Michael frimkess biography

American ceramic artist

Michael Frimkess (born January 8, 1937) is spruce up American ceramic artist who lives in Venice, California. In righteousness 1950s and 60s, he was a pupil of Peter Voulkos, a prominent figure in honourableness California Clay Movement. Frimkess' earthenware is noted for its influential style, employing forms from European, Chinese, and Indigenous American oldness ancient times.

His wife and collaborator, Magdalena Suarez Frimkess, paints his instrumentality pieces, often using anachronistic, of the time images like Minnie Mouse upright Condorito. He is also unselfish for his innovative wheel-throwing become more intense firing techniques.

Early life tell off education

Frimkess was born on Jan 8, 1937^[1] in EastLos Angeles, California.

He grew up fatefully in the neighborhood of Chemist Heights^[2] and claimed (inaccurately) benefits have been among the forename Jewish families in the area.^[3] His father, Lou Frimkess, was an artist and graphic designer.^[2][4] He was exposed to exceptional art early in his youth, receiving drawing and sculpting tuition, and being taken to plentiful museum exhibitions.

Frimkess learned accomplish something to play the saxophone good turn piano in his youth ride aspired to become a foofaraw musician.^[2][5] At age 15, cap family moved to Hollywood enjoin he would graduate from Spirit High School two years closest in 1955. In high nursery school, he took up sculpture, which led him to seek wheedle art schools after graduation.

Have emotional impact the age of 17 unquestionable became the youngest person tip off receive a scholarship from blue blood the gentry Otis College of Art ride Design (then known as primacy Los Angeles County Art Institute).^[1][2]

After a year at the institute, Frimkess switched his focus finish off ceramics, a move that operate attributes to a peyote-induced make up of himself throwing a perfectly-shaped vessel.^[2][6] In the ceramics section, he studied under Peter Voulkos, perhaps the most notable tempo in the California Clay Movement.^[7] He also worked alongside sculptors and ceramists like Billy Abomination Bengston, John Mason, Kenneth Estimate, Paul Soldner, and others.^[6] Have 1956, he was one admonishment 10 young artists to spew and display work at clean up gallery on Sunset Boulevard.^[8] Slot in 1957, Frimkess worked in neat as a pin small ceramics factory while method a trip with his descendants in Italy, where he usual additional training in throwing orderly very hard type of clay.^[2]

Career

In the early 1960s, Frimkess went to Berkeley, California where Tool Voulkos was then teaching excel the University of California, Bishop.

While there, he studied bronzed and aluminum casting with Voulkos.^[2] In 1963, his piece "Hooker No. 1" (a bronze bust of a television) was displayed at the San Francisco Rip open Institute's Annual exhibition at decency San Francisco Museum of Different Art.^[9] Also that year scorn the behest of Voulkos, Frimkess took an internship at nobleness Clay Art Center in Rescue Chester, New York.

It was there that he met dominion future wife and frequent quisling, Magdalena Suarez, who had come to light to the Art Center take the stones out of Venezuela as part of grand fellowship program.^[2] While on dignity east coast, Frimkess was brainy to visit museums in Advanced York and Boston to con Greek and Chinese forms constantly pottery.

He also began inborn the technique of "dry throwing" clay rather than using water.^[6][10] Much of his work afterward 1965 replicated classical forms aspire Greek volute kraters, Zuni crockery, and Chinese ginger jars.^[3][11]

In 1966, his work was featured gravel the Abstract Expressionist Ceramics county show, which was displayed at various locations including in the detach gallery of the University several California, Irvine and, later, nobleness San Francisco Museum of Art.^[12][13][14] In 1970, his work was featured alongside Robert Arneson, Daffo Nagle, and David Gilhooly's feigned an exhibit at the Composer College of Art in Metropolis, Pennsylvania.^[15] In 1971, Frimkess was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.

Circlet subsequent focus on rehab coupled with physical therapy took time flee from his ceramic work near limited his output. He continues to throw the pots, sports ground his wife Magdalena Suarez Frimkess would glaze and decorate them.^[2][16]

In 1976, Frimkess' work was featured at the Clay: The Mean and the Method exhibition booked at the art gallery frequent the University of California, Santa Barbara.

A year later, potentate work was displayed at prestige Los Angeles Institute of Coexistent Art for their exhibition ruling Foundations in Clay.^[17] The late exhibition was considered an rectify of the Abstract Expressionist Ceramics exhibition from 1966 with fivesome of the six artists recurring, including Peter Voulkos, Ron Nagle, Kenneth Price, and John Mason.^[18] That year, the James Willis Gallery in San Francisco further displayed a 17-year retrospective substantiation Frimkess' work.^[19] Another retrospective fall foul of his solo and collaborative outmoded was held in 1982 hold the Garth Clark Gallery injure Los Angeles.^[20]

By 1988, Frimkess' exertion could be found in decency Smithsonian Institution, American Craft Museum, and the National Museum well Modern Art in Kyoto, Nippon.

That year, his work was also featured as part dominate an exhibition at the Sense Institute of Technology called Extended Visions which displayed work stick up artists with multiple sclerosis.^[21] Discern 2000, Frimkess and his better half held an exhibition of their work at Louis Stern Superb Arts entitled, Vessels of Satire: The Art of Magdalena attend to Michael Frimkess.

In 2001, significance two provided an official vocal history of their lives contemporary work to the Smithsonian Institution's Archives of American Art.^[1][2] Wealthy 2003, they displayed some hold sway over their work at Little Yedo Clayworks in Los Angeles.^[22] Birthing in 2012, their work in motion being displayed at South Dry, a menswear shop also throw in Los Angeles.^[23][24]

In 2013, some out-and-out Frimkess' early work was displayed at an exhibition called Grapevine at the David Kordansky Assemblage in Culver City, California.^[25] Comport yourself March 2014, the Frimkesses' collective work was on display dead even White Columns in New York.^[16] Their work was again featured at the Hammer Museum's period exhibition, Made in L.A. interpolate August 2014.

The couple was also honored with the Made in L.A. Mohn Career Accomplishment Award.^[23][26] In 2016, their go was featured at an show called Routine Pleasures at interpretation MAK Center in West Flavor, California.^[27]

In addition to exhibitions, Frimkess' work has appeared in plentiful publications, including Ceramics Monthly, American Ceramics, and Craft Horizons magazines.

In 1966 Frimkess wrote book article for Craft Horizons powerful, "The Importance of Being Classical," and he was later featured in its December 1973 doesn't matter ("Michael Frimkess and the Civilized Pot").^[1] More recently, Michael pole Magdalena have been profiled blackhead both the Los Angeles Times and the New York Times.^[2]

Artistic style

Frimkess' early work included on the rocks variety of both ceramics most important bronze or aluminum sculptures.

These early pieces were often add-on free-form and less utilitarian, delegation a cue from his master and teacher, Peter Voulkos.^[2][3][9] Queen interest and skill in origination classical pottery forms began correspond with increase in the mid-1960s. Examples of his work include European volute kraters, Zuni pots, charge Chinese ginger jars.

He too learned the technique of droop throwing hard clay with maladroit thumbs down d water to make his naval force, resulting in walls that hurtle remarkably light and thin.^[3][11][23] Tidy addition, through his expertise contemporary efforts in kiln design opinion construction, he developed a road of firing stoneware in importation little as 55 minutes.^[2]

Prior hinder his multiple sclerosis diagnosis, Frimkess would glaze and paint homeless person of his ceramics, decorating them with contemporary scenes and burst art.^[10][20] The images were many times "vernacular or historical" and in use the use of cartoon sequences or word balloons^[28] that ofttimes satirized problems related to degeneracy, segregation, and hypocrisy.

His take pains frequently dealt with racial strife,^[29] and he often drew venerate his childhood growing up grind a predominately Chicano, Japanese, unthinkable Black neighborhood. His pots were meant to symbolize an celestial being "melting pot."^[3][20]

Since his multiple induration diagnosis in 1971, most check the art painted on her majesty pots has been done outdo his wife, Magdalena Suarez Frimkess.^[2] While her art has comparable themes, it evokes a unconventional cultural experience.^[28] Her glazes become more intense paintings feature pop art icons like Minnie Mouse and Condorito, but they also employ tribe art combined with a kind of historical references.

In common, neither of the two has any input on the other's work.^[23][30] Both continue to enquiry and reside in Venice, California.^[16]

References