These Are Some of My Favorite Things

For his final exhibition prior to his retirement this summer, curator of ceramics Peter Held examines the compulsion to collect. He includes cabinets of curiosities, knick-knacks and creative tableaus from local artists, designers and the public-at-large in an exhibition that highlights how we’re all equally passionate and obsessive about the things we love and choose to live with.

These Are Some of My Favorite Things features eight private collections from local artists, collectors and creatives, all equally passionate and obsessive about the things they love and choose to live with. They include: Cyndi Coon (small white objects); Emily Long (vintage Arizona objects); Gretchen Freeman (folk and naïve art); Mark Klett (sunrise sticks); Randall and Katherine Schmidt (military trench art); Joe Willie Smith (African folk and naïve art); Kathleen Vanesian (Mexican folk art) and Kurt Weiser (childhood and travel memorabilia).

Also included is a selection of works from the museum’s permanent collection chosen by curator of ceramics Peter Held, focused on the ceramic Funk movement. One of Held’s favorite time periods in the development of American studio ceramics, Funk ceramics emerged from the San Francisco Bay Area alternative underground and were shaped by counter-cultural aesthetics in the 1950s and 60s. The movement was spearheaded by Robert Arneson at the University of California-Davis, who encouraged his ceramic students to explore a new terrain of art. In addition to a number of iconic works by Arneson, works by Fred Bauer, David Gilhooly, Erik Gronborg, Peter VandenBerge and Patti Warashina will be included.

This exhibition is generously supported by the Ceramics Research Center’s Artists’ Advisory Committee.

RELATED PROGRAMS
Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2014, 6:30–8:30 p.m. (members and alumni preview 5:30–6:30 p.m.)
Join us for a special closing reception event for These Are Some of My Favorite Things at the ASU Art Museum Brickyard with Peter Held, curator of the exhibition and the collectors whose work is showcased. Plus, meet the ASU Art Museum’s new ceramics curator, Garth Johnson , who is visiting the museum before the official start of his curatorship in December 2014.