Metamorphosis: Three Ways Through Fire shows three distinct bodies of work by three Stockbridge ceramic artists — Anne Ferril’s multi-surfaced variations on the Moon Jar, an iconic ceramic form; Ingrid Raab’s abstract, layered surfaces on slab-built forms; and Nina Ryan’s wood-fired, coil-built sculptural vessels.
About the Artists
Anne Ferril
Looking to the sky for inspiration, Anne Ferril made her first moon jar after moving to the Berkshires four years ago. The shadows of the trees and the patterns they created, waving and dancing in the moonlight, animated her work in clay. The pieces in this show reflect her delight in the magic of the moon. Through a complex firing process that includes smoke, wood fire, soda fire, gas reduction, and electric oxidation, each technique leaves its distinct mark. Anne was a long-time member of Greenwich House Pottery in New York City and is a founding member of the Berkshire Potters Collective.
Instagram: @anneferrilceramics
Email: anneferril@gmail.com
Ingrid Raab
Traditionally trained in a fifth-generation German pottery, Ingrid Raab has a longstanding working relationship with clay. She established her own studio in West Berlin, Germany, followed by many years of clay work in Eugene, Oregon, and at the Harvard Ceramics Studio in Boston. Currently, she teaches at the Berkshire Art Center in Stockbridge. Her work has ranged from wheel-thrown, functional work to slab-built ceramics. Coming full circle, she re-discovered her fascination for working with color designs on flat surfaces. She is looking forward to showing the results of her explorations with color, textures, and sculptural forms.
Instagram: @IngridRaabCeramics
Website: ingridraabceramics.com
Nina Ryan
This body of work is soda- and wood-fired, unglazed, and speaks of the aliveness of rocks, specifically the granite slabs forming the deep inlet of Winter Harbor in Vinalhaven, Maine. Nina’s coil-built vessels reflect her interest in the rhythm and impact of forces exerted to create form — the way ice, wind, sea, and tide batter bold shapes and fractures in rock. Fire, in the tunnel-shaped Anagama wood kiln, becomes a molten current patterning form. The clay conveys Nina’s direct encounters by foot, canoe, kayak, and daily communion with the rocks of Winter Harbor. Nina has studied for the past ten years primarily with Berkshire ceramic artist, Paula Shalan, as well as her Berkshire Art Center colleagues, Ben Evans and Hunter Cady. Simon’s Rock potters Ben Krupka and Harry Levenstein have answered questions and provided masterful examples. In 2019, she completed a Fall Residency at Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts in Newcastle, Maine.
Instagram: @ninafryan
Email: ninafryan@gmail.com
Morris Center Studio at Chesterwood
4 Williamsville Road
Stockbridge, MA 01262
October 5 – October 19
Opening Reception Saturday, October 5th, 5–7 pm
Gallery Hours: Thursdays – Sundays, 12–5 pm (or by appointment)
Including Indigenous Peoples’ Day (October 14)
For appointments, please call (917) 597-3569.
Visits to the Morris Center Studio are free.