Ceramic Creations
The Utah State University ceramics department is a thriving hub of ideas, experience and opportunity.
“It’s a booming program,” John Neely, head of the art department, said.
Students from all over the nation and even the world have come to USU’s ceramic program. One of the main reasons is the diversity of the department. Teachers have a wide range of techniques and approaches which include hand sculpture and wheel throwing, Neely said.
Jennie Reynolds, a senior in the program, came to USU as part of an exchange from the University of Northern Texas. She said she had decided to transfer to USU before her year here was over.
“I was very impressed with the school and I ended up transferring,” Reynolds said.
One of the differences setting USU’s program apart from others in the country is the use of wood kilns. Neely said the kilns offer artistic choices. The ash and the other by-products of the burning wood act with the clay and form an ash glaze (glass) on the pots.
But the kilns are not the only thing which separates the program from others.
“There’s a balance between the aesthetics and technology,” Neely said.
In the program, teachers try to balance the artistic with the practical uses of ceramics in technology and common uses.
He said another draw for the program comes in the assignment of studio space to each student in the program. Many schools let the students use studio space and then clean up and go home, but at USU students have a space that is theirs.
There are seven undergraduate students and seven graduate students currently working in the program said Mark Urbanik, a graduate student in the program.
“It makes a great place for anybody coming into the program. There is a huge wealth of ideas,” he said.
Jay Owens, a senior in the program, said students can learn about various processes and ideas in one place because the university has such a strong program.
“Rather than having to go to two or three different schools, we have people coming here from different places,” Owens said.
Due to the diversity at the school, many students have excelled. Neely said, every two years the National Council on Educators in the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) awards fellowships to deserving students to be used in exploring the art form. In the eight years since the fellowships began, three of the four years, students at USU have received the fellowships.
The university also participates in an exchange program with Southern Cross University in Northern New South Wales, Australia. Neely said one USU student is currently there on an exchange.
Arlen Hansen, a junior ceramics major, works on the wheel to create a vase. (Livia Mendenhall )
Ceramics graduate student Julie Johnson, paints glaze on her piece. (Livia Mendenhall )