Artist: Ashlyn Pope
Ashlyn Pope, SOUTH CAROLINA
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ARTIST BIO
Ashlyn Pope is an Assistant Professor in 3-d foundations at Coastal Carolina University in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. She is also a ceramic and textile artist of Gullah descent. Pope earned her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Kennesaw State University in 2013. There, she received her degree in Ceramics and Printmaking. She went on to complete her Master’s Degree in Ceramics at The Pennsylvania State University in 2019.
Recently, Pope completed a solo exhibition at the Myrtle Beach Art Museum named A History of Moving Forward II in which she had 6 gallery spaces. Pope in the last few years, has had her work published in the book Contemporary Black American Ceramic Artists and had an article written about her work in Ceramics Monthly Magazine. She was honored with having her work grace the cover of that particular issue.
ARTIST STATEMENT
I am Gullah, a descendant of the enslaved, born into a line of abused Black women and I inherited near identical assaults on my female Black body. Using my story as a base, my practice involves drawing connections between my personal experiences and where they intersect with the experiences of broader groups of individuals within the Black community. I use ceramics, textiles, and printmaking processes to address my perspectives on the systemic mental and physical confinement, and limitation of the Black body throughout American history. While in addition, expressing pride within the community and honoring the beauty within the culture. A beauty maintained despite many barbarisms levied against us.
Within my work I express the human form, most commonly as ceramic vessels to talk about the Black human condition. Using sculptural and functional architypes of the human body, I employ wheel throwing and hand-building techniques to create vessels to enfold African, African American culture and ceramic history. Some of my forms hemorrhage colonialism through designs inspired by historical ceramic wares like delftware while some other forms have golden crowns to reclaim self-love.
All of my works use elements of Sweetgrass baskets as a way to address culture as a foundation of who we are, but also to honor and uplift my ancestors’ stories. Sweetgrass baskets were a tool created in Africa. The technology of the forms was brought to America in the minds of the enslaved to assist in the cultivation of rice that they used during slavery in South Carolina. Overtime, the Gullah people turned a tool that was a reminder of a historical blemish in American history to an artform to aid in supporting their families. The use of these elements for myself is a way for me to connect to my familial culture while it also satisfies my need to preserve identity.
EDUCATION
Master of Fine Arts, Ceramics, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 2017- 2019 Bachelor of Fine Arts Ceramics and Printmaking, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA, 2008-2013 Study Abroad, ILL Sasso/Kennesaw State University, Montepulciano, Italy, 2010
Associates of Art, Fashion Design, Bauder College, Atlanta, GA, 2005-2007
CONTINUING EDUCATION
Courtney M. Leonard: Resilience: Form, Narrative, Installation, Haystack School of Arts and Crafts, Deer Isle, ME, 2018 Paul Wandless: Images in Clay, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN, 2013
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Assistant Professor of Visual Arts, Coastal Carolina University, Conway, SC, August 2021-Present ARTS 102: Visual Arts and Culture: Clay and Intention, Spring 2026
ARTS104: Fundamentals of Art II, Spring 2026
ARTS104: Fundamentals of Art II, Spring 2025
ARTS104: Fundamentals of Art II, Spring 2025
ARTS204: Intro Ceramics: Hand Building, Fall 2024
ARTS104: Fundamentals of Art II, Fall 2024
ARTS104: Fundamentals of Art II, Spring 2024
ARTS104: Fundamentals of Art II, Spring 2024
ARTS 399: Contemporary Ceramics, Spring 2024
ARTS104: Fundamentals of Art II, Fall 2023
ARTS 103: Fundamentals of Art I, Fall 2023
HFA 499 S*5: Gullah Geechee Community and Art Engagement, Spring 2023
ARTS 103: Fundamentals of Art II, Spring 2023
ARTS 103: Fundamentals of Art I, Fall 2022
ARTS 103: Fundamentals of Art I, Fall 2022
ARTS 104: Fundamentals of Art II, Spring 2022
ARTS 103: Fundamentals of Art I, Spring 2022
ARTS 103: Fundamentals of Art I, Spring 2022
ARTS 104: Fundamentals of Art II, Fall 2021
ARTS 102: Visual Arts and Culture, Fall 2021
Visiting Lecturer, Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, MO, January- May 2021
Ceramics- Wheel Throwing [200 level equivalent], Spring 2021
Clay Hand- building [200 level equivalent], Spring 2021
Instructor, Lawrence Arts Center, Lawrence, KS, August 2019- July 2021
TA/ Instructor of Record, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, August 2017- May 2019 Introduction to Sculpture for Non- majors, [ Teaching Assistant],
Introduction to Ceramics for Non-majors [Instructor of Record], Fall 2018
Introduction to Ceramics for Non-majors, [Instructor of Record], Spring 2018
Introduction to Sculpture for Non-majors [ Teaching Assistant], Fall 2017
Instructor, Art Station-Big Shanty, Kennesaw, GA, June 2014- July 2017
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
from nothing, Something: an evening of makers, memory and art [Presentation], International African American Museum, Charleston, SC 2026
26th Annual High School Show [Juror], Franklin G. Burroughs- Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum, Myrtle Beach, SC, 2026 A History of Moving Forward II, [Presentation]Franklin G. Burroughs- Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum, Myrtle Beach, SC, 2026 Waccamaw Arts and Crafts Guild Members’ Show [Juror], Waccamaw Arts and Crafts Guild, Myrtle Beach, SC, 2026 MOAPS:(Mother of All Pottery Sales) [Juror], The Union Project, Pittsburgh, PA, 2026
ArtFields Jr. Competition [Juror], Lake City, SC, April, 2025.
Workshop Instructor at Anderson Ranch, Cups, Stories and Empathy. Anderson Ranch, Snowmass Village, CO. June 2024 508: Clay Roots: Exploring Ceramics Across the Black Diaspora with Malene Barnett, Lydia Thompson, Ashlyn Pope, and David Macdonald, Tales of a Red Clay Rambler podcast, NCECA Conference, Richmond, VA, 2024
Coastal Sweetgrass: Between Land and Craft, workshop with Dream of Wild Health. Northern Clay Center, Minneapolis, MN. Fall 2023.
Coastal Sweetgrass: workshop with Women’s Initiative for Self-Empowerment. Sejong Academy, Minneapolis, MN. Fall 2023. Coastal Sweetgrass: Between Land and Craft [Demonstration], Northern Clay Center, Minneapolis, MN. Fall 2023. Atalaya Arts Festival [Juror], Huntington Beach State Park, Murrells Inlet, SC. Fall 2023
Black Bodies and Metaphor in Clay [Presentation], Northern Clay Center, Minneapolis, MN. Fall 2022. The Color Network NCECA Expo, NCECA 2022 Conference, Sacramento, CA, 2022
NCC: Looking and Learning, Northern Clay Center, Minneapolis, MN, 2022
Printmaking workshop, IGAAD Conference, Horry County Memorial Library, Conway, SC, 2022
Clay workshop, IGAAD Conference, Horry County Memorial Library, Conway, SC, 2022
Artaxis Fellowship [Juror], Artaxis, 2022
Virtual MOAPS: Artist Talk, The Union Project, Pittsburgh, PA, 2021
Ceramics Workshop and Lecture, Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, MO, 2021
Student Director At Large, National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts, Boulder, CO, 2018-2020 Workshop from Home, Ceramics Arts Network; The American Ceramic Society, Westerville, OH, 2020 Lawrence Arts Center [Demonstration and Artist talk], Lawrence Arts Center, Lawrence, KS, 2020 Lawrence High School [Lecture], Lawrence High School, Lawrence, KS, 2020
Social Media Curator, National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts, Boulder, CO, 2020-2020 Printmaking Workshop and Lecture, Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, MO, 2020
Mother of All Pottery Sales [Demonstrating Artist], The Union Project, Pittsburg, PA, 2020
Shooting Stars Recognition and Scholarship Program [Juror], Arts Council of Johnson County, Olathe, KS, 2020 Student Director At Large, National Council on the Education for the Ceramic Arts, Boulder, CO, 2018-2020 Research, Practice, Wellness and Intersectionality [Lecture], Wellness Series, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 2019 53 Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts: Sidewalk sale and Exhibition, State College, PA, 2019 Guest Critic, Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, MO, 2019
LibArt Exhibitions [juror], University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 2019
Lawrence Arts Center [Artist talk], Lawrence Arts Center, Lawrence, KS, 2019
Slide Slam [Artist talk], 8th Street Taproom, Lawrence, KS, 2019
Lawrence Arts Center [Artist talk], Lawrence Arts Center, Lawrence, KS, 2019
Lawrence Arts Center [Artist talk], Lawrence Arts Center, Lawrence, KS, 2019
Bound and Boundless Benighted Bodies [Artist talk], Penn State University, University Park, PA, 2019 Secretary: The Clay Body [Club], Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 2017-2018
Slip and Stick [Workshop], Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 2018
Vice President: Mudslingers [Club], Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA, 2012-2013
52 Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts: Sidewalk sale and Exhibition, State College, PA 2018 Conversations [Lecture], University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, 2016
Due West Elementary School [Demonstrating Artist], Kennesaw, GA April, 2015
Image Transfer on Clay [Workshop], Art Station- Big Shanty, Kennesaw, GA, 2015
Ashlyn Pope, Curriculum Vitae 2
SERVICE
Commencement Ceremony, Spring 2026, Graduation. Conway, SC. (Departmental service)
I Am workshops, Spring 2026, a series of 3 workshop collaborations between the Joyner Institute and the English Department and Poet Gary Jackson. Middle school Gullah Geechee students were connected with Poet Gary Jackson and created Poems and posters around personal personification as super heroes. Conway, SC. (Community/ College service)
Gullah Geechee Symposium and Community Day, February 2026, assisted in organizing the symposium held on the campus of Coastal Carolina University and as well as assisting with the day of workshops, presentations, arts and music centered around the Gullah Geechee peoples in downtown Conway, SC. (Community/ College service)
Art Gallery Committee, Fall 2024-present. (Department service)
Search Team Committee for Graphic Design, Fall 2024-Spring2025, replacement committee member. (Department/College service)
Envy, 2024-current, student organization advisor. (Department service)
CHROMA, Fall 2024, temporary student organization co- advisor. (Department service)
Gullah Geechee Conference and Community Day, February 2025, assisted in developing a conference held on the campus of Coastal Carolina University and as well as developing a day of workshops, presentations, arts and music centered around the Gullah Geechee peoples in downtown Conway, SC. (Community/ college service)
Assessment, Spring 2024, served as an assessor for 3 visual arts courses during the fall semester. (Department service)
Smithsonian Exhibition Talk Back, April 2024, assisted with hosting and facilitating discussion with Smithsonian curators as they engaged with community members, scholars and students regarding an upcoming Gullah/Geechee exhibition to be held at the Smithsonian. (Department/ College, community service)
Gullah Geechee Conference and Community Day, February 2024, assisted in developing a conference held on the campus of Coastal Carolina University and as well as developing a day of workshops, presentations, arts and music centered around the Gullah Geechee peoples in downtown Conway, SC. (community/ college service)
Open House, October 2023: Worked with the visual arts department for our open house. Served as portfolio reviewer of High School students. Tour guide when not reviewing. (Department service)
Open House, October 2022: Worked with the visual arts department for our open house. Provided a demonstration on wheel-throwing for ceramics. Tour guide when not demonstrating. (Department service)
Gullah Geechee Community Day, February 2023, developed a day of with workshops, presentations, arts and music centered around the Gullah Geechee peoples in downtown Conway, SC. Feb. 2023 (community/ college service)
Morehouse College and Spellman College, October 2022, took students from CCU to Atlanta, GA to provide arts workshops and expose our students to HBCU’s and the culture of these locations- A part of the African Diaspora. (College service))
CHROMA, Fall 2022, worked with CHROMA, student organization by assisting in making clay bowls for yearly fundraiser for the food pantry. (Department service))
Assessment, Spring 2023, served as an assessor for 3 visual arts courses during the fall semester. (Department service)
COHFA Curriculum Committee, spring 2022 served on the committee to review curricular changes, course development and program development. (College service)
Search Committee, served on the hiring Committee for the Director of the Joyner institute. (Department Service)
Gullah Geechee Conference and Community Day, February 2021, assisted in developing a conference held on the campus of Coastal Carolina University and as well as developing a day of workshops, presentations, arts and music centered around the Gullah Geechee peoples in downtown Conway, SC. (community/ college service)
CHROMA, fall 2021 and spring 2022, worked with CHROMA, student organization by assisting in making clay bowls and glazing for yearly fundraiser for the food pantry. (Department service)
Open House, October 2021: Worked with the Joyner Institute to engage community members in translating artifacts from Gullah Geechee community to become a part of a digital archive. Also, assisted in ceramics workshops with visual arts department for our open house. (Department service)
Cube Gallery Exhibition. 2021, placed work in exhibition as part of a faculty exhibition on Coastal Carolina University campus. (Department service)
Northern Clay Center: Looking and Learning Lecture series, 2022, provided a public lecture to the Minneapolis community. (Community Service)
Artaxis Fellowship Juror, Artaxis, 2022 (Community Service)
HONORS, AWARDS
Apple Award, Coastal Carolina University- Edwards College, Conway, SC, 2026 (nominated)
Apple Core Award, Coastal Carolina University- Edwards College, Conway, SC, 2026 (nominated) Professional Enhancement Grant, Coastal Carolina University- Edwards College, Conway, SC, 2025-2026 Apple Award, Coastal Carolina University- Edwards College, Conway, SC, 2025 (nominated)
Apple Award, Coastal Carolina University- Edwards College, Conway, SC, 2024
Faculty Innovation Excellence Award for Research, Coastal Carolina University, Conway, SC, 2024 The Best Layered Surface Award: Material Mugs V: Underglaze, Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN, 2020 Creative Achievement Award, Penn State University, University Park, PA, 2019
First Place: Graduate Research Exhibition, Penn State University, University Park, PA, 2019
Kiki Smith Scholarship, Penn State University for Haystack School of Visual Arts, Deer Isle, ME, 2018 Bunton Waller Graduate Award, Penn State School of Visual Arts, State College, PA, 2018
Bunton Waller Graduate Award, Penn State School of Visual Arts, State College, PA, 2017
Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts Workshop Scholarship, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN, 2013 Global Learning Scholarship, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA, 2010
RESIDENCIES
Northern Clay Center, Short -term Resident, Minneapolis, MN, 0ctober 2023
Lawrence Arts Center Ceramic Resident, Lawrence, KS, 2019-2020
Kennesaw State University Ceramic Resident, Kennesaw, GA, January-May 2015
EXHIBITIONS (SOLO EXHIBITION INDICATED WITH *)
20th Yunomi +Teapot Invitational, CLAYAKAR, Iowa City, IA, Fall 2026 (upcoming)
To Be Human, Northern Clay Center, Minneapolis, MN, Fall 2026 (upcoming)
*A History of Moving Forward II, Franklin G. Burroughs- Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum, Myrtle Beach, SC, Fall 2025-Spring 2026
Last Call X, Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN 2025.
*A History of Moving Forward, Mason-Scharfenstein Museum of Art, Demorest, GA 2024
Cups Exhibition, Lawrence Arts Center, Lawrence, KS. Spring 2024
A Gathering: Works from Contemporary Black American Ceramic Artists, D’Amour Museum of Fine Arts, Springfield Museums. Springfield, MA. Fall 2023- Spring 2024.
What is in Between, NCECA concurrent exhibition, The Cultural Arts Center at Glen Allen, Glen Allen, VA, 2024 A Gathering: Works from Contemporary Black American Ceramic Artists, Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento, CA. Spring 2023- Summer 2023.
Coastal Sweetgrass: Clay and Land and craft, Northern Clay Center. Minneapolis, MN. Fall 2023 Perhaps Home is Not a Place, Fosdick-Nelson Gallery, Alfred University. Alfred, NY. Spring 2023 9th Annual Dirty South Cup Competition, River Oaks Square Arts Center. Alexandria, LA. Spring 2023. (exhibition and competition) Spring 2023
Clay Holds water, water holds memory, Contemporary Arts Center, Lois and Richard Rosenthal Center for Contemporary Art. Cincinnati, OH. Spring 2023
Life’s Rich Textures, Red Lodge Clay Center, Red lodge, MT. Spring 2023
A Gathering: Works from Contemporary Black American Ceramic Artists, Northern Clay Center. Minneapolis, MN. Fall 2022. Black History, Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center, Charleston, SC, 2022
Text Messages II, Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN, 2022
The Color Network NCECA Expo, NCECA 2022 Conference, Sacramento, CA, 2022
8 Fluid Ounces 2022- A National Invitational Ceramic Cup Exhibition, Glassell Gallery (LSU), Baton Rouge, LA, 2022 New Faculty Exhibit, Cube Galleries, Coastal Carolina University, Conway, SC, 2022
Cup: The Intimate Object XVII, Charlie Cummings Gallery, 2021
Material Mugs VI: Underglaze, Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN, 2021
*Witnessing Dandelions, Lawrence Arts Center, Lawrence, KS, 2021
State of Emergence, Clay Art Center, Port Chester, NY, 2021
Artaxis Artist Feature, artaxis.com, 2021
Above Board, NCECA concurrent exhibition, https://www.aboveboardceramics.com (Virtual exhibition), 2021 Platter Project 2.0, Lawrence Arts Center, Lawrence, KS, 2021
We Are Clay, Baltimore Clayworks, Baltimore, MD, 2020
Material Mugs V: Underglaze, Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN, 2020
Lawrence Arts Center Art Auction, Lawrence Arts Center, Lawrence, KS, 2020
Collaborative Companions III, Companion Gallery, Humboldt, TN, 2020
What is in Between, NCECA concurrent exhibition, https://www.racheljeng.com (Richbrau Brewery), 2020 Staying Relevant: Making in the Times of Division, Keystone College, La Plume, PA, 2020
*Bound and Boundless Benighted Bodies, Zoller Gallery, University Park, PA, 2019
53 Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts: Sidewalk sale and Exhibition, State College, PA, 2019 Graduate Research Exhibition, HUB Gallery, University Park, PA, 2019
Graduate Research Exhibition, Borland Project Space, University Park, PA, 2019
Schreyer House Showcase, Schreyer House: University President’s Residence, State College, PA, 2019 Ceramics Showcase: Print Media Gallery, Palmer Museum of Art, University Park, PA, 2019
Keystone Clay: West, Baltimore Clayworks, Baltimore, MD, 2019
Waging Peace, FSU Museum of Fine Arts, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, 2018
52 Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts: Sidewalk sale and Exhibition, State College, PA, 2018 GrowlerFest, The Brew House Association, Pittsburgh, PA, 2018
GrowlerFest, Ferrin Contemporary, Cummington, MA, 2018
First Last Minute, Zoller Gallery, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 2018
The Clay Café, Patterson Gallery, University Park, PA, 2018
Fake Nuz, The Hush Room, State College, PA, 2018
Mismanaged, Zoller Gallery, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 2018
Small Favors, The Clay Studio, Philadelphia, PA, 2018
(dis) Connect, Main Street Gallery, Acworth Cultural Arts Center, Acworth, GA, 2017
Pins and Needles, Slayer Gallery, slayergallery.com, 2017
*Conversations, Sella- Granata Art Gallery, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, 2016
Abington Art Center: Annual Juried Show, Abington Art Center, Jenkintown, PA, 2016
MWSU Clay Guild: Twin Cups National Ceramics Exhibition, Missouri Western State University, Saint Joseph, MO, 2016 Home is where…, Arterie Fine Arts, Naperville, IL, 2015
Duncan and Walkowitz: Modernists of Movement and Line, Marietta/Cobb Museum of Art, Marietta, GA, 2014 OTP Gallery Grand Opening, Marketplace 120, Marietta, GA, 2014
Georgia Lawyers for the Arts 2014 Gala Art Auction, Callanwolde Fine Arts Center, Atlanta, GA, 2014 Senior Exhibition, The Fine Arts Gallery, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA, 2013
MOCA GA Pin up show, Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia, Atlanta, GA, 2013
Print Big, Atlanta Printmakers studio, Atlanta, GA, 2013
Hand Pulled Images, Gallery 4463, Acworth, GA, 2013
American Print Alliance Dialogue Day, Columbus State University, Columbus, GA, 2013
Print Installation, Atlanta Printmakers studio, Atlanta, GA, 2013
Nick of time, Kibbee Gallery, Atlanta, GA, 2012
Echoes, Kibbee Gallery, Atlanta, GA, 2012
Brushes and Bordeaux, Decatur Wine Festival, Worthmore Gallery, Decatur, GA, 2011
Belle Visite Di Italia, Institute for Global Initiatives, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, GA, 2011 Hot off the Press, Big Shanty Arts station, Kennesaw, GA, 2011
PUBLICATIONS
"Gullah Geechee: Community within community, Conway’s celebration of people, culture and language." The Chanticleer, February 29, 2024.Cover page and pp.8-9. (Interviewed for Publication)
“Ashlyn Pope: Ties and Bonds.” Glen R. Brown. Ceramics Monthly magazine. Dec. 2023, pp.38-41 and Cover page. (Interviewed for Publication)
"Making something out of nothing." The Chanticleer, March 23, 2023. pp.11. (Interviewed for Publication)
Contemporary Black American Ceramic Artists. donald Clark and Chotsani Elaine Dean. Schiffer Publishing. Pope: Pp. 193- 197. 2022 (Interviewed for Publication)
“Check Out Ashlyn Pope’s Story.” VoyageATL, Atlanta, GA, 2022 (Interviewed for Publication)
Hanks, Kathy. “Ceramics and Printmaking Artists-in-Residence Ready to Get to Know the Lawrence Community.” Lawrence Journal World, 5 Aug. 2019. (Interviewed for Publication)
West, Sam. “Artist Exhibit Deals with Trauma and Growth.” The Crimson White, 10 Nov. 2016, pp. 18–18. (Interviewed for Publication)
“Victimhood, family, growth and decay subjects in new dual art show.” The Crimson White, 10 Nov. 2016 (Featured) “Emerging and Experienced Ceramic Artists Present Dual Show.” University of Alabama News, 4 Nov. 2016 (Featured)
“Review “Echoes” showcases Atlanta artists’ printmaking chops.” Arts Atlanta, 19 Apr. 2012 (Mentioned)
MEMBERSHIPS
Artaxis, 2020-current
National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts, 2016- current
Pennsylvania State University: The Clay Body: Secretary, 2017-2018
Museum of Contemporary Art of Georgia, 2014- 2015
Kennesaw State University Mudslingers, Vice President, 2012-2013
Kennesaw State University Print Club, 2012-2013
The National Society of Collegiate Scholars, 2012-2013
Phi Theta Kappa, 2008-2010
SKILLS
Ceramics
Wheel throwing, handbuilding, clay mixing, glaze mixing, kiln firing (electric, gas, salt, raku, pit), mold making, surface decoration techniques (slip trailing, sgraffitio, Mishima, photolithography transfers, etching transfers, inlay, resist, decal transfers, etc.)
Other
Sewing, drawing, painting, textiles, fibers, relief printing, screenprinting, intaglio, paper sculpture, wire sculpture, installation, environmental installation, ephemeral art, video art, digital photography, Microsoft word, Microsoft excel, PowerPoint, Adobe illustrator, basic Adobe Photoshop, Fusion 360