October 8 - November 17, 2024

Jeanie & Bill Wyatt Gallery

Reception Saturday, October 12, 5-7pm

Images by Pam Fulcher

Ceramics

Stan Irvin grew up in a small town in Arkansas before relocating to Texas to complete his MFA degree in art.  While still in graduate school at the University of Texas at Austin in 1974, Stan developed a ceramics program for Laguna Gloria Art Museum. After graduate school, he then developed a ceramics program for St. Edward's University (SEU) in Austin where he taught for 38 years, retiring as a Professor Emeritus of Art. While at SEU he helped build the program, sometimes serving as program chair and managing the university’s gallery while also teaching primarily ceramics and sculpture courses. Even with this intense schedule, Stan continued to exhibit and maintain an impressive level of studio production. 

Upon retirement from teaching, Stan moved his Austin studio to downtown Rockport, where he now maintains a full-time studio.  He is known for pushing the boundaries of working with clay, particularly through his altered wheel thrown forms, but also through his usage of diverse glaze and surface techniques such as printing on clay and sgraffito.  His mastery is evident in his ability to combine what might be considered a typically functional form with his sculptural and surface techniques to create his unique forms.

Stan's work can be seen in Texas at Austin Pottery and Gallery, Wind Way Gallery in Rockport, at the annual Texas Clay Festival, and at his annual Open Studio Sale in early December. He continues to teach a variety of clay workshops and exhibit in numerous state and national juried competitions, the most recent being the 2024 San Angelo North American competition. Past awards include Best of Show at the Greater Austin Clay Arts Association and first place in the Texas Teapot Tournament. When not in his studio, Stan enjoys sailing on the Texas coast.

Artist Statement

IN THE FLOW

I am continually amazed by the rewarding nature of working with clay.  At the same time, the physical demands and the technical challenges of the medium and the uncertainty of the outcome are humbling.  Often It is as if the clay has a mind of its own and the best I can do is to be attentive and "In The Flow" with it.  Through traditional forming methods, altering wheel thrown forms and combining methods of construction (wheel, slab, coil, extruded, etc), more expressive, suggestive, and sculptural forms have evolved.  An example of this are my boat forms, which are actually altered wheel thrown vessels,  

The term "flow" was originally coined by researcher, author, and psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi who was influential in the field of positive psychology and creativity - the study of things that help humans thrive.  Flow describes a mental state in which a person is able to completely focus on a single task or activity and become so absorbed in the current experience and moment that time seems to stand still. This becomes evident in the sgraffito work that I was in the flow and allowing the work to guide me. 

The work in this exhibit utilizes techniques that I have been working with for many years.  Throwing on the wheel, coil construction, slab construction and clay sculpture and sgraffito are very familiar to me and are well within my comfort zone.  The creative “challenge” for this exhibit was to create a cohesive body of work that integrates sculptural forms and the vessel.

Living on the Texas coast, nature, machines, boats, and weathered surfaces provide ample inspiration.  Whether sculpture or vessel, my ultimate concern is that the work engages the viewer while adding to the ongoing visual dialogue within the medium of clay.

Stan Irvin

October 2024