Artist: Sarah Pike

Sarah Pike, BRITISH COLUMBIA
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Bio

Sarah Pike is a full-time potter, living and making functional slab-built wares in Fernie, BC, Canada. She studied ceramics at Alberta College of Art and Design, University of Colorado, and the University of Minnesota. Sarah is a proud member of the Canadian ceramic collective, Make & Do.

Sarah is very interested in making stamps and texture tools and pressing them into soft clay. Lately, she is obsessing over the ogee curve and how it tessellates across a form. Her natural habitat is her studio, but if she isn’t making pots, she is probably out exploring the mountains around her home by ski or bike. She is generally thinking about snacks.

Artist Statement

There is something extremely engaging about immersing hands in clay and all its processes, its tactile nature, its rainy scent, its infinite possibilities.

I enjoy pottery that conveys personality, a slight air of attitude, that first step off the path.  In that vein, my pots are never entirely symmetrical, as though they are leaning towards animation. One teapot leans into its ultimate pour, a cream jug leans back in a state of resistance, a mug sways off kilter like a half bottle of wine in the system. I like this static sense of energy in pottery. It evokes the plastic nature of clay in its raw form but also the movement associated with the finished pot’s intended use. It reflects our beauty and  awkward imperfections; imperfections that celebrate the handmade object over mass-produced, industrial ware.

My pottery is inspired by many things, including the landscape around my home, the rich history of pottery, but also by antique tinware, textured metal, and the old things you might find in barns.



Exhibitions

• 2020 “Daily Practice”, Tilted Brick Gallery, Creston, BC, Canada
• 2020 “Functional Ceramics”,Wayne Centre for the Arts, Wooster, Ohio
• 2020 “Barn to Table”, ACT Gallery, Maple Ridge, BC, Canada
• 2019 “State of Clay”, Purdue University, Fort Wayne, Indiana
• 2019 “Bonspiel”, Hennepin Made, Minneapolis, Minnesota
• 2019 “Yunomi Invitational”, AKAR, Iowa City, IA
• 2018 “New Works”, Solo Show, Willock and Sax Gallery, Banff, Ab, Canada
• 2018 “Yunomi Invitational”, AKAR, Iowa City, IA
• 2018 “Americano Invitational”, AKAR, Iowa City, IA
• 2018 “The Intimate Object XIV”, Charlie Cummings Gallery, Florida, USA
• 2017 “Americano Invitational”, AKAR, Iowa City, IA
• 2017 “Oh Ceramics”, Esplanade Gallery, Medicine Hat, AB
• 2017 “Yunomi Invitational”, AKAR, Iowa City, IA
• 2017 “The Intimate Object XIII”, Charlie Cummings Gallery, Chapel Hill, NC
• 2017 “Listen...Listening”, Solo Show, Charlie Cummings Gallery, Chapel Hill, NC
• 2017 “FORM”, The Shadbolt Centre, Burnaby, BC
• 2016 “Coast”, Solo Show, Gallery of BC Ceramics, Vancouver BC
• 2016 “Yunomi Invitational”, AKAR, Iowa City, IA
• 2016 “Cheers @Medalta”, Medalta, Medicine Hat, AB
• 2016 “The Intimate Object XII”, Charlie Cummings Gallery, Chapel Hill, NC
• 2015 “Spotlight”, Alberta Craft Council, Edmonton, AB.
• 2015 “The Intimate Object XI”, Charlie Cummings Gallery, Gainesville, FL
• 2015 “What Is Left Behind”, Solo Show, Art Gallery of St. Albert, St. Albert, AB
• 2015 “Art of the Garden”, Fired Up! Contemporary Works in Clay, Victoria, BC
• 2015 “High Tea”, Willock and Sax Gallery, Banff, AB
• 2014 “The Makings V”, Willock and Sax Gallery, Banff, AB
• 2014 “Caffeine”, Alberta Craft Council Gallery, Edmonton, AB
• 2014 “Furnish”, Alberta Craft Council Gallery, Edmonton, AB
• 2014 “May Cup”, Willock and Sax Gallery, Banff, AB
• 2013 “The Makings IV”, Willock and Sax Gallery, Banff, AB
• 2013 “Medalta International Cup Show”, Medalta, Medicine Hat, AB
• 2013 “Off Centre”, Webster Gallery, Calgary, AB
• 2011 “A Table”, The Fernie Art Station, Fernie, BC
• 2009 “1000 Miles Apart ACAD Alumni”, Alberta College of Art and Design, Main Space Gallery, Calgary, AB. Curated by Greg Payce
• 2003”Living Room”, Solo Show, Westlands Art Gallery, Cochrane, AB
• 2001”University of Minnesota Graduate Students Show”, University of Minnesota Minneapolis, USA
• 2001 “Home”, Solo show the Croft, Calgary, AB
• 2000 “NCECA student show”, University of Colorado, Boulder, USA. Curated by Jeannie Quinn and Kim Dickie
• 1999 “A Crowd of Pots”, Solo Show, the Croft, Calgary, AB

 

awards

• 2001 teaching assistantship university of Minnesota
• 1997 board of governors award nominee, ACAD, Calgary
• 1997 BFA with distinction, ACAD
• 1995 Plainsman Clay Award, merit of work

 

professional experiences

• 2002- present. (interruptions for maternity) Full time studio potter.
• 2000- present. Workshop Instruction, international.
• 2015-present. Core member of the Canadian ceramic collective, Make and Do.

 

education

• 2001 Graduate studies, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. MN, USA
• 2000 Post Bachelor Studies, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, USA
• 1998 BFA with distinction, Alberta College of Art and Design, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

 

publications

• “Working Potters”, Ceramics Monthly, article, June/July/August 2020
• “Ceramics: Creative Adventures in Clay, Encyclopedia of Inspiration” Book, Uppercase Publishing 2020, Calgary, AB
• ‘Slab Building With Handmade Texture” 2018, Instructional video, The American Ceramic Society, Columbus, Ohio.
• “Forge and Carve: The Search for Well Being and Sustainability in the Modern World” Book. 2018. Canopy Press, Worcester, UK
• “Clay and Cuisine”, Book. Cover photo and recipe, the Ceramic Arts Network, 2017 Ohio, USA
• “Pitchers, Teapots, Cups & Mugs”, Book. The Ceramic Arts Network, 2016, Ohio, USA
• “Aligner des Pots” Magazine. La Revue de la Ceramique at du Verre, Jan/Feb 2016, Paris France
• “Texture Play” Magazine. Pottery Making Illustrated, article and cover, March/April. USA 2015
• “500 Teapots Volume 2”, Book. Lark Crafts, 2013