Rick Berman,
Potter

Rick Berman Biography

Rick Berman Artist Statement

I live a very simple life with as much order and as little chaos as is humanly possible with my particular gifts and shortcomings. My pots are not separate from my life. Firing techniques and glazes are minimal, and my Salku kilns look as if they were built by a cave man. The forms have always dealt with the cylinder, the ovoid, and the circle, and the infinite number of variations that are possible within these flexible boundaries. The pots are always about function; teapots, bottles, bowls, covered jars, and the like, but sometimes they go beyond tangible function and touch another realm of the human experience which is impossible to explain, but we could call intuition.

My surfaces range from a serene celadon on porcelain, to an intoxicating red to orange to lime green on a raku pot, to the crusty, drippy ash, barnacle like textures and earth tones of my Salku work. I push myself to add too and find new ways to use the information that I have accumulated over the years, and my goal is to maintain the same excitement and enthusiasm for the next kiln load of pots that I had at the very beginning of my clay life. I am extremely grateful for the many opportunities that the Universe has provided.

Rick Berman Resume

Education

1973 University of Georgia MFA

1971 Georgia State University BVA

During 1972, 1978, 1982, 1984, 1988, 1990, 1994, 1996, 2006, and 2007 Rick studied with and documented potters of Ahmednagar, India

Positions

Art Faculty, Pace Academy, 1998-present

Instructor, Georgia State University, Summer Quarter 1999

Instructor, State University of West Georgia, Summer Quarter 1998

Co-Owner, Berman Gallery, 1981-1998

Instructor, Penland School, 1987

Instructor, Georgia State University, Summer 1985

Instructor, University of Georgia, Summer Quarters 1973 and 1983

Artist-in-Residence, South Carolina Arts Commission, 1981

Artist-in-Residence, The Hambidge Center, 1981

Director, Ceramics Department, Callanwolde Arts Center, 1973-1980

Professional Organizations

Atlanta Art Workers Coalition, Board of Directors

National Council for the Education of the Ceramic Arts

The Hambidge Center, Board of Directors

Atlanta Gallery Association, Vice President, 1989

Georgia Designer Craftsmen, President, 1977-1978

American Craft Council, Georgia Representative, 1977-1978

Recent Awards

Bob Owens Endowed Chair of Art, North Georgia College and State University, 2000,2001, and 2002

Pace Academy Yearbook Dedication, 2002

Pace Academy Teacher Award of Excellence, 2001

Workshops and Lectures

Raku Workshops, Callanwolde Fine Arts Center & Chastain Arts Center, Atlanta, GA, 2008

John C. Campbell Workshop: Tea Ceremony Utensils, 2008

Fired Works/Macon Arts, Lecture: Collecting Contemporary Ceramics & Lecture: The Story of Georgia Folk Pottery & Panel Moderator, 2008

“Out of the Fire Regional Conference” The Potters Council Hudgens Center of the Arts, Duluth, Georgia. 2007.

Sing'isi Pottery Project, Arusha, Tanzania, Africa. Three week workshop teaching kiln building, glaze formulation, the potters wheel, handbuilding and studio management to students and teachers. 2006 & 2007.

John C. Campbell Folk School One Week Workshop: “Ceramic Objects for the Tea Ceremony.” 2004

John C. Campbell Folk School One Week Workshop: “Tea Ceremony Utensils” 2006.

Chastain Art Center: Two one week workshops “Raku and the Potters Wheel” 2006

Callanwolde Raku Workshop, One day, 2004, 2005, 2006

GISA Presenter: “Generating Ideas for Ceramics Projects.” 2004

Chastain Art Center Two one week Pottery on the Wheel Workshops, 2005

Workshop and Lecture: Raku Ho’olaule’a-Hawaii, Oahu, HI,1999

Oconee County Cultural Arts Center Salku and Kiln Building Workshop,
Watkinsville, Georgia

Artist, Dealer, Collector Panelist: Howard Finster Symposium, Lehigh
University, Bethlehem, Pa.

Workshop and Lecture: University of Hawaii, Honalulu, HI, 1999

Workshop: One Million Ideas for Decorating Plates and Bowls,
Georgia Independent Schools Association, Woodward Academy,
Atlanta, GA, 1998

Workshop: Kiln Building, Waterford, VA, 1996

Workshop: Salku, Coleman Clay Studio, Las Vegas, NV, 1996

Lecture: Salku, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 1996

Lecture: American Studio Ceramics, The High Museum,
Atlanta, GA, 1996

Lecture: Salku, Penland School, Penland, 1996

1st Virginia Clay Conference, Fort Royal, VA, 1995

Newquist Studios, The Plains, VA, 1991-1995

American Craft Council Southeast Regional Conference,
Sawtooth Center, Winston Salem, NC, 1994

National Council for the Education of the Ceramic Arts,
New Orleans, LA, 1994

James Madison University, Harrisburg, VA, 1992

Emory University, Atlanta, GA, 1990

University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, 1990

Chastain Arts Center, Atlanta, GA, 1989

University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 1989

John Carroll University, University Heights, OH, 1988

Penland School, Penland, NC, 1987

Everson Museum, Syracuse, NY, 1986

The Hambidge Center, Rabun Gap, GA, 1975, 1984, 2001, 2002

Greenville Museum, Greenville, SC, 1980

Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, 1980

University of North Carolina at Raleigh, Raleigh, NC, 1980

Arrowmont, Gatlinburg, TN, 1979

Armstrong College, Savannah, GA, 1978

Brookfield Craft Center, Brookfield, CT, 1978

Chicago Art Institute, Chicago, IL, 1978

East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, TN, 1978

University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL, 1977

Columbia Museum, Columbia, SC, 1976

Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, 1976

Mercer University, Macon, GA, 1976

Agnes Scott College, Atlanta, GA, 1975

Curator

Raku Exhibition at the Oconee Cultural Arts Center, Watkinsville, Georgia. 2005

"19th and 20th Century Southern Stoneware” Madison-Morgan Cultural Arts Museum 2006

“CLAY” The Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia, Atlanta, GA, 2003

“Ron Meyers—30 Years” Macon Museum of Arts and Sciences, Macon, GA, 1995

“Georgia Clay ‘92” Atlanta History Center, Atlanta, GA, 1992

“Rick Berman and Friends” Callanwolde Art Center, Atlanta, GA, 1979

Juror

Mudfire Teapot National, Atlanta, Georgia 2006

Southern Association of Independent Schools Visiting Committee Member: Beaufort Academy, Beaufort, S.C. 2005

Juror: Chattahoochee Valley Art Museum Arts Festival. LaGrange, Georgia

Executive Director, Search Committee, The Hambidge Center, Rabun Gap, GA, 1992

Southern Homes Magazine, “Visual Arts for the Home,” Atlanta, GA, 1989

National Kidney Foundation, Atlanta, GA, 1986

Piedmont Arts Festival, Atlanta, GA, 1979, 1987

Waccamaw Art Guild, Myrtle Beach, SC, 1981

Ringling Museum Arts Festival, Sarasota, FL, 1979

Allied Arts Council, Mobile, AL, 1978

Craftsmans Fellowship Panel, South Carolina Arts Commission, Columbia, SC, 1978

Roswell Arts Festival, Roswell, GA, 1976

Florida Designer Craftsmen, The Cummer Museum, Jacksonville, FL, 1976

Scholastic Art Awards National Exhibition, New York, NY, 1975

Publications

Don Reitz Clay, Fire, and Salt, excerpts from Claytimes article.

Rick Berman, Clayworker, artist monograph, 2007

Clay Times Magazine, March/April 2004, Tom turner Interview

Clay Times Magazine, Jan/Feb 2005, Simon Levin Interview

Clay Times Magazine, Nov/Dec 2005, Lauren Gallaspy Interview

Clay Times Magazine, Oct/Nov 2006, Sandy Culp Inteview

Raku by Steven Branfman 2001

Smashing Glazes, by Susan Peterson 2001

Working With Clay 2nd Edition, by Susan Peterson 2001

“Victoria Christen Interview”, Clay Times Magazine, 2000

“Seth Cardew Interview”, Clay Times Magazine, 1999

“CLAY Exhibition Curators Statement”, Clay Times Magazine, July-August 2003

“Collecting Contemporary Ceramics,” The Museum of Arts and Sciences, Catalog Essay for, Contemporary Ceramics from Georgia Collections, Macon GA, April 10-September 20, 1999

“Contemporary Ceramics from Georgia Collections”, Clay Times Magazine, July-August 1999

“The Making of an Artist: An Interview with Rick Berman”, Ceramics Monthly, by Joel Betancourt, May 1999

Working With Clay, by Susan Peterson 1998

Clay Times Magazine, January-February 1998

“Don Reitz Interview”, Clay Times Magazine, April 1995; January 1996

“Peter Voulkos Interview”, Clay Times, November-December 1996

“Ron Meyers—30 Years”, Catalog Essay, Macon Museum of Arts and Sciences, Macon, GA, 1995

“Andy Nasisse Review”, American Ceramics, 1994

“Jack Earl Interview”, Ceramics Monthly, 1992

“Ceramics Monthly (Cover)”, Ceramics Monthly, January 1990

“A Gallery View”, Studio Potter Magazine, 1989

“Andy Nasisse”, Ceramics Monthly, January 1989

Studio Clay in Georgia 1969-1989, Contemporary Studio Works Catalog
Macon Museum of Arts and Sciences, Macon, GA, 1989

“Romancing the Raku”, Southern Homes Magazine, by Lynn McGill, 1988

“An Oxidation Studio”, Ceramics Monthly, February 1984

“The Village Potters of Ahmednagar”, NCECA Journal, 1983

Great Ideas for Potters, Edited by Barbara Lipton, 1983

Teapots, Rick Berman, 1980

“Ceramics Southeast 1979”, Ceramics Monthly, 1979

“An Indian Pottery”, Ceramics Monthly, 1979

Ceramic Glazemaking (Cover), By Richard Behrens, 1976

“Northeast Georgia Potters”, Studio Potter Magazine, Vol. 5, No. 2, 1975

One Man Shows

Chastain Art Center Gallery, “Rick Berman: New Work,” Atlanta, GA, 2003

The Signature Shop and Gallery, “Rick Berman: Raku + Salku ”, Atlanta, GA, 2003

The Signature Shop and Gallery, “Rick Berman: Recent Work”, Atlanta, GA, 2001

University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, 1999

The Signature Shop and Gallery, “Rick Berman: New Work,” Atlanta, GA, 2000

The Signature Shop and Gallery, “Rick Berman Teapots,” Atlanta, GA, 1999

State University of West Georgia, “Rick Berman: New Work,” Carrollton, GA, 1998

Ceramics Southeast, “Rick Berman: Salku,” University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 1996

Coleman Clay Studio and Gallery, “Rick Berman: Salku,” Las Vegas, NV, 1996

Berman Gallery, “Rick Berman: Salku,” Atlanta, GA, May 18-31, 1996

Berman Gallery, “20 Years,” Atlanta, GA, 1988

Jefferson Davis College, Brewton, AL, 1986

J. H. Webb Gallery, Macon, GA, 1986

Augusta College, Augusta, GA, 1984

Athens Botanical Gardens, Athens, GA, 1983

CD/FS Gallery, Syracuse, NY, 1983

The Hambidge Center, Rabun Gap, GA, 1983

Armstrong College, Savannah, GA, 1978

Callanwolde Arts Center, Atlanta, GA, 1978

Mercer University, Macon, GA, 1977

University of North Carolina at Wilmington, Wilmington, NC, 1977

Center for Modern Art, Micanopy, FL, 1976

Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, 1976

Signature Shop, Atlanta, GA, 1975

Two Artist Shows

The Westminister School Gallery, "Rick Berman and Andy Cunningham," The Westminister School, Atlanta GA, August 20-September 20, 1999

Rick Berman & Jorie Berman, Signature Shop, Atlanta, GA. 2005

Recent Group and Invitational Exhibitions

Ron Meyers & Past Students, Cora Stafford Gallery, University of North Texas, Denton, Texas, 2008

American Masters- MudFire Gallery, Decatur, GA, 2008

Three Georgia Potters: Madison Morgan Cultural Arts Center Madison,
Georgia 2006

Cedar Creek Gallery National Teapot Show VI Creedmoor, N.C. 2005

Three Man Show: Tom, Rick, and Jerry, Oconee County Arts Federation
Gallery, Watkinsville, Ga. 2005

“21st Century Ceramics in the United States and Canada”, Columbus College of Art and Design, Columbus, OH, 2003

“Potters of Georgia and North Carolina”, Bascom-louise Gallery, Highlands Visual Arts Center, Highlands, NC, 2003

“Perspectives-Georgia Potters and Collectors”
Oconee Cultural Arts Foundation, Watkinsville, GA, 2003

“Third Annual Sul Ross State University Ceramic Invitational”
Alpine, TX, 2001

“Teapots”,The Swan Coach House, Atlanta, GA, 2000

“LaGrange National”, Lamar Dodd Art Center, LaGrange College, LaGrange, GA, 2000

“Salt Fired: Form and Surface”, Brookfield Craft Center, Brookfield, CT, 1999

“Salt Fired”, Brookfield Craft Center, Brookfield, CT, 1998

“Beyond Serving: A Contemporary Platter Invitational”, Jessie Metcalf Gallery, University of Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, 1998

“35th Bay Annual Art Show”, Visual Arts Center of Northeast Florida, Panama City, FL, 1997

Third Place/Three Dimensional Category, “Clay Az Art 18 International”
Northern Arizona University Art Museum, Flagstaff, AZ, 1996

“Ceramics USA”, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, 1996

“LaGrange National Biennial”, Lamar Dodd Art Center, LaGrange College, LaGrange, GA, 1996

$1000.00 Purchase Award, “Hammond’s National”, Monet Gallery, Grayton Beach, FL, 1995

$1000.00 Purchase Award, “ORTON Cone Box National Exhibition”
Baker University, Baldwin City, KS, 1995

$100.00 Purchase Award, “Hot Pots Exhibition”, Roswell Potters Association, Roswell, GA, 1995

Jurors Award, “Teapots: Interpretations by Southern Artists”, Lenox Square Gallery, Atlanta, GA, 1995

“Alabama Clay Conference 1”, Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, AL, 1986

Collections (Partial Listing)

Albany Museum, Albany, GA

Bayle Museum, Roanoke, VA

Bob Brady/Sandy Simon, Berkeley, CA

Brookfield Craft Center, Brookfield, CT

Chicago Art Institute, Chicago, IL

Tom and Elaine Coleman, Las Vegas, NV

Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL

Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA

Greenville Museum, Greenville, SC

Harriet Tubman Museum, Macon, GA

The Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, Honolulu, HI

The High Museum, Atlanta, GA

Macon Museum of Arts and Sciences, Macon, GA

Mehera Irani, Ahmednagar, India

Jim Melchert, Berkeley, CA

Penland School, Penland, NC

John Portman, Atlanta, GA

Andres Serrano, Brooklyn, NY

Peter Voulkos, Oakland, CA

Takasago Research Institute, Tokyo, Japan

Shunsaku Ueda, Tustin, CA

State University of West Georgia, Carrolton, GA

The University of Georgia, Athens, GA

Franz Wildenhain, Rochester, NY

Xu Xing Thao, Suzhou, China

Yo Yo Ma, Boston, MA

Jane Fonda, Atlanta, GA

Congressman John Lewis