Artist: Richard Aerni

Richard Aerni, NEW YORK
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It’s hard to know whether the work gets simpler or more complex as the years go by. On the one hand, I strive for forms which are forceful, striking, and clear.
On the other, I aim for surfaces which involve multiple layers of slip and glaze. The successful piece marries the form and glaze in an interplay which engages the senses, reminding the viewer of the natural world about oneself and evoking an emotional response. I’m never sure whether a piece’s success comes about because of the constant internal dialogue within me, or because I’ve managed to quell all of the internal “noise” and somehow connect with the simple path towards the clarity I seek.

OCCUPATION
Studio Potter

BORN
July 14, 1952 Cincinnati, OH

EDUCATION
Attended Univ. of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia PA, 1970-72

MAJOR STUDIES
Geology

WORK EXPERIENCE
Self-supporting studio potter since 1978.

TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Nazareth College, Rochester, NY 1988-89 Adjunct Professor.
School of American Crafts, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY 2003-04
More than 60 workshops around the country

EXHIBITIONS
Over 100 solo and group shows at galleries
and museums.

PUBLICATIONS
Over twenty articles in various publications including Ceramics Monthly, Studio Potter Magazine, and American Craft Magazine.

COLLECTIONS
Numerous public and private collections, including Ceramic Monthly Magazine’s Permanent Collection, The Crocker Museum in Sacramento CA, and MCI’s Corporate Collection.

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATION'S
Founding member and first president, Potter’s Association of Western New York, 1990-92.
Video Reviewer and Librarian, Studio Potter Network, 1989-1996.
Studio Potter Network Advisory Board, 1989-90

ITEMS OF INTEREST
Has worked in collaboration with two other potters, Michael Frasca and Allan Nairn, producing a line of designer pottery and executing five major architectural
commissions
Has spent the past 31 years working individually in his studio producing a body of work marketed to galleries and shown around the country
Has worked extensively with single-fire technology; Has spent over thirty five years working with wood ash and other movement oriented glazes, developing
numerous glazes and a distinctive style of glazing, suitable for both cone 10 reduction and cone 6 oxidation;
Has designed and built a number of high-fire kilns.