Jake Allee

Grand Junction, Colorado, USA

Title: Couch Vase

Year of Creation: 2009

Glaze: Strontium and fake ash, cone 10

Clay Body: Stoneware

Dimensions: Height 11 inches, Width 5 inches

Artist's Statement: I enjoy making utilitarian ware with the same formal elements I use to make sculpture and two-dimensional art because of the accessibility it provides for the user/ viewer. Pots give me a vehicle to make the physical and kinesthetic attributes of my three-dimensional work transcend to the viewer through direct interaction instead of the traditional “hands off” approach associated with other art forms. As an artist with a formalist approach, this expands the possibilities of enjoyment through the user’s interaction with the piece on a daily level and completes the circle of art’s connection to living life. In our age of plastic it’s important to remember that handmade utilitarian items will continue to provide the owner or user with a direct physical connection to the ideas the maker of the object wishes to convey for years to come.