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Verne Funk

Biography to Display: 

1932Born Milwaukee, Wisconsin

EDUCATION

1952-1954Wisconsin State University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

1954-1955University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii

1957BS University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

1962MS University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

1967Haystack Mountain School, Deer Isle, Maine, with Robert Arneson and Warren McKenzie

1969MFA University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

PRIMARY WORK EXPERIENCE

1966—Studio Artist

1966-1969Instructor, Carthage College, Kenosha, Wisconsin

1969-1973Instructor, University of Wisconsin, White Water, Wisconsin

1973-1977Director School of Art, Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois

1977-1997Professor, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas

BIOGRAPHY 

Verne Funk produced reduction fired functional stoneware pottery from 1961 to 1969. During this period, he was an early innovator in the use of metallic lusters. When combined with matt black clay, Funk used metallic lusters as an integral part of the form. He then moved on to produce the work he is most well-known for whiteware sculpture with drawings using an underglaze pencil, underglaze and overglaze applications.

Funk continued to draw on ceramic plates with an underglaze pencil throughout his career. During this time his original sculpture and trompe l’oeil works were related in approach and topic to the California Funk Movement.

One of Funk’s major series is large dance figures that are displayed on pedestals or as free-standing totems some up to 8 feet tall. Funk’s “Half Head” series use the upper half of a head as the base for other components ranging from a hand, or a figure, or self-portrait standing on or penetrating the head. His “arrested motion” or “caught in the moment” series includes teapots pouring, dripping paint, and drooling mouths.

Public Collections

Public Collections to Display: 

Alverno College, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Arizona State University, Nelson Fine Arts Center, Tempe, Arizona

Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Gatlinburg, Tennessee

Ateliers D’Art de France, Paris, France

Canton Art Institute, Canton, Ohio

Columbus Gallery of Fine Arts, Columbus, Ohio

IAC Member’s Collection, Fuping, China

Johnson Foundation, Wingspread, Wisconsin

Kenosha Museum, University of Wisconsin, Kenosha, Wisconsin

Lannan Museum, Palm Beach Community College, West Palm Beach, Florida

Latvian Artists Union of Latvia, Creative Arts Center, Zvartava Castle, Latvia

Milwaukee Art Center, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Museum of Arts and Design, New York, New York

Museum of Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas

National Decorative Arts Museum, Riga, Latvia

Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona

Racine Art Museum, Racine, Wisconsin

San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, San Angelo, Texas

Scripps College, Claremont, California

State Art Collection, Dublin, Ireland

University Art Gallery, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Wisconsin State University, Whitewater, Wisconsin

Bibliography

Bibliography to Display: 

Brown, Glen R. “Charlotte Funk, Verne Funk.” New Art Examiner 21 (May 1994).

___________. 500 Ceramic Sculptures: Contemporary Practice and Singular Works. Asheville, NC: Lark Books, 2009.

Conrad, John W. Contemporary Ceramic Techniques. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1979.

Donhauser, Paul S. The History of American Ceramics – The Studio Potter. Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Co., 1978.

Garcia, Christopher. “Minor Works by Major Ceramists II: A Mail-art Project Revisited.” Ceramics Technical 21 (November 2005).

Hopper, Robin. Making Marks. Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2004.

Hunt, Bill. 21st Century Ceramics in the United States and Canada. Westerville, OH: American Ceramic Society, 2003.

Kangas, Matthew. “San Antonio: Big Head: Ceramic Sculpture on a Heroic Scale, Russell Hill Rogers Galleries, Southwest School of Art & Craft.” Sculpture (Washington, DC) 21 no. 9 (November 2002).

Kleinsmith, Gene. Clay’s the Way. Victorville, CA: Victor Valley College, 1978.

Lawton, Jim, Suzanne J. E. Tourtillott, and Linda Koop. 500 Teapots: Contemporary Explorations of a Timeless Design, v. 2. Asheville, NC: Lark Crafts, 2013.

Levin, Elaine. The History of American Ceramics: From Pipkins and Bean Pots to Contemporary Forms, 1607 to the Present. New York, NY: Harry N. Abrams, 1988.

Levine, Nancy Bruning, ed. Hardcore Crafts. New York, NY: Ballantine Books, Inc., 1976.

Lewenstein, Eileen and Emmanual Cooper. New Ceramics. New York, NY: Van Nostrand Reinhold Co., 1974.

Mittler, Gene and James Howze. Creating and Understanding Drawing. New York, NY: Glencoe-McGraw-Hill Publishers, 1989.

“Mouth Pot 4.” Craft Horizons 31 (October 1971).

“Mouth Pot 5.” Craft Horizons 31 (October 1971).

Museum of Contemporary Crafts. Clayworks: 20 Americans. New York, NY: American Crafts Council, 1971.

Newman, Jay Hartley and Thelma R. Newman. The Container Book. New York, NY: Crown Publishers, 1977.

Nichols Gallery. Mudworks Ceramic Invitational 78 (exhibition) January 30- February 23. Mankato, 1978.

Nordness, Lee. Objects USA: Works by Artist-Craftsmen in Ceramic, Enamel, Glass, Metal, Plaster, Mosaic, Wood and Fiber. New York, NY: Viking Press, 1970.

“Personal Reflection.” Art Journal 38, no. 3 (Spring 1979).

Peters, Lynn. Surface Decoration for Low Fire Ceramics: Slips, Terra Sigillata, Underglazes, Glazes, Maiolica, Overglaze Enamels, Decals. Ashville, NC: Lark Books, 1999.

Peterson, Susan. The Craft and Art of Clay. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1996.

 ____________. Working with Clay, 2nd ed. London: Laurence King Publishing, 2002.

Piepenburg, Robert. The Spirit of Clay: A Classic Guide to Ceramics, rev. ed. Farmington Hills, MI: Pebble Press, 1998.

Rhodes, Daniel, and Robin Hopper. Clay and Glazes for the Potter, 3rd ed. Iola WI: Krause Publications, 2000.

Rothenberg, Polly. The Complete Book of Ceramic Art. New York: Crown Publishers, 1972.

Sasser, Elizabeth Skidmore. “Verne Funk: The Dance”. Ceramics Monthly 35, no. 1 (January 1987).

Schwartz, Judith. Confrontational Ceramics. New York, NY: Rizzoli, 2008.

Vitamvas, Linda Wervey. “Verne Funk: Continuum.” Ceramics: Art and Perception 69 (2007).

Wild, Kurt, et al. 43rd Annual Wisconsin Designer-Craftsmen Exhibition. Milwaukee, WI: Milwaukee Art Center, 1963.

Zakin, Richard, and Barbara Case. Electric Kiln Ceramics: A Guide to Clays and Glazes, 3rd ed. Iola, WI: Krau

 

 

Typical Marks

Funk, incised on the base.

1972
Covered Jar with Dots
Date: 1971
Materials: White Earthenware
Surface Technique: Transfer or Decal Decorated
The Forrest L. Merrill Collection, Dane Cloutier Archives
The Forrest L. Merrill Collection, Dane Cloutier Archives
Funk On Funk
Form: Sculpture
Method: Hand-Built
Surface Technique: Glaze
Courtesy Treadway Toomey Auctions, Candice Groot Auction, April 16, 2016, lot #62
Courtesy Treadway Toomey Auctions, Candice Groot Auction, April 16, 2016, lot #62
Photo: TMP
West Texas Dream
Form: Sculpture
Method: Hand-Built
Surface Technique: Glaze
Courtesy Treadway Toomey Auctions, Candice Groot Auction, April 16, 2016, lot #63
Courtesy Treadway Toomey Auctions, Candice Groot Auction, April 16, 2016, lot #63
Photo: TMP
Group of Vessels
Materials: Porcelain
Surface Technique: Glaze
Courtesy Treadway Toomey Auctions, Candice Groot Auction, November 12, 2016, lot #31
Courtesy Treadway Toomey Auctions, Candice Groot Auction, November 12, 2016, lot #31
Mouth
Form: Sculpture
Method: Slab-Built, Hand-Built
Surface Technique: Glaze
Courtesy Treadway Toomey Auctions, Candice Groot Auction, November 12, 2016, lot #32
Courtesy Treadway Toomey Auctions, Candice Groot Auction, November 12, 2016, lot #32
A Brush with Bob
Materials: Porcelain
Method: Thrown, Hand-Built
Surface Technique: Ceramic Pencil, Glaze, Overglaze, Underglaze
Courtesy Treadway Toomey Auctions, Candice Groot Auction, November 12, 2016, Lot#30
Photo: Treadway Toomey Gallery
Courtesy Treadway Toomey Auctions, Candice Groot Auction, November 12, 2016, Lot#30
Photo: TMP
Photo: TMP
Lip Pot
Date: 1972
Method: Thrown and Altered
Surface Technique: Glaze, Luster Glaze
Scripps College Collection, 2016.7.33
Photo: TMP
Scripps College Collection, 2016.7.33
Photo: TMP
Photo: TMP

Citation: Clark, Donald. "The Marks Project." Last modified February 8, 2024. http://www.themarksproject.org/marks/funk