In conjunction with our upcoming ceramics exhibition, Raw Material, we are presenting an artist talk with two of the participating artists, Vince Montague and Jorge A. Jiménez Jr. Both of these artists employ ceramics to explore personal life stories and resonant narratives, demonstrating that working with clay can be far more than simply making pots.

I was introduced to Vince Montague by the artist/poet Michael Deyermond who knew I would appreciate Montague’s whale sculptures and vessels inspired by Moby Dick. He also told me the story of how Vince was a writer and English professor who had lost his wife in a tragic car accident. Stricken by grief, Montague eventually re-entered his wife’s ceramic studio finding racks of finished and unfinished works as well as ample supplies of clay. He had never worked in ceramics before, but was inspired to try his hand at his wife’s art practice and it has now become his passion and life's vocation. His book, Cracked Pot is a memoir of this painful and cathartic journey as well as a meditation on the craft of pottery and its power to inspire and restore. Vince will read passages from his book and copies will be available for purchase.  

In addition, Hannah Sloan, the co-curator of Raw Material will conduct a discussion with Jorge A. Jiménez Jr. We first met Jorge and his wife, Claudia V. Solórzano at their Claremont Graduate thesis exhibitions last year. We were moved by Jorge’s series of ofrendas and ceramic family portraits and learned that he is the son of Mexican immigrants who came to America in the hopes of giving their children opportunities to follow their dreams. Jorge’s father is a truck driver and his mother is a housekeeper, and they provided the support and encouragement necessary to see that he was able to study fine art ceramics at the graduate level. Jorge’s first major body of work, that which defined his studies at Claremont, was intended as an homage to their love and dedication to family.