San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts Catalog
Accession no: 1999.2
Type of work: Ceramic
Artist/creator: Mark Epstein
Artist biography:Mark Epstein received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls, Texas in 1980. The artist holds two separate graduate degrees from the University of Dallas, a Master of Arts earned in 1992, and a Master of Fine Arts earned in 1994. Epstein has worked as an instructor in a variety of different programs and is currently an Associate Professor of Art at Collin County Community College. In addition to his teaching duties, the artist has conducted workshops and demonstrations throughout the United States. Epstein has also been a co-curator of several recent exhibitions, including Clay Under the X, at the Arlington Museum of Art in 1998, Within the Borders, an invitational ceramic exhibition at the University of Texas at Tyler in 1998, and Eastfield Ceramics Past and Present, at Eastfield College in Mesquite, Texas, also in 1998. The artist’s works have been included in numerous one-man and group shows. In 1999, Epstein had a one-man show entitled New Works, at McMurray University’s Gallery in Abilene, Texas. The artist has been a part of several group shows, including the John Walker Invitational at the John Walker Gallery in San Angelo in 2000, and Different Directions: Coming Together in Clay at the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts in 1999. Mark Epstein is a member of the National Council for the Education of the Ceramic Arts (NCECA), and the Craft Guild of Dallas.
Title of work: Figural Vase
Date of item: 1999
Dimensions: 17 ¼” h x 7 ¼” w x 2 ¼” d (43.815 x 18.415 x 5.715 cm)
Description: As tall, skinny vase in an asymmetrical, organic shape. A round, bulbous bottom narrows down in the middle and then flares out again into another rounded shape which once again narrows in and then flares out into a wavy, uneven rim. The glaze is soft blue-gray which steaks over a rose-pink.
Material: clay
Technique: Cone 10, salt-glazed
Medium: ceramic
Country of origin: U.S.
Artist’s statement about work: I love working in clay, a medium so plastic and nondescript that I totally give it identity. The clay allows me the option of doing something different every day and not turning back, which is important to someone like me, with such a short attention span. My work in clay is part of a continuing exploration of gesture, ''Frozen in time,'' intending to evoke a feeling of the dance that we as humans do on a daily basis, as we try to gain a balance of life, love and creativity. I love the way clay allows me to integrate personal visual symbols and combine life experiences with intuitive responses to spontaneous thought. Through this plastic medium I can explore my concerns between function and implied function, and spatial relationships between the positive and negative space created within the forms.
Condition: Good
Conservation future: None required; from Acceptance Authorization, December 9, 1999
PURCHASE
Provenance: Purchased from the artist with funds provided by the SAMFA Collector’s Society from the exhibit “Different Directions: Coming Together in Clay” at SAMFA, April 13 – June 15, 1999.
Source: The artist via the exhibit “Different Directions: Coming Together in Clay 2” at SAMFA, April 13 – June 15, 1999.
Fund(s) used: SAMFA Collector’s Society
History of object: Purchased from artist by SAMFA Collector’s Society for the museum’s collection. Accepted by SAMFA, December 9, 1999.
Exhibitions: “Different Directions: Coming Together in Clay” at SAMFA, April 13 – June 15, 1999.
Restrictions: Credit line: Purchased with funds provided by the SAMFA Collectors Society
Cataloger name: Karen Zimmerly
Date: August 8, 2005
Sources used: Museum file
