ART AND PAT SENNETT ARTHUR H. SENNETT, BS, ART EDUCATION, MFA ARTIST, PROFESSOR EMERITUS, SUNY, POTSDAM Although teaching was his primary career focus, Art Sennett has given a multitude of Jekyll Pottery Guild members and others in the ceramic art world, the benefit of his years of experience since arriving on Jekyll Island and becoming involved with JIAA. Art’s pottery has been showcased through numerous exhibits including the Everson Museum of Art (Syracuse), The Elements Gallery (New York City), the Munson-Williams Proctor Institute, Utica and Artists’ Space Gallery (New York City) and the Jekyll Island Arts Association. Outside the classroom, Art has served as a lecturer, demonstrator and a juror. His career in pottery began when he studied at the School for American Craftsmen in Rochester, NY under Frans Wildenhain and Hobart Cowles. Before that experience, Art lived for a year in Japan and had an opportunity to study under the printmaker, Toshi Yoshida with others of the artistic community.

In October, 2013, Art was interviewed by North Country Public Radio following his 35 years teaching ceramics at SUNY Potsdam. The interviewer described him as a “mild-mannered guy” with a “dizzying body of work” at his home “miniature art gallery”. He said Art “doesn’t make a big deal out of it…get him talking about the craft of pottery, though, and he lights up.” Here’s a tidbit about Art that you may not know…when he started out in pottery, he and Pat were raising their children and

Lidded Olives on 20” platter

didn’t have a lot of extra money, so he went into his own yard and dug up clay to use. Art even developed a glaze that turned a deep olive color (see photo above). When that was successful, he started “looking up old New York state surveys and business considerations, and found out there were a couple of mines. One was in Pyrites, where they dug pyrite.” He dug clay there and got cobalt crystals, etc. The same article quotes Art: “…the first thing you have to do if you’re going to work on the wheel, you have to end up getting centered yourself. In the development of a pot form, you are capturing and recording moments in time that can be preserved indefinitely.” This year, Art Sennett’s class is “FINDING THE CENTER - BEGINNING CLAY”. PATRICIA M. SENNETT BS, ART EDUCATION, M.F.A. Pat began teaching art at JIAA in 1998 – the year after Art began teaching. She has taught drawing, painting (and variations on that topic, including collage) and printmaking. Pat’s background was also teaching – from Kindergarten through University classes, Museum Classes and Elderhostel. When asked how she decided to get into art, Pat credits “really fine, talented and enthusiastic mentors for introducing me to the formal elements, as well as those who are inclined to nurture such ambitions.” She says “it’s fulfilling to share the rich history and design of the arts and the wealth of what has been so selflessly given to me.” Pat has been recognized for her drawings, prints and paintings, and has exhibited regionally and nationally. She has won Purchase Prizes, Best in Category, and has been the recipient of other related awards. She was also honored with an Excellence in

Teaching Award, and Excellence in Education Grant and a Distinguished Alumna Award from Edinboro University. Her professional experience also garnered her membership in Who’s Who of American Women. Pat’s work (right) is presently included in the Advanced Artists Exhibit at Goodyear Cottage. She and Art have been exhibitors at JIAA several times. When asked in what JIAA classes she enjoyed participating, she mentioned porcelain painting, and writing with Sara Rupnik, which she highly recommends. Dr. Georgia Coopersmith, Director of the Longwood Center for the Visual Arts, has written this about Pat’s work: “She is amazingly versatile in a variety of media, from drawing to painting to collage. As a draftsman, Pat shows a free and easy line, one that can capture form with little effort, the line itself a statement in simple elegance. Some of her most important work has been accomplished in the medium of collage. Pat’s collage work is among the best I’ve seen.

In these works, Pat captures more than image and surface texture. Her work is rich in color and dimension, the subjects suggestive of landscapes and interiors. They intrigue without revealing, inviting the viewer’s response.” When not enjoying creating her art, Pat takes pleasure in maintaining relationships with former students and colleagues, (old fashioned) letter writing. She also enjoys reading, gardening and feels a “good book and gardening can also leave everything else in the dust.” Pat Sennett is teaching “PAINTING PLUS COLLAGE TECHNIQUES” in the 2015 JIAA Winter session.