This week I was invited by my friend Natasha Hovey to participate in the 2015 Empty Bowls Ceramic Show & Sale at the Wichita Falls Museum of Art at MSU. I was thrilled to be asked to participate and join several other artists in this great cause! If your interested in seeing more of Natasha's work please click the button below.

The Wichita Falls Museum of Art (WFMA) at Midwestern State University will be hosting the 2015 Empty Bowls Ceramic Show & Sale to be held in conjunction with Empty Bowls, a fundraiser to benefit the Wichita Falls Area Food Bank, set for Tuesday, October 13 at the WFMA. The exhibit’s opening reception will be held on Thursday, October 8 from 5:30-7:30 PM at the museum. The Gallery Exhibit will be juried by Dan Hammett. The exhibit will provide an opportunity for ceramic artists to exhibit their work at the WFMA. We look forward to the WFMA patrons and Empty Bowls attendees experiencing the mastery of your ceramic art work.

2015 JUROR: Dan Hammett

Dan Hammett received a B.A. in Education from Northeastern State University of Oklahoma, a BFA degree from The University of Kansas and an MFA degree in Ceramic Art from The State University of New York College of Ceramics at Alfred. He has taught at The University of Dallas in Irving, Texas since 1974 where he is currently a full Professor. For the past ten years, he has served as Chairman of the Art Department with a career that has produced national, international artists, teachers and has sponsored Fulbright scholars/field researchers.
Mr. Hammett developed and served as consultant/project manager for National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts award winning PBS style film series which focused on Icons of American Ceramic Art. He has conducted field studies to Museums in the United States of America, Italy, Greece, Crete, and The Peoples Republic of China. His work is included in private, university and corporate collections in Texas, Ohio, New York and The Peoples Republic of China.
Awards and Commissions include: The Texas Commission of the Arts, The National Endowment of the Arts and The Southland Corporation commission for "The Olympia Award", which was a limited edition of a 523 B.C. Greek Replica Amphorae for the 1982 Olympic Gold Medalist of the United States of America.
He currently maintains a private studio "Handcrafted Ceramics" where he produces architectural ceramic shell lighting, large-scale monolithic ceramic sculpture as well as functional ceramics since 1974.

EMPTY BOWLS FACT SHEET LOCAL

Simply put, Empty Bowls is a community-wide event to ensure that fewer people in the Wichita Falls and surrounding communities go home to an "empty bowl."
This year’s event will be held on Tuesday, October 13 from 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM at the Wichita Falls Museum of Art at Midwestern State University. Proceeds benefit the Wichita Falls Area Food Bank.
Empty Bowls began in Wichita Falls in 2012 under the leadership of Paula Perkins and Leslie Schaffner. Over the past three years, The Steering Committee, Wichita Falls Area Food Bank Staff, Donors, Artists, Restaurants, and Volunteers have given selflessly to raise almost $234,000 to make sure fewer bowls go unfilled in our community.
www.emptybowlswf.org
www.facebook.com/EmptyBowlsWF

GLOBAL
Empty Bowls is an international, grassroots movement that has raised millions of dollars towards the fight against hunger.
The basic premise of Empty Bowls is simple: Potters and other craftspeople, educators, and others work with the community to create handcrafted bowls. Guests are invited to a simple meal of soup and bread. In exchange for a cash donation, guests are asked to keep a bowl as a reminder of all the empty bowls in the world. The money raised is donated to an organization working to end hunger and food insecurity.
The expressed objectives of Empty Bowls are to:

Raise money to feed hungry people. Lives are in the balance.
Increase awareness of hunger and related issues. Through education, awareness, and action, concerned individuals can change human attitudes that allow hunger to exist.
Advocate for arts education. Nurturing the creative process through the arts enhances the possibility of finding new solutions to old problems.

The first Empty Bowls project began over twenty years ago as a one-time lunch event at a high school in Detroit to help raise money for a student food drive. Art teacher, John Hartom, challenged his students to keep their bowls as a reminder of all the empty bowls in the world.
Empty Bowls is unique in that it does not have headquarters, directors, or guidelines. Each individual event is a distinct experience, unmatched by any other, designed to channel monies raised to meet needs of the local community. The promotion and growth of the Empty Bowls concept is managed by The Imagine/RENDER Group, a 501(c)(3) organization.
Empty Bowls projects are a great example of how so many people can give, even a little bit, and make a targeted impact in their communities.
www.emptybowls.net