Five Ears, 2001

Richard Notkin

terracotta

2.5"H x 2.5"W x .5" Depth

This delightfully intricate miniature piece by Richard Notkin is simultaneously unconventional and aesthetically beautiful. Made up of an amalgamation of ears in rich red clay, this sculpture speaks to Notkin's deeply help social justice values. The design itself is effortlessly smooth and unique, toeing the line between figuration and surrealist. The small size of the piece belies the big impact it will carry in your collection representing one of the best known ceramic artists in the United States.

Artist Statement

Ears are a recurring theme in Notkin's work. According to the artist, the ear represents a "listener to the outside world, cycles of life and death, evolution and survival." Often connected with his deeply held anti-war beliefs, the ears can be tiny, overwhelmingly oversized, piled in galleries, or presented alone, to reflect the many ways that humanity remains unhearing to the plight of those affected by war around the world. He says, "We have stumbled into the 21st Century with the technologies of Star Wars and the emotional maturity of cavemen. The problems of human civilization are far too complex to be solved by means of explosive devices."

Artist Biography

Richard Notkin is a full-time studio artist who lives and works in Helena, Montana. He received a BFA from the Kansas City Art Institute in 1970, and an MFA from the University of California, Davis in 1973. Richard has worked mainly in ceramics for over fifty years, averaging over one solo exhibition per year. His series of Yixing (China) inspired teapots and ceramic sculptures have been exhibited internationally and are in more than 75 public collections, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, and the Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park, Japan. He has held visiting artist positions and conducted over 250 workshops throughout the world. Among his awards, Richard has received three fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, and grants from the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation and the Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation. In 2008, Notkin was elected a Fellow of the American Craft Council, and was also awarded the Hoi Fellowship by the United States Artists Foundation. He is also the recipient of the Meloy Stevenson Award from the Archie Bray Foundation, Helena, MT, and the Honorary Membership Award from NCECA, National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts, in 2014.

Donated by Marsha Gold

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