throwing Techniques, Butler Community College, Kansas 1995

Exhibitions

"Polka Dots", MudFire Gallery, Decatur, Georgia, 2007

Clay Fetish Pottery Studio Shows, 1996-2006

"Perspectives", Watkinsville, Georgia, 2004-2006

"Over the Lips", The Art Place, Marietta, Georgia, 2006

"The Useful Teapot" Akar Design, Iowa City, 2006

"Teapots a Go-Go", MudFire Gallery, Decatur, Georgia, 2006

"30 X 5 Invitational", Akar Design, Iowa City 2006

"Fired Works", Macon Arts Council, Macon, Georgia, 2006

"Serve This", MudFire Gallery, Decatur Georgia, 2004

"Centering on Clay" Cherokee Arts Council, Canton, Georgia, 2003-2005

"8 X 10", MudFire Gallery, Decatur, Georgia, 2003

"Hands on Clay", Canton Fine Arts Center, Canton, Georgia, 2003

MFA Solo Exhibition, WSU, Wichita, Kansas, 1995

"FASA Exhibit", Kansas School of Medicine, 1995

"Exposure 95", McFarland Gallery, Wichita, Kansas, 1995

"Topeka #19", Shawnee County Library, Topeka, Kansas, 1995

"Strides", Clayton Staples Gallery, Wichita, Kansas, 1994

"Gathering of Diverse Identities" Clayton Staples Gallery, Wichita, Kansas, 1994

Publications/ Articles

Clay Times, September/October 2004, "Potters for Belize, A Visiting Potter's Experience" by Roger Korn