Rebecca Hutchinson

1960 Born

EDUCATION

1984 BA Ceramics, Berea College, Berea, Kentucky

1987 MFA Ceramics, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia

PRIMARY WORK EXPERIENCE

1995 Visiting Instructor, San Francisco Art Institute, San Francisco, California

1996 Visiting Assistant Professor, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington

1996-1997 Visiting Assistant Professor, Kalamazoo College, Kalamazoo, Michigan

1997-2000 Visiting Assistant Professor, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia

1998-1999 Chair, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia

2001-2004 Assistant Professor of Ceramics, University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, Massachusetts

2005-2011 Associate Professor of Ceramics, University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, Massachusetts

2012— Professor of Ceramics, University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth, Massachusetts

BIOGRAPHY

Rebecca Hutchinson is known for large site-specific installations. Her work is built on armatures, some are woven mostly of natural materials. Some of the elements attached to these frames or assembled in floor installations are made of porcelain paper clay. She describes her process as, “involved dipping, hand modeling, slip trailing, coating handmade paper forms and pouring paper clay slip between papers, cutting and then constructing. The forms are built with both fired and non-fired clay elements.”  The installations have been designed and created for display in museums and public spaces around the world.

The installations are the result of work created in series. Each series has a title and a stated purpose. They include: Accommodation reflects observation of spacial accommodation that occurs in plant growth.  Installations built either as night growth or daylight growth cultures actually provide space between bloom structures,  Flourish reflects observation of ecosystem dynamics both during the day and at night that involve abundant growth within and on structure, Root/Host reflects observation of roots and host dynamics within ecosystems with specific focus on disproportionate length of roots that sustain plant growth or hosts and are noticeably thin or frail, Density reflects on observation of ecosystem bloom dynamics on land and underwater that involve abundant density as well as Persian bloom imagery found as both motif on ceramics and in rugs. and Determinate Growth explores the ability of botanical forms to grow despite boundaries to the point in which additional growth is accommodated and separate individual structures appear to be unified from the graceful growth patterns.