Catawba potter’s exhibit opens at NASC

By Mandy Catoe

Wednesday, February 15, 2017  

 

 

Photo supplied

Catawba artist Keith Brown will open an exhibit of his pottery at the Native American Studies Center with a reception and gallery talk from 1-3 p.m. Friday.
The exhibition, “Clay Pit to Fire Pit: From the Beginning to the End,” includes work from the four-month artist-in-residence program Brown completed in December. It will be showcased in the center’s Rose Gallery until Feb. 1, 2018.

“Catawba pottery is dominated by women, so this exhibit is a little different,” said Chris Judge, assistant director of the Native American Studies Center. “Additionally, Keith makes more traditional forms and looks to archaeologically recovered pottery for some of his inspirations.”
Brown learned the art of native pottery from his grandmother nearly 50 years ago. Like all Catawbas before him, he molds the pieces by hand without a potter’s wheel.

He begins by digging the clay from the earth, processing it, shaping it, and carving designs on it. Finally, he places the pottery in the fire. The flames turn part of it black, giving the finished piece a distinctive black and terra cotta coloring.
“His work is symbolic of Catawba continuity and survival,” said Dr. Brooke Bauer, assistant professor of Native American studies at USC Lancaster. “The knowledge and skills are passed down from generation to generation.”

Dr. Stephen Criswell, director of the Native American Studies Center, explained how Brown incorporates the past into his pottery.
“He uses sherds, broken pieces of pottery, that are thousands of years old, to imprint patterns onto his current piece,” Criswell said. “It not only has the same look of an ancient piece, but also has the connection because it was made by using pottery from one of his ancestors.”
The S.C. Arts Commission helps fund the residency initiative that brings artists to the Native American Studies Center galleries to lecture and demonstrate their work for the public. Brown’s residency was the third at the center.
The center is at 119 S. Main St. in Lancaster. Admission is free and open to the public. For more information, go to http://usclancaster.sc.edu/nas/ or call (803) 313-7172.

MANDY CATOE/The Lancaster News

NASC curator Brittany Taylor-Driggers assembles the pottery exhibit on Tuesday. The exhibit will be open through Feb. 1, 2018.

Follow Reporter Mandy Catoe on Twitter @MandyCatoeTLN or contact her at (803) 283-1152.