On Sept. 6, San Joaquin Delta College hosted the ninth annual Visions In Clay Exhibition and Awards Competition’s opening reception in the LH Horton Gallery.
This exhibition includes 58 works from 48 artists around the nation including artists such as Kathy White, Matthew Patton, Rebecca Zweibel and more.
“People from all over the country have been applying and they continue to return. It’s really one of the larger shows in Northern California in ceramics,” said gallery Director Jan Marlese.
Visions in Clay was originally founded by the San Joaquin Potters Guild in 2002 and was turned over to Delta’s LH Horton Gallery in 2010.
Visions in Clay Awards were given to Rebecca Zweibel who won Best of Show and $800.
Donald Williams won second place and $600 and Mimi Logothetis won third place and $400.
Tiffany Schmierer won the San Joaquin Potters Guild Founders Award and $300.
The opening reception attracted many students and local art lovers and offered snacks and beverages such as cheese and crackers, turkey wraps, lemonade, iced tea and more.
“Seeing it last year and compared to this year, it’s really interesting to see what artists chose to present and to see what artists were picked to present… there’s a lot more representational pieces this year,” says student Ashley Garcia.
Beth Ann Gerstein, executive director of the American Museum of Ceramic Art, was this year’s exhibition juror. The exhibition juror is the person who selects what pieces go into the exhibition and the award winners.
“Everything just flows really nicely together and you travel around the room and you just take everything in and it’s really a nice sight,” said student Taylor Wick.
Visions in Clay can be enjoyed by everyone, not just art experts and artists.
Many crowds were discussing what they felt each piece was conveying.
“I’m not an art major at all but… you can really tell that people are putting their own kind of perspectives on things. It’s super cool to see different perspectives from different parts of the world,” says student Joshua Maldonado.
The Visions in Clay exhibition will be open to see from Sept. 4-21. Gallery hours are Monday by appointment, Tuesday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Wednesday-Thursday. 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., Friday 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
