The Cup: Dan Anderson - Edwardsville, IL

Dan Anderson North Slope Gas,
porcelain, wood-fired, shino glaze, decal firing 2011
(3.25 x 4 inches) CUP 001 $60 SOLD 

Statement:

"Remember when the concept of finding a toy in the bottom of a Cracker Jack box or stickers inside the box of breakfast cereal was a really big deal when you were a kid growing up? If you don't, I bet you didn’t grow up in the 1950's and 60's like I did. I can also remember when my mom used to get a drinking glass or some other kind of useful kitchen object as a “freebie” in large boxes of laundry detergent or from a gasoline station attendant with a fill-up. 

Dan Anderson That Big, Bright, Texaco Star,
porcelain, wood-fired, shino glaze, decal firing, 2011
(3.25 x 3.75 inches) CUP 002 $60

The reason I bring this up is because I often feel that my ceramics – like my pieces in The Cup: 55 Artists, 250 Interpretations exhibit - would be the kind of pots I would like to discover mixed in with laundry crystals or handed-out a gas station. Even though I am using a firing process that is thousands of years old, I still maintain my pottery speaks volumes about my American heritage, and, as importantly, my personality. I believe my pots feel very contemporary and belong in a 21st century home.

Dan Anderson B/4 BP,
porcelain, wood-fired, shino glaze, decal firing, 2011
(3.75 x 4 inches) CUP 003 $75

I have been incorporating 2-D ceramic enamel decals on my ceramics for more than forty years. The primary reason I employ the transferred surface imagery is because before I was in ceramics, I was in printmaking and utilized silk-screening early on as a printmaker. When I was an undergraduate art student, one of my Pop Art idols was Andy Warhol and even though Andy is no longer with us, his artworks of Brillo cardboard boxes, the Coca-Cola logo and the iconic Campbell soup can still buoy my spirits and resonate with me. "

Dan Anderson She Sells, Shell Gas, Down by CLC,
 porcelain, wood-fired, shino glaze, decal firing 2011
 (3 x 4 inches) CUP 004 $60

Bio:

Dan Anderson is currently a full-time studio artist following 32 years of teaching ceramics (1970-2002) at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE). Anderson received his BS degree in Art Education from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls and his MFA degree in ceramics from Cranbrook Academy of Art , Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. He is a NEA individual artist fellowship recipient plus he has been awarded six artist fellowships from the Illinois Arts Council. An avid wood firing enthusiast, he has his own anagama kiln at his Old Poag Road Clay and Glass studio/home, where he now spends 100% of his time. Dan was a resident at the Archie Bray Foundation in 1996. His ceramics are represented at Red Lodge Clay Gallery in Red Lodge, Montana, Trax Gallery, Berkeley, California, AKAR Gallery in Iowa City, Iowa, Gail Severn Gallery, Ketchum, Idaho, the Works Gallery in Philadelphia, Plinth Gallery in Denver, Colorado and Schaller Gallery in St. Joseph, Michigan. Dan’s work is in numerous private and public collections throughout the United States.

Dan Anderson Pegasus,
porcelain, wood-fired, shino glaze, decal firing, 2011
(4 x 4.25 inches) CUP 005 $75

Teapots: An Invitational - Dan Anderson Edwardsville, IL

Dan Anderson Little Red Book Man $300
From the Despot Series
porcelain, wood-fired & decal fired (10" x 6" x 6")

Statement:

With instant access to information 24/7 on the Internet and on cable news networks, I have been researching and creating ceramic decals of despots to bring an awareness of all the evil that has transpired and continues to exist on this earth at the hands of a select group of "bad seeds."  A case in point, nearly everyone is aware of the millions of Jews that were exterminated by Adolph Hitler. But, how many people know who is responsible for the atrocities in Darfur, in the Sudan or the brutality currently going on in Myanmar?  I have been creating what I refer to as my 'despot series' for about five years and in that timeframe the vocabulary of images of despots continue to grow. 

The teapot I created for this show has Mao Tse Tung fired on the porcelain surface.  I specifically chose this cherubic face of Mao to illustrate how looks can be deceiving.  Mao was single handedly responsible for the execution of hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of Chinese!  Some viewers inform me that my despot series work reminds them of souvenir "kitsch" pieces one would find while traveling in the despots country of origin.

Bio:

Dan Anderson is currently a full-time studio artist following 32 years of teaching ceramics (1970-2002) at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE).  An avid wood firing enthusiast, he has his own anagama kiln at his Old Poag Road Clay and Glass studio/home, where he now spends 100% of his time.

BS Art Education, University of Wisconsin-River Falls

MFA Ceramics, Cranbrook Academy of Art

Dan's work is in numerous private and public collections throughhout the United States.