Tributaries: Sheryl Zacharia and Marsha Karagheusian
National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts - NCECA
National Show: "Rivers, Reflections, Reinventions"

OPENING / VIEWING INFORMATION

Exhibit opens Saturday, March 6 from 11AM to 3PM

*Artist Marsha Karagheusian meet-and-greet from NOON - 2PM

Caza's March/April exhibition is part of the annual conference produced by the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA). The 2021 national conference will be virtual; however, Caza Sikes will be hosting a physical exhibit featuring two masters, Marsha Karagheusian and Sheryl Zacharia. Come to the show in person or visit us online at cazasikes.com. This exhibition will also be produced on the NCECA website.

About this Exhibit

Now, more than ever, we need reinforcing messages that promote reflection, healing and unity. In today’s drastically polarized political climate, the handbuilt ceramic work of Sheryl Zacharia and Marsha Karagheusian, although contrasting in style, reveal similarities beyond surface appearances when combined. These two seasoned artists embody the Langston sentiment, “My soul has grown deep like the rivers.”

Sheryl Zacharia’s work is a study in geometric abstraction, both in structure and in her use of compositional elements. A professional singer-songwriter background influences her work. She builds unified, expressive and musical performances in clay, illustrating Langston Hughes’ comment where each work is “but a fraction of the events that occur throughout the natural and crafted world over time.” Pattern and form are rhythm, palette is harmony, lines and shapes are lyrical. The interaction of these elements is a journey that makes for a self-contained dynamic moment.

Marsha Karagheusian began her journey as a potter, exploring form, space, and what may be contained within the confines of this 10,000-year tradition. Her work slowly evolved into handbuilding, telling her story within the traditional genre of the female nude. The containment then shifted from the negative space of vessels to the female psyche, a carrier of narratives portraying inside/outside meaning. Taking a contemporary viewpoint of the female gaze, she cross-fertilizes historical figuration with opposing cultural narratives. Intuitively, water appears as a common theme in her work, inspired by her New England roots and the Cincinnati region, referencing healing and rejuvenation, along with the theme of “la danse” symbolizing celebration and evoking feelings of joyous renewal.

Time moves inexorably like a river; in our daily workflow every individual puts forth positive or negative energy. Positive, life-affirming efforts, represented as fractional events, are what we see in Zacharia’s and Karagheusian’s work, aspirations for a more harmonious world. Their individual tributaries become positive fractional contributions to the whole, speaking to the theme of Rivers, Reflections, Reinventions, expressing fluidity, rhythm and harmony, and ultimately, connectedness.

ABOUT NCECA

MISSION: The National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts advances creation, teaching and learning through clay in the contemporary world. Ceramic art connects us to physical and cognitive experiences that foster environments of cultural equity, diversity, access, and inclusion.

VISION: NCECA will convene and engage people who care about ceramic art and education to cultivate learning, leadership, and excellence throughout the field. Building on transformative relationships regionally, nationally, and globally, NCECA will expand awareness of and deepen appreciation for the vitality and vibrancy of ceramic art, teaching and learning within our technologically influenced world.

NCECA promotes and improves the ceramic arts through education, community-building, research and creative inspiration, offering programs, events and publications to support the field and communities in which we work. NCECA’s broad interests are shaped by artists, students, individual and corporate patrons, gallery owners, museum curators, and providers of ceramic arts-related products and services. As a dynamic, member-driven organization, NCECA is flexible in its program development, international in its perspective and responsive to the changing needs of its constituency.

How to participate in the NCECA 2021 virtual conference: click HERE