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1970 Born Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
EDUCATION
1992 BA Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania
1999 MFA Ceramics, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana
APPRENTICESHIPS AND RESIDENCIES
1993-1994 Fulbright Scholar, Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
1995 Resident Artist, Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Snow Mass, Colorado
2012 Resident Artist, Residency Association of Israel’s Decorative Arts/Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts, Givat Haviva, Israel
PRIMARY WORK EXPERIENCE
1999—Studio Artist
2007 Faculty, special appointment, Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City, Missouri
BIOGRAPHY
Christa Assad’s earlier work is functional wheel thrown porcelain and stoneware, at times altered and assembled, with geometric shapes informed by industrial design and architecture. Later ceramic pieces are sculptural objects, executed in porcelain and unglazed stoneware, referencing tools of war and oppression.
Assad entered Pennsylvania State University with the intention of studying aerospace engineering, becoming serious about clay her senior year under the guidance of Chris Staley. This led her to a year of study with Walter Ostrom, a pivotal period of exploration. A six week trip to China after graduate school was also deeply influential, both as a ceramic history education and a cultural evolution. Another milestone in development was business partnerships with artists in galleries. Assad reports: “My business with Mary Mar Keenan and Rae Dunn was called Verdigris Clay Studio + Gallery. The second business, also with Rae Dunn but this time with Josie Jurczenia as the founding partner, was called Fourth & Clay. Verdigris ran 1999-2007, Fourth & Clay was like 2007-2015. Both were fabulous business partnership/studio mate experiences.” Both galleries were in San Francisco, CA.
In 2014 Assad survived a house fire. She escaped with a badly broken back, and spent five months in a body cast. She rethought, reimagined, and reinvented her career. Always an artist who designs and crafts, she expanded her material base and process of fabrication. “ReUpped,” in the 2016 issue of The Studio Potter, reflects upon this process of constant change and adaptation.
PUBLIC COLLECTIONS
American Museum of Ceramic Art, Pomona, California
Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, the de Young Museum, San Francisco, California
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Assad, Christa, and Richard Jacobson. Searching for Beauty: Letters from a Collector to a Studio Potter. Dayton, OH: Kestrel, 2007.
____________. “Two Sides to Every Coin.” The Studio Potter 38, no. 1 (Winter 2010).
____________. “ReUpped.” The Studio Potter 44, no. 1 (Winter/Spring 2016).
Besson, Anita (juror), Jimmy Clark (juror), and Michio Sugiyama (juror). Ceramics Monthly International Competition. Westerville, OH: The American Ceramics Society, 1999.
Burgard, Timothy Anglin, Karin Breuer, and Jill D’Alessandro. The Diane and Sandy Besser Collection, A Gift to the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco (exhibition catalogue). San Francisco, California: Fine Arts Museum, 2007.
Butler, Ruth (editor). “Emerging Artists 2002.” Ceramics Monthly 50, no. 5 (May 2002).
Frankenberger, Scott. “A Well-Dusted Collection: An Interview with Bruno and Mary Moser.” Ceramics Monthly 54, no. 2 (October 2006).
Gabbart, Ann, Wayne Higby, and Anne West. Walter Ostrom: The Advocacy of Pottery (exhibition catalogue). Art Gallery of Nova Scotia, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 1996.
Gess, Terry. 500 Pitchers: Contemporary Expressions of a Classical Form. Asheville, North Carolina: Lark Books, 2006.
Gonzalez, Matt. “Christa Assad: Reobjectification – War and Clay.” Ceramics: Art & Perception 91.
Hall, Sherman (editor). “Ceramic Artist of the Year: Christa Assad,” Ceramic Arts 2013 Yearbook. Westerville Ohio: The American Ceramic Society, 2013.
___________________. “What it Takes: Working Potters,” Ceramics Monthly Vol. 55, no. 6, June/July 2007.
Hatch, Molly. “Christa Assad: A Life Made From Mud.” American Craft 68, no. 5 (October/November 2008).
Hluch, Kevin. The Art of American Contemporary Pottery. Iola, WI: Krause Publications, 2000.
Jacobs, Richard. “Letters to a Young Potter,” introduction by Christa Assad, edited by Mary Barringer. The Studio Potter 32, no. 2 (June 2004).
Kangas, Matthew. Review: “Christa Assad at Friesen Abmeyer Fine Art,” Ceramics Monthly 60, no. 9 (November 2012).
_______________. “Christa Assad: Proceed with Caution,” Visual Art Source, December 2013. https://www.visualartsource.com/index.php?page=editorial&pcID=27&aID=2023
Lawton, Jim. 500 Teapots: Contemporary Expressions of a Timeless Design v. 2. Asheville, NC: Lark Crafts, 2013.
CV or RESUME: Click Here to Download
Source: Artist
WEBSITE(S):
http://www.christaassad.com/about/
"Assad" within a leave shape stamped into clay, triangular stamp possibly with an "A" inside, "CHRISTA ASSAD" either edged or written in/on clay
Citation: "The Marks Project." Last modified February 12, 2024. http://www.themarksproject.org/marks/assad