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Val Murat Cushing

Biography to Display: 

1931Born Rochester, New York

2013 Dansville, New York

EDUCATION

1952BFA New York State College of Ceramics, Alfred University, Alfred, New York

1956MFA New York State College of Ceramics, Alfred University

PRIMARY WORK EXPERIENCE

1952-1954Instructor, Military Police and Recreational Crafts, US Army

1952-1957Instructor in Pottery, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois

1957-1965Director, Pottery, Alfred University Summer School

1957-1997Professsor of Ceramics, New York State College of Ceramics, Alfred University

BIOGRAPHY

 Val Cushing spent his long career exploring the possibilities offered by working with pottery forms such as the bowl, pitcher, casserole, and lidded jar. Working within the confines of these forms, respecting both function and material, Cushing created a unique body of work that places itself squarely between functional and sculptural. Cushing was fascinated by glaze chemistry and many of the matte and satin glazes used today are based on his original formulas.

In 1957 he began teaching at the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred where he spent the next 40 years building a highly respected ceramics program.  He began his career at a time when many of his peers were moving away from traditional pottery methods.

In 1962 he was a founding member of the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA).

 An interview of Val Cushing conducted April 16, 2001, by Margaret Carney, for the Archives of American Art’s Nannette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America is available at:
http://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/interviews/oral-history-interview-val-cushing-12255.

PUBLIC COLLECTIONS

Public Collections to Display: 

Addison Gallery of American Art, Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts

Albion College, Art Gallery, Albion, Michigan

Alfred Ceramic Art Museum, Alfred University, Alfred, New York

Archie Bray Foundation, Helena, Montana

Bates Gallery, Edinboro College, Edinboro, Pennsylvania

Brooklyn Museum of Art, Brooklyn, New York

Cortland Art Gallery, SUNY College at Cortland, Cortland, New York

Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, Michigan

Everson Museum of Art, Syracuse, New York

Honolulu Academy of Arts, Honolulu, Hawaii

Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Texas

International Museum of Ceramic Art, Shigaraki, Japan

Ithaca College, Ithaca, New York

Krannert Art Museum, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois

Lowe Art Museum, University of Miami, Miami, Florida

Museum of Arts and Design, New York, New York

Museum of New Mexico, Santa Fe, New Mexico

Ohi Museum of Ceramics, Ohi, Japan

Racine Art Museum, Racine, Wisconsin

Rochester Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester, New York

rosenfieldcollection.com

Smithsonian American Art Museum, Renwick Gallery, Washington, D.C.

Smithsonian Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum, New York, New York

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bibliography to Display: 

Cushing, Val. "Pottery Teaching in the USA." Pottery Quarterly 7, no. 25 (1961).

__________. "Clay Bodies and Glazes for C/5 Oxidation." Studio Potter, 1977.

__________. "Get the Lead Out: Understanding the Hazards of Lead Glazes." Ceramics Monthly 41, no. 6 (June 1993)

Cushing, Val, preface, Kathy Holmes, introduction. The Ceramic Design Book: A Gallery of Contemporary Work. New York, NY: Lark Books, Sterling Publishers, 2000.

Lebow, Edward. "Val Cushing: “'A Constructivist Approach.'” American Craft, February/March 2007.

_____________. "Val Murat Cushing: Potter." Ceramics Monthly 62, no. 4 (April 2014).

 

CV or RESUME: Click Here to Download
Source: College Archives, New York State College of Ceramics

 

Typical Marks
1980
ca 1980
ca 1990
1993
2007
2013
2013
Vase
Date: 1968
Materials: Stoneware
Method: Thrown
Surface Technique: Glaze
Providence Art Club, "Val M. Cushing", NCECA 2015, Providence, RI, from Alfred Ceramic Art Museum, Corsaw Collection, gift of Coille Shaner Putnam and Jay Putnam,  S-JIMCA, 2003.36
Photo: TMP
Providence Art Club, "Val M. Cushing", NCECA 2015, Providence, RI, from Alfred Ceramic Art Museum, Corsaw Collection, gift of Coille Shaner Putnam and Jay Putnam, S-JIMCA, 2003.36
Acorn Jar
Date: 1980
Method: Thrown
Surface Technique: Glaze
Newark Museum, Newark, New Jersey
Photo: Newark Museum
Newark Museum, Newark, New Jersey
Photo: Newark Museum
Photo: Newark Museum
Wide Rim Vase
Date: ca 1980
Materials: Stoneware
Method: Thrown and Altered
Surface Technique: Glaze
E John Bullard Collection
E John Bullard Collection
Covered Casserole
Date: ca 1990
Materials: Stoneware
Method: Thrown
Surface Technique: Glaze
E John Bullard Collection
E John Bullard Collection
Spiral Design Plate
Date: ca 1990
Materials: Stoneware
Method: Thrown
Surface Technique: Glaze
E. John Bullard Collection
E. John Bullard Collection
Pitcher
Date: 1993
Materials: Stoneware
Method: Thrown
Surface Technique: Glaze
Judith and Martin Schwartz Collection
Photo: John Polak
Judith and Martin Schwartz Collection
Soup Tureen
Date: 2006
Materials: Stoneware
Method: Thrown
Surface Technique: Glaze
Providence Art Club, "Val M. Cushing",  NCECA 2015, Providence, RI, from Alfred Ceramic Art Museum, Corsaw Collection, SJIMCA-2011.21
Photo: TMP
Providence Art Club, "Val M. Cushing", NCECA 2015, Providence, RI, from Alfred Ceramic Art Museum, Corsaw Collection, SJIMCA-2011.21
Bowl
Date: 2007
Materials: Porcelain
Method: Thrown
Surface Technique: Glaze
Photo: Artisan Gallery, Northampton, MA
Photo: Artisan Gallery, Northampton, MA
Photo: Artisan Gallery, Northampton, MA
Casserole
Date: 2013
Materials: Stoneware
Method: Thrown
Surface Technique: Glaze
Providence Art Club, "Val M. Cushing", Providence, RI, from Elsie Cushing Collection
Photo: TMP
Providence Art Club, "Val M. Cushing", Providence, RI, from Elsie Cushing Collection
Photo: TMP
Covered Jar
Date: 2013
Materials: Stoneware
Method: Thrown
Surface Technique: Glaze
Providence Art Club, "Val M. Cushing", NCECA 2015, Providence, RI,  from Elsie Cushing Collection
Photo: TMP
Providence Art Club, "Val M. Cushing", NCECA 2015, Providence, RI, from Elsie Cushing Collection
Photo: TMP
Photo: TMP
Jar
Method: Thrown
Surface Technique: Glaze
Courtesy Elaine Levin Archives, University of Southern California
Courtesy Elaine Levin Archives, University of Southern California
Three Vessels
Courtesy Elaine Levin Archives, University of Southern California
Courtesy Elaine Levin Archives, University of Southern California
Vase
Method: Thrown
Surface Technique: Glaze
Courtesy Elaine Levin Archives, University of Southern California
Courtesy Elaine Levin Archives, University of Southern California
Teapot
Materials: Stoneware
Method: Thrown and Altered
Surface Technique: Glaze, Wax Resist
rosenfieldcollection.com
rosenfieldcollection.com
Covered Jar
Materials: Stoneware
Surface Technique: Glaze
Courtesy thenevicaproject.com
Courtesy thenevicaproject.com

Citation: "The Marks Project." Last modified August 5, 2023. http://www.themarksproject.org/marks/cushing