Dirty Dam

Since the time of the Anasazi, Colorado has sported a ceramics scene, one that was picked up by settlers in the nineteenth century and continues to this day. With all that clay everywhere, it seems absolutely right for the Denver Art Museum to host an over-the-top ceramics blockbuster. Marvelous Mud...

By Michael Paglia

September 15, 2011

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Since the time of the Anasazi, Colorado has sported a ceramics scene, one that was picked up by settlers in the nineteenth century and continues to this day. With all that clay everywhere, it seems absolutely right for the Denver Art Museum to host an over-the-top ceramics blockbuster. Marvelous Mud comprises eight separate exhibits representing the points of view of different museum departments, as well as an assortment of proceedings and demonstrations, all of it devoted to clay.

"This is the first time a museum has ever explored one material across its collections, and I think Marvelous Mud will shatter expectations of clay,” says DAM director Christoph Heinrich. Artworks range from China’s fabled blue-and white pottery to Amazonian ceramics to contemporary artists who are pushing the boundaries. “People won’t want to miss our opening weekend, with Bob Smith’s live pyrotechnic raku firing on the plaza, Robin Furuta’s demo on a potter’s wheel, artist Roxanne Swentzell working on her ten-foot sculpture in the gallery, and lots more,” he adds.

Marvelous Mud gets under way today at 10 a.m. at the DAM, 100 West 14th Avenue Parkway. Call 720-865-5000 or go to www.denverartmuseum.org for a full schedule of events and ticket information.
June 11-Sept. 18, 2011

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Michael Paglia is an art historian and writer whose columns have appeared in Westword since 1995; his essays on the visual arts have also been published in national periodicals including Art News, Architecture, Art Ltd., Modernism, Art & Auction and Sculpture Magazine. He taught art history at the University of Colorado Denver.

Contact: Michael Paglia