Elaine Coleman

EDUCATION

1964-1965Pacific Northwest College of Art, Portland, Oregon

PRIMARY WORK EXPERIENCE

1967-1987Studio Potter, Canby, Oregon

1989-1992Gallery Director, The Moira James Gallery, Green Valley, Nevada

1994-2001Coleman Clay Studio, Las Vegas, Nevada

2001—Studio Potter, Henderson, Nevada

BIOGRAPHY 

Elaine Coleman is known for celadon glazed, incised and carved porcelain vessels. The incised decoration provides a channel for the glaze to pool creating a defined line when fired. Common motifs on her surfaces include foliate patterns, hummingbirds, dragonflies, butterflies and frogs. Coleman's celadon glazes range from green to blue. Her thrown porcelain vessels have soft, curvilinear profiles that echo the organic drawings on their surfaces. Frequently a motif such as a frog may push outward from the surface. 

Public Collections

American Museum of Ceramic Art, Pomona, California

Kaiser Hospital, Portland, Oregon

Museum of Contemporary Crafts Permanent Collection, Portland, Oregon

Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art, Logan, Utah

Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon

Racine Art Museum, Racine, Wisconsin

Sapporo Japan Sister City Collection, Sapporo, Japan

State of Colorado Permanent Collection, Steamboat Springs, Colorado

University of Illinois Permanent Collection, Urbana, Illinois

Bibliography

Gibson, John. Pottery Decoration: Contemporary Approaches. Woodstock, NY: Overlook, 1997.

Hopper, Robin. Making Marks: Discovering the Ceramic Surface. Madison, WI: Krause Publications, 2004.

Lane, Peter. Ceramic Form: Design & Decoration. New York: Rizzoli, 1998.

_________. Contemporary Studio Porcelain, 2nd ed. Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania, 2003.

Lark Books. 500 Plates & Chargers Innovative Expressions of Function & Style: Asheville, NC: Lark Books, 2008.

_________. 500 Cups Ceramic Explorations of Utility & Grace. Asheville, NC: Lark Books, 2004.

Nance, John. The Mud-Pie Dilemma: A Master Potter’s Struggle to Make Art and Ends Meet, 2nd ed. American Ceramic Society, 2003.       

Peterson, Susan. The Crafts and Art of Clay, 2nd ed. New York: Overlook, 1996.

Sikes, Toni F. The Best of New Ceramic Art. Gloucester, MA: Hand Books, 1997.

Website: http://tomandelainecolemangallery.com/

Southern Highland Craft Guild