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Point of View III: North Carolina Artists as Collectors

May 7 - October 9, 2005

 

Point of View III: North Carolina Artists as Collectors explores the exciting, personal collections of three North Carolina artists. The exhibit will investigate artists as collectors, and the inspirations and personal relationships that influence their collecting process. Featured are the collections of Harvey and Bess Littleton, Mark and Carol Hewitt, and Randy Shull and Hedy Fischer.

"Building great collections is a journey, a wondrous continuum, often characterized by a collector's curiosity, passion, and an insatiable desire to learn," said MMC+D Curator Melissa Post. 

 

Harvey and Bess Littleton Collection

"I have found many friends in the glass worldI cherish all of the pieces I have acquired, and hope I have been a good steward. The pleasure this collection gives me is my greatest reward," said Harvey Littleton. (right: Harvey Littleton. American, (1922- ), Yellow Ruby Sliced Descending Forms 1985, hand-blown barium potash glass, cased overlays Kugler colors. Collection of Harvey Littleton)

Harvey Littleton is best known as the Father of the American Studio Glass Movement. In 1962 he and Dominick Labino lead the movement that took glass production out of the factory and into the artist's studio.

Littleton's glass collection began while he was still in high school. In 1958, he began experimenting with glass, trading pieces with Steuben Founder/Designer Frederick Carder, and actively collecting glass. Initially, he decided to build a comprehensive teaching collection that would illustrate the history of glass and glassmaking processes. This historical collection is perhaps his best known.

The collection featured in Point of View III is a lesser-known collection and one that is infinitely more intimate. "The works represent Littleton's 50-year relationship with a cadre of international studio glass artists and designers," said Post. "Many are adorned with personal inscriptions from one artist to another."

 

Mark and Carol Hewitt Collection

"I don't think of myself as a collector, rather as someone who has sought out objects that have a deep significance in my life as a craftsman," said Mark Hewitt. (left: Mark Hewitt. American (1955- ), Large Planter 1989, wheel-thrown, coiled, and wood-fired stoneware, manganese slip decoration with blue glass runs. Collection of Mark Hewitt)

Mark Hewitt, born into a family of potters, was a geography student before becoming an apprentice with British potter Michael Cardew and American Todd Piker. He received his first pot in 1977 as a gift from fellow potter Svend Bayer; he continues to use this pitcher for glazing to this day. Hewitt's first significant purchase was the Frederick Carpenter jug on display in Point of View III, one which he "fell in love with" and one which he feels "still holds all its original promise." This jug led him to Lincolnton, North Carolina, where he developed an enduring love affair with North Carolina pottery. He since has become a scholar on the subject.

"Hewitt's collection reflects his admiration for various potters' work, his love of alkaline glazes, and the quiet beauty that lies within the noble pot," said Post. "It exudes his passion for pots and a reverence for tradition, form and function. This collection demonstrates one artist's profound respect for the friendships he has made while pursuing his own pottery, from those who have inspired him, to those he has inspired. Hewitt's collection can be distinguished from so many others in that the works are functional, meant to be used, and he uses them." 

 

Randy Shull and Hedy Fischer Collection

"Art making, creating of home/space and collecting are all part of a lifestyle that is uniquely our own. It is something that is important to who we are. They are all inextricably linked," said Randy Shull.

Furniture maker and interior designer,Randy Shull, has built his collection by trading work with fellow artists and purchasing works from others. Shull, along withHedy Fischer, has built a collection including many different mediums:wood, painting, ceramic, metal and mixed media. As collectors of "works by contemporary artists," Shull and Fischer's collecting reflects aspects of both their individual identities and their shared holistic lifestyle. (right: Bob Trotman. American (1947- ), Sinking Feeling 2000, wood, paint. Collection of Randy Shull and Hedy Fischer)

Several connections reveal themselves upon regarding this collection of works: most works are overwhelmingly figural, many are rendered in wood, and several are furniture. While Shull finds himself particularly drawn to works whose aesthetic is distinctly different from his own, Fischer tends to be attracted to figurative works that reflect her love of people. It is fitting then, that Bob Trotman's unusual, hyper-realistic figurative sculptures and sculptural furniture, have secured a central place in the hearts of both Shull and Fischer, and in their collection.

 

Selected brochure and wall text from the exhibition

 

Building great collections is a journey, a wondrous continuum, often characterized by a collector's curiosity, passion, and an insatiable desire to learn.
 
Traditionally, museums build collections in an effort to provide their audience with either a comprehensive art historical overview or an in-depth examination of a particular subject. Selecting objects is a collective process, in which many voices influence the acquisition of each object. Private collectors typically assemble art works as a personal expression of their own interests and experiences. While personal relationships certainly play a part, ultimately, a fundamental goal or vision guides the collecting process of both museums and private collectors.
 
For artists, on the other hand, personal relationships often define a collection. Artist-collectors often keep several of their own works, trade others with fellow artists and inevitably form collections. Point of View III illustrates how materials, techniques, and themes guide three North Carolina artists in their collecting, and illuminates how these collections serve as historical documents of their artistic inspirations, their personal friendships, and their lives.
 
Melissa G. Post, Curator
 
 
Harvey Littleton
 
"I have found many friends in the glass worldI cherish all of the pieces I have acquired, and hope I have been a good steward. The pleasure this collection gives me is my greatest reward." Harvey Littleton
 
Harvey Littleton was born into a world defined by glass: Corning, New York. Littleton first interacted with glass as an industrial material. In 1962, he and Dominick Labino conducted the first glass blowing workshops in Toledo, Ohio and pioneered the American Studio Glass Movement. Though better known as the Father of the American Studio Glass Movement, Harvey Littleton is also an avid collector.
 
Mr. Littleton's glass collection began while he was still in high school, when his mother gave him several pieces of Steuben glass. In 1958 he began his own experiments in glass, traded a piece with Steuben Founder/Designer Frederick Carder and began actively collecting glass. Initially, he wanted to build a comprehensive teaching collection that would illustrate the history of glass and glassmaking processes. Art glass from major factories, including Tiffany, Loetz, Gallé, Steuben, Kosta and others, make up this collection.
 
20th Century Studio Glass
 
Alongside the teaching collection an infinitely more intimate collection exists. This is the collection that you see before you. Including works as varied in period and technique as a vase by Jean Sala, Raoul Goldoni's Head of a Doe and a Blanket Cylinder by Dale Chihuly, the collection represents a half century of relationships between Mr. Littleton and a cadre of fellow glass artists. The personal nature of these relationships is evidenced in dedications to Mr. Littleton inscribed on many of the works.
 
In viewing the breadth of Mr. Littleton's own creations, exemplified in this exhibition by his 1946 Torso and 1985 Yellow Ruby Sliced Descending Forms, one can see how his work evolved over the years. Seen together with the works of his colleagues, this collection contains some of the earliest and most significant works of American studio glass and offers a rare glimpse into the artistic milieu that shaped one man's work, his life, and ultimately his collection.
 
 
Mark Hewitt
 
"I don't think of myself as a collector, rather as someone who has sought out objects that have a deep significance in my life as a craftsman." Mark Hewitt
 
Mark Hewitt was born into a family of potters; both his father and his grandfather were Directors of Spode, one of England's oldest potteries. A geography student, he went on to apprentice with British potter Michael Cardew and American Todd Piker. He received his first pot in 1977 as a gift from fellow potter Svend Bayer; he continues to use this pitcher in his workshop for glazing every day. Hewitt's first significant purchase was the Frederick Carpenter jug on display, one which he "fell in love with" and one which he feels "still holds all its original promise." Jugs like this one, and other American folk pots, eventually led him to Pittsboro, North Carolina, where he developed an enduring love affair with North Carolina pottery. He since has become a scholar on the subject.
 
Functional Ceramics
 
Hewitt's collection reflects his admiration for various potters' work, his love of salt and alkaline glazes, and the quiet nobility that lies within the utilitarian pot. It exudes his passion for pots and a reverence for tradition, form and function. Perhaps most poignantly, this collection demonstrates one artist's profound respect for the friendships he has made while pursuing his own pottery, from those who have inspired him, to those he has inspired, such as former apprentice, and now professional potter, Daniel Johnston. Hewitt's collection can be distinguished from so many others in that the works are functional, meant to be used, and he uses them!
 
"The power a pot has to inspire is what draws me to collect," says Hewitt. For him, "this collection of pots represent those "that mean the very most to me. They are my sacred objects."
 
 
Randy Shull & Hedy Fischer
 
"Art making, creating of home/space and collecting are all part of a lifestyle that is uniquely our own. It is something that is important to who we are. They are all inextricably linked." Randy Shull
 
"Collecting has refocused my travels on art and cultureIt is something that Randy and I share that unites our lives, our choices and decisions." Hedy Fischer
 
Randy Shull is an artist whose work ranges from furniture and sculpture to painting and architecture. His collecting began at a young age, with the acquisition of one Tonka truck, which soon grew into an entire fleet. Ironically one of his most recent acquisitions is a large relief carving of a Caterpillar bulldozer by German artist Stephan Balkenhol . As an artist, Shull has built his collection by trading works with fellow artists and purchasing works from friends and others.
 
Hedy Fischer began by collecting masks during her travels, in the early 80's. She considers her "first significant purchase" to be Michael Lucero's Anthropomorphic Female Form Squatting. For her, it represents "a contemporary Western artist's interpretation of my experiences (traveling in developing countries).
 
Furniture & Figurative Sculpture
 
Randy and Hedy consider themselves "collectors of works by contemporary artists," working "in many mediums: wood, painting, ceramic, metal, mixed media." For them, collecting reflects aspects of both their individual identities and their shared holistic lifestyle. Several connections reveal themselves upon regarding this collection of works: most works are overwhelmingly figural, many are rendered in wood, and several are furniture. While Randy finds himself particularly drawn to works whose aesthetic is distinctly different from his own, Hedy's collecting is dominated by figurative work, reflecting her keen interest in people. It is fitting then, that Bob Trotman's unusual, hyper-realistic figurative sculptures and sculptural furniture, have secured a central place in the hearts of both Randy & Hedy, and in their collection.

 

Point of View III: North Carolina Artists as Collectors, on view May 7 through October 9, 2005 at the Mint Museum of Craft + Design. Funding for the Point of View exhibition series is generously provided by the Founders' Circle Ltd., the national support affiliate of the Mint Museum of Craft + Design. 

All photographs of art objects shown in this article were taken by David Ramsey.

 

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