Local artist, Kari Wagenman has her work on display at Equilibrium!
Read moreAlison Hardin Ceramics
For the rest of December, our talented ceramic Artist, Alison Hardin, has provided some beautiful new pieces that would make lovely gifts this Holiday season.
A handmade tea kettle and vase
Alison has been making ceramic art for over 25 years in Portland, where she is inspired by the natural beauty that she explores. While raising her two children, she has also been teaching clay arts to youth in local schools. Her focus on hand-building with clay allows her to explore the boundaries of functional forms that are then surrendered to the wood kiln. The woodfiring compliments her forms revealing beauty in imperfection
Two handmade cups on a tray
“Each ceramic piece I create has its own story – its own beginning, its own journey in the kiln, and its own end. I start with smooth slabs of clay and add texture by pressing the surfaces with fabric, leather, leaves, pine cones, shells, stamps, kitchen utensils, or other found objects. Inspired by the natural beauty that surrounds me, I hand-build each piece, molding slabs together to create forms suggestive of both natural and man-made worlds – human figures, tree trunks, clothing or manufactured items.”
A handmade vase with buttons
“While creating pieces is a more solitary activity, I enjoy the community aspect of wood firing for completing the pieces. Woodfiring requires a team of 12 or more artists to load and stoke the kiln with wood for 1 to 7 days. Much of my work is fired in an anagama wood kiln which is a long, Japanese-style, cave-like kiln designed to help encourage the river r of flame to etch the unglazed pots with unpredictable splashes of earthy color. Ash drops and melts on the front and shoulders, adding layers of color and shine.
After tending the kiln for 3 to 6 days and nights, we open the kiln to reveal the fire-kissed pots. Each one-of-a-kind piece made of earth, fire and chance is now ready for the end of its story, perhaps in your home or in the home of someone you love.”
A handmade bottle
Art Sale! Liz Thoresen is offering 25% off through December 18th
Our very talented, featured artist, Liz Thoresen is offering a generous discount of 25% off all paintings through December 18th, 2023.
Hand painted cards are also just $10 and make wonderful gifts for loved ones this Holiday season.
Golden Moment
Liz Thoresen is an award winning mixed-media artist whose subject matter ranges from landscapes, wildlife and florals to abstracts. She has participated in many local and national group and solo shows. She is represented by The Geezer Gallery in Portland, and the RiverSea Gallery in Astoria.
Liz has taught in Australia and the Philippines and has pursued her passion of creating her whole life. Residing on four acres in rural Beaverton, she is heavily inspired by nature which emerges in much of her artwork. Her art has been published in two books and on the cover of the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association. Her painting “Whispers in the Grove” was selected by the US State Department for the American Embassy in Brunei.
Liz Thoresen business card
She enjoys utilizing many artistic techniques and has recently created hand painted cards because she believes in the power of reaching out to someone to let them know you are thinking of them. Even better is sending them something hand made to make your personal note even more special.
Basket of handmade cards
Staff favorite paintings include Golden Moment, and Transience
The Healing Art of Anagama
Mountain Cat Kiln, one of the wood-fired kilns used by Anneliese Keifer.
Skull and raven tile and mug by Anneliese Kiefer.
Anagama: Ancient, natural, beautiful, and healing. Anagama is an ancient method of firing ceramics that made its way to Japan from China in the 5th century. Anagama is a type of kiln that uses the high heat of Douglas Fir and White Oak in this region, burning up to 2,400 degrees. Anagama art has now found its way to Equilibrium via Anneliese Kiefer, a local ceramic artist and sculptor, who uses one of the oldest, traditional Anagama kilns on the West Coast, along with a catenary arch wood kiln and a catenary arch soda kiln. The high heat, a process that takes weeks to complete combined with chemistry creates unpredictable and extraordinary pieces of art. The organic, earthen glaze is not applied, but is created organically from the magical physics and movement of the stoking of the fire, and and the natural dispersement of the ashen embers.
The time-consuming, expensive, and labor-intensive process sometimes uses up to 12 cords of wood for one firing and may take over 100 hours with round-the-clock stoking and attention. The process produces a variety of coppery colors and iridescent tonalities with hues of grays, greens and blues intermingled amongst several different textures. The objects pulled out of the kiln are well worth the wait; the result is hand-made, unique pieces that can serve both functional and artistic purposes, bringing beauty to everyday life.
“I wanted to make objects that speak to me and contain the emotional energy that I often feel is missing...Whether a bowl is used to collect moon water or serve cereal, surrounding ourselves with beautiful objects brings joy.”
Appreciating art is known to have many psychological and healing benefits for the mind and the body. Decades of research supports the idea that creating and appreciating art affects the body and mind positively. Observing art has been found to stimulate the creation of neural pathways. When one observes a profound piece of art, they have the potential of firing the same neurons as the artist did when they were creating. The sense of being drawn into another’s artwork is called “embodied cognition.” No doubt those of you who take a moment when you visit Equilibrium will be drawn into the art of Anagama created by Anneliese. Neural pathways will be fired. Embodied cognition may take place. Art in all its forms can be healing, for both the maker and viewer.
As with the printed art on a rotating exhibition at Equilibrium, 3D pieces will now be on exhibition every three months. You can find Anneliese’s Kiefer’s anagama art on display and available for purchase until the end of November. Get up close to view the result of this magical process and creation: earthy pieces with organic materials, crystallized flecks, dynamic ripples, tiny shards of real gold and the alluring colors of nature. Anneliese says she gets her inspiration from the world around us: "the delicate ridges of a mushroom, the tiny crystals in a smooth pebble, or the human body under magnification." Anneliese's keen observation skills are obvious in the intricate details of her work with some pieces carved in clay meticulously with sometimes 40 hours of work, real gold flakes found intermingled, and sculpted details. Pieces are all food safe. Whether for functionality or beauty, you will find calm, pleasure, and maybe even some new neural pathways in the viewing of this fascinating ancient art.
For further reading:
The Appeal of the Anagama: Why the Ancient Method Still Survives by Howard Hanson Gallery
Art Enhances Brain Function and Well-Being by Manhattan Arts International
The Benefits Art Therapy Can Have on Mental and Physical Health by Holly Tiret
How the Brain is Affected by Art by American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine
How Looking At Art Can Help Your Brain by The University of Arizona
Soroptimist Portland
This month we're supporting Soroptimist Portland in collaboration with our current artist, Olivia Oso. Oso joins us in supporting Soroptimist Portland during the month of August by donating a giclee of one of her pieces, In Sisterhood We Rise, for a charity raffle! All proceeds from the raffle will be donated to Soroptimist Portland.
Read moreNew Artists & First Thursday Fiesta
We are very excited to welcome TWO new artists to the Equilibrium Gallery for our spring into summer show!
Rachel Brodkey is showing her vibrant collection of paintings of all sizes.
Plus Dan Madsen of Drifted Arts will be exhibiting a few of his living sculptures.
