It is a fitting sort of homecoming, for the renowned artist has maintained a studio in Penland since 1978. The exhibition features both functional and sculptural pieces by Schulman, who will give at talk at the TRAC Center gallery at 4:30 p.m. on July 16.
The phrase “A Life in Clay” applies to Norm Schulman’s career in ceramics, which spans fifty years. However, Schulman’s creative evolution has been remarkable. He began as a painter yet his first academic degree was in interior architecture and design. Ironically, clay was the last class he elected to take for his M.F.A. degree at N.Y.U. in 1958; he took the class only at the urging of a friend.
In an interview with John Byrd, professor of art and Chair of the ceramics area in the School of Art and Design at Western Carolina University, Schulman revealed a remarkable insight into his creative processes, of how he melded his architecture interest with ceramics. Describing how he once closely observed an ancient Sumerian double-walled pot in a museum, Schulman said the work spoke to him of the contrast between surface and reality, the divided nature of human existence, and public and private lives. The experience led him to repeated experiments in the double-walled technique. In the interview with Schulman conducted by Byrd and published in the exhibition catalog, the ceramist speaks again and again of his urge to push his knowledge and his technique further, always alert to new areas of discovery. He has worked with salt-kiln and salt-glazed porcelain. His output ranges from purely functional objects such as vases and teapots to brightly colored sculptures, acrobats, and “things that could be called a human animal” (13). Much of his work revels in a whimsical air; Schulman is known for infusing his sculptural pieces with his sense of humor.
Much of his life’s work has been dedicated to teaching in ceramics departments at places such as the Rhode Island School of Design, Ohio Studios, and at his own Norman Schulman Studios in Penland. Described as a brilliant and inspiring teacher, his former pupils include Stanley Anderson, Don Davis, Chuck Hindes, and Ken Sedberry in clay, and Dale Chihuly in glass.
The show is curated by Frank Thompson of the Asheville Art Museum. The primary sponsor of the tour is the Windgate Charitable Foundation whose Artist Exhibition Series promotes greater public awareness of contemporary craft.
