Line and Color
Kelly Sullivan

MudFire Gallery's exhibition Line and Color asks what happens when drawing and painting departs from a two dimensional canvas format into the third dimension, etched permanently on functional and sculptural ceramics. The ten artists included in Line and Color - Annette Gates, Cara Gilbert, Courtney Martin, Courtney Murphy, Diana Fayt, Jay Jensen, Julia Galloway, Kelly Sullivan, and Liz Zlot Summerfield - stand out in the field of studio ceramics with their mastery of this exhibit's namesake formal design elements. By redefining the painted surface, these artists create fine art located at the intersection of painting, sculpture, and utility.

Line and Color is on view at MudFire Gallery April 5 - May 3, 2008. The opening night reception will be held from 5-9pm on Saturday, April 5, 2008.

About the Artist

Kelly completed her BFA in Printmaking from Florida Atlantic University in 2003. During her last year in the BFA program she was invited to do an Independent Study with the Visiting Artist and Professor in the Ceramics Department as well as take a Clay and Glazes class that was only offered to Ceramics Majors. This was the beginning of her work in clay and her appreciation for both the 3-dimensional world of art and the love of the ceramics processes.

Kelly moved to Atlanta in 2003 to seek greater opportunities as an artist. She is currently an Artist in Residence at MudFire Clayworks.

Kelly Sullivan Artist Statement

I love the process of making a piece of ceramics. The process is just as exciting to me as the finished piece. This shows through in all of the things I make by hand. From my background in printmaking to my love of cooking and baking I love the processes. As a potter there is not one part of the making that I do not enjoy doing. It is the fundamental necessity of each of these processes that I consider at every step from the shape of the vessel to the surface decoration.

While I'm making the vessel I am thinking of the surface decoration and what color engobe I will use on it. I consider what line drawing will accentuate the shape of the vessel I am throwing. I imagine how the viewer will see the final piece. I appreciate the vessel as a visual ground that the eye of the viewer will be able to walk all over with their eyes. I celebrate at this point that I have taken the leap from the 2-dimensional restrictions that were part of my printmaking background into the 3-dimensional world of ceramics. The shape of my final aesthetic piece has changed from flat and untouchable (prints are looked at and not touched!) to something that the person enjoying it will want to hold and feel. My excitement for the process only gets greater when I am working on the surface decoration.

I work with two glazes and 4 colors of engobe. It is in the simplicity of these color choices that I can ensure that the shape of the vessel is not hidden from the viewer. Historically, I feel that I have been influenced greatly by two things in the colors of the glazes that I use, the colors of the papers that I use when printing and the appreciation for "retro" kitchens of the 1950's and 1960's. …or at least the notion I have of the kitchens that existed during this time.

Printmaking also has a great influence on the actual application of the engobes and the line drawings. Silkscreening was a very popular from of printing in the late 1950's and in the 1960's. In this form of printmaking the layering of flat color is used to show depth. In using the engobes under the glaze I am able to achieve this depth. I also carve the lines into the actual piece and in this process my brain recalls linoleum cut printing. In printing your eye can only follow the visual idea of the line on the paper and imagine the process that it took to achieve this. In ceramics the carving into the piece gives the viewer a tangible way to feel the process as well as following it with their eye. The eyes and fingers can travel along the same path as the mind takes in all three dimensions of the final piece. I also consider the circles I use in the decoration as another vehicle to lead the eyes and fingers on this path. Big or small, on the outside or on the inside I want the viewer to always get back to looking at the whole piece and not just focus on one section of the vessel.

My final aesthetic goal is achieved when I feel that I have shared with the viewer my love of the processes I use to make the piece. It is only enhanced when I am confident that they will want to touch and look at the final piece and maybe even share it to celebrate their own excitement for the visual world.

Kelly Sullivan Resume

Education

BFA Printmaking, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL 2003
Cristina Cordova figure sculpting workshop, Atlanta, GA 2007
Lisa Clague metal and clay workshop, Atlanta, GA 2007

Shows and Exhibitions

2007

"Put a Lid on It" Invitational exhibit, Atlanta, GA
"MudFire Holiday Show and Sale", Atlanta, GA

2003

"Spring Juried Show", Boca Raton, FL
"Print Exhibition & Portfolio Exchange", Miami, FL
"BFA Exhibition", Boca Raton, FL
"Women in the Visual Arts", award for juried scholarship

2002

"FAU Potters Guild Juried Show", Boca Raton, FL
"Spring Juried Show", Boca Raton, FL

Residencies

Florida Atlanta University, Printmaking Program,
Studio Assistant - 2000-2003

MudFire Clayworks & Gallery
Artist in Residence - 2006-present