This year I will be a host site for the Sedona Open Studio Tour. I’ll be participating with Jason Bohnert, Jeff Heeg, and Heather Spontak on our property in Camp Verde, AZ October 29, 30, & 31, 2021.
Read moreOn To The Next Chapter
After months of uncertainty and change, the new normal has become a reality. My time at Reitz Ranch Center for Ceramic Arts has come to an end. It's still hard to believe that ten years ago to the month, I moved from Iowa to Arizona to work with my mentor, Don Reitz. My position evolved from Don's studio assistant to the Ranch's studio manager, and finally as Education Director. These last few months have been unexpected and difficult, to say the least.
However, as one door closes (sometimes quickly due to a pandemic), another opens. My hope is that the Ranch will someday reopen for future generations to come. Until then, my focus is shifting to my own studio. While the Reitz Ranch has been shut down due to the coronavirus, I've had time to set up my studio and begin to make new work.
Read moreRussell Beach: Ever The Adventurer
I was asked by my family to create an urn for my grandfather who passed away on April 6, 2020. I always told my grandparents that I would make these objects for them without much additional thought. After my grandfather’s passing, and a gentle reminder from my grandmother, I started to think about what this object would look like. I started to think about the importance of this object and what my grandfather meant to me. Someone who would always listen, who always cared more about what was going on in my life, who always had advice for the difficult questions and times. I never realized how much importance the jar form could have. It’s an honor to create such an object and it’s an honor to have had such a wonderful man as my grandfather. Thank you Grandpa Russ.
Read moreYearly Update
Well it seems that I get around to updating my website about once a year now. During the COVID-19 stay at home order, updating my website was high up on my list. Now that we’re a month in, I’ve failed to update. Today that changes.
Read moreLong Overdue Update
It’s hard to believe it has been over a year since my last update to my website. As everyone can tell, it’s been pushed off for a little too long. LOTS has happened since I previously updated my blog, I’ve gone through another school year teaching for Yavapai College. I started teaching on the Clarkdale campus this last Spring Semester. My family and I bought a house in Camp Verde, Arizona this last month. However, with all of the changes over the past year the largest was accepting a position as the Education and Programming Director at the Reitz Ranch! I’m over-the-moon with the opportunity to work full-time again at the Ranch.
Read morePottery Sale and "Pots for Paws" fundraiser for PPNAZ
Join us for our annual Flagstaff Potters' Guild Pottery Sale in downtown Flagstaff, May 12th, 2018. Perfect timing to purchase a locally handmade gift for Mother's Day or your 2018 grad. This year we'll also have handmade pet dishes with proceeds going to Paw Placement of Northern Arizona (PPNAZ).http://www.ppnaz.org/home
Read moreSpring Sedona Open Studio Tour 2018
The Spring 2018 Open Studio Tour will happen this Friday April 27th to Sunday, April 29th. Our Studio will be open on Friday the 27th and Saturday the 28th from 10 am to 5 pm. On Sunday the 29th we will be open from 12 to 5 pm. Be sure to stop by and see demonstrations by our artists and of course ceramic artwork
Read moreSmall Favors XI
I will be participating in the Small Favors XI: Think Inside the Box exhibition this spring. Small Favors engages artist’s creativity in new and exciting ways with the challenge of making pieces on a very small scale. For some artists, the work they create is similar to what they normally make but on a reduced scale. Others use it as an opportunity to break away from what they create in their daily studio practice. Regardless of this choice, the works exhibited are incredibly varied in material, form, and aesthetics. Though small in scale the artworks created for this exhibition are huge in impact. Each work is exhibited in a four-inch plexiglass wall-mounted cube. Small Favors will be on view from April 6 – May 27, 2018.
Read moreLAST CALL III
I've thrown my hat into the ring this year, I'm excited to see what Brett Kern selects for the show. I've seen a few posts online from other artists and their submissions, and Brett really has his work cut out for him. Lots of really fantastic entries, I'm sure its going to be a top knotch show!
Read morere[VOL]ve
Ben Roti’s “re[VOL]ve” opens at Gallery 527 in Jerome during First Saturday Art Walk on February 3 from 5 – 8 p.m. Roti will feature new contemporary ceramic work constructed and altered on the pottery wheel. The collection of turned objects includes a variety of cups, bowls, jars, and platters. Vibrant glazes and slips are used to create a rich, weathered surface on the wheel-thrown utilitarian objects.
Read moreREBUILDING AND REIMAGINING REITZ RANCH
JANUARY 19, 2018 OPENING RECEPTION 5 - 7 PM
EXHIBIT JANUARY 19- FEBRUARY 9, 2018
For years, Don Reitz lived and worked in Clarkdale quietly creating masterpieces at the Ranch. Few in the Verde Valley were aware of the place and the magical activities afoot there. Reitz is considered one of the fathers of modern ceramics, an artist who expanded the medium beyond functional tableware to immense, provocative works of abstract art. His work is in the collections of the Smithsonian Institution, the Museum of Arts and Design in New York, and many others.
Over the years, many assistants came to the Reitz Ranch from out of state to apprentice with...
Reitzagama 2017
It's been a while since I've updated this blog, partly because it's been so incredibly busy. We finished the Reitzagama back in November and unloaded the kiln on December 10. There was a great turnout for the unloading, and the kiln did not disappoint. I walked away with a few excellent pieces. It definitely has me excited to fire another woodkiln again soon!
I'll be uploading images of the events below. Stay Tuned!
Read moreHappy Birthday Don
Happy Birthday, Partner. Not a day goes by that I don't think of you. Here are a few images of my time out at the ranch.
Read moreYunomi Invitational Exhibition
First Annual Yunomi Exhibition begins this week and officially opens Saturday, November 11th from 10-8 PM.
The Yunomi exhibit showcases the work of many of our superb local and regional clay artists. (15 artists, 2-5 pieces per artist = a staggeringly beautiful selection of choices. Holidays are just around the corner! Find the perfect one-of-a-kind gift for that special someone.
Work is being delivered on a daily basis so if you'd like a preview stop by today or tomorrow to see what is currently available.
I look forward to seeing all the great work from artists across the state!
Read moreAnother Day on the Ranch
With November quickly approaching, and the amount of work piling up, Ranch work has seemed to reach an all-time high. Ted and Sheryl DeVault have opened their studio up to several big-name ceramic artists across the country to come and fire the Reitzagama around Thanksgiving. Some are traveling more than 2,500 miles to be apart of this great event.
The crew that was selected to fire the work were selected from the final firing of the Reitzagama with Don. Some of the artists who are participating are, Chris Gustin, Matt Long, Mat Rude, Heidi Kreitchet, Preston and Sara Tolbert and several more
Read moreVariation: Balance
I'm excited to share that I am having a show in Show Low, AZ at the Talon Gallery of the Northland Pioneer College. I will have several of my sculptures on display from October 30 - December 1, 2017. I will also be giving an artist demonstration and artist talk in the Aspen Center, Room 104 and 110, Monday, October 30 from 4-8pm.
Read moreMarshall Maude Free Demo
Coconino Community College is hosting Marshall Maude's artist demonstration Friday, November 3, 2017 on its Lone Tree Campus, Room #534. Lunch will be provided by CCC Clay Club.
Marshall Maude is a ceramic artist and Associate Professor of Ceramics at the University of Kansas. Marshall has designed, built, and fired wood kilns around the world. He has exhibited his work in solo and group shows nationally and in China, Denmark, Korea, and New Zealand. In 2013, Marshall was an artist-in-residence at the Sanbao Ceramic Art Institute in Jingdezhen, China, and in 2014, at Guldagergaard – International Ceramic Research Center in Denmark.
Magda Gluszek Free Demo
I'm so excited to have been working with Magda Gluszek and Yavapai College Verde Art Gallery where we will be hosting a FREE ceramic artist demonstration on Friday, October 20, 2017, 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM. Come join Magda Gluszek in the gallery where she will be demoing her approach to building solid figures in clay. Gluszek will be sharing her methods for creating expressive details such as hands, feet, and eyes. Again this event is FREE and open to the public an Opening Reception of her show Insides Out will follow that evening. Please share and help spread the word.
Read moreReitz Ranch Center for Ceramic Arts
It's been a little over 3 years since Don Reitz passed away and left behind his wonderful studio out in Sycamore Canyon in Clarkdale, AZ. I spent over 4 years growing up out in the desert. It seems just like yesterday I was waking up to the cows and horses brushing up against my trailer, however, time has passed and there is a start of something new. Don often spoke, in his remain years, of what the property could be. He talked of having artists from all disciplines come and use the property to further their creative energy.
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Wednesday, September 20-Final Post
We thought you might like to hear the conclusion to Leo's grand adventure. Since our last post, Kami, Leo and I have transitioned from Ronald McDonald House in Phoenix to home in Cottonwood. Our little guy was released by his doctors on Monday the 18th and his happy parents were finally able to take him home.
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