Karen Kistler

karen.kistler@salisburypost.com

 

SALISBURY — Visitors making their way to Pottery 101 for its July Artist of the Month reception will be treated to the work of two artists.

Rachel Gunsch, owner of the shop, said it has been a “proud part of the Salisbury community, and it’s been incredible to welcome visitors from all over the state through our doors. We’re especially excited to see a new community forming around our Featured Artist Shows — one filled with a younger generation eager to connect with local artists and fellow art appreciators.

“We love seeing new faces, sharing meaningful conversations, and celebrating the beauty of handmade craft,” she said. “It’s truly a joy to watch art bring people together.”

The next event, which will be a joint show for artists Nanette Pengelley and Evelyn Ward, will be held in July with the reception scheduled for July 11 from 5-7 p.m. at the gallery, located at 101 S. Main St., Salisbury. This community event will provide attendees the opportunity to not only see their work but to visit with the artists.

Gunsch said that the featured artists exhibitions that they offer monthly, “provide a rare and valuable opportunity for artists to showcase a large body of their work. At the same time, they offer our community a chance to engage directly with the artists, hear the stories behind the pieces, and experience the passion and intention that goes into each creation.”

Speaking of being able to have this chance to meet and greet members of the community, Ward said, “I think people really like to meet the artist and get a feel of the person that created the artwork. It’s really nice to connect with people who love art. They’re my people!”

While Pengelley noted that she tends to spend more time alone rather than socializing, she did say she understands that “knowing and seeing who made the thing you want to wear or exhibit makes it that much more personal. It adds a layer and depth to art that might otherwise feel one dimensional without that extra something.”

A metalsmith for 10 years, Pengelley said she has always been creative, even as a child. When she and her sisters would spend weekends with their grandmother, Pengelley said she taught her how to use watercolors and to sew, and, she added, “I’d always enjoyed finding a way to make the things that my parents couldn’t afford.”

When making decisions about college, Pengelley applied only to art schools and being offered a full scholarship to MassArt, she attended there.

She noted that she tried an enameling class her freshmen year; however, Pengelley said, “enameling wasn’t that exciting to me at the time, but I fell head over heels in love with the metals studio and the medium as a whole. And that was that.”

Ward has been making pottery for 25 years and said that has “always enjoyed making things and how that makes me feel. Pottery has been a wonderful way to stay engaged intellectually and creatively because over the years my work has evolved and developed.”

In artists’ statements, shared by Gunsch, it noted that Pengelley’s “work centers on the use of found objects. When I integrate semi-precious materials, I introduce these unique discoveries into a transitive context. As a result, my process is a derivative of my environment. Through experimentation, I endeavor to locate myself in my surroundings, as an artist — as a person.

To put it simply, my work is shaped by materials that I am attracted to, and oftentimes I find myself captivated by an object because of my encounter with it.

In this way, my experiences are carried forward with me, through the act of making.”

Telling about her art of making pottery, Ward said that she tries “to make balanced pots that are nice to have in your home for daily use, special occasions or just have around to look at. I really enjoy making pots and hope that they bring a little light to people’s lives.”  

Ward noted that she uses a printing technique called monoprinting, as she described the steps in this process of cutting out a design from paper and coating them with colored slip.

“Once the slip has dried a little, I put it on the pot, paper and all. When the slip has adhered to the pot, I pull the paper off to reveal the design. Not all of the slip always sticks, leaving the surface with an imperfect texture.”

Ward said she loves what she can achieve from this process, the imperfections, the clean lines and the printed quality.

“I started out as a printmaker,” she said, “and have always gravitated to the qualities of hand printed images and this process is really suggestive of that.”

Being invited to Pottery 101 to show her work as a featured artist is an honor for Pengelley as she said, “I always feel so honored when someone wants to show my work, or wear it. It reminds me why I make things to begin with. While it’s a form of self expression, it is also meant to be adornment, to be seen and worn and used. It means a lot to me when someone wants to do that.”

Ward likewise said that it is nice to be invited to show her work.

When asked what they hope people could learn from their artwork after they come to see it, Pengelley said that it is her hope that the community “can see a little of what I do in the world — my work revolves around finding beauty in something unconventional or surprising. I hope they can see what I see.”

As for Ward, she said that she hopes people “will feel a connection to my work and I hope that they will find it enjoyable and engaging. I try to make work that will bring some joy to people’s lives.”

There’s more to just looking at pottery, which she said is an intimate medium, but Ward said you touch it with your hands and with mugs you also touch them with your lips.

“The challenge,” she said, “is to make work that engages the eyes, but is comfortable and enjoyable to use as well.”