Axe ’Em, Jacks!
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – Ceramic works of art created by Piero Fenci, Stephen F. Austin State University professor of art, are currently on exhibit in the Museum of Biblical Art in Dallas through September.
A reception honoring the artist and his show, “Grand Voyage: The Art of Piero Fenci,” is planned for 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday, April 30, at the museum.
Art historian and curator Dr. Scott Peck described “Grand Voyage” as “a thoughtful and reflective ceramic installation based upon the artist’s life.” Introductions written by Peck and Dr. David A. Lewis, professor of art history at SFA, in the show’s booklet give viewers insight into the artist’s adventurous lifespan, which includes his lineage connected to ancient Italy and Etruscan cultures, his wife’s Japanese culture and tradition, and his love of water and sailing, all of which are incorporated into this new body of work.
“Fenci takes the viewer on a magnificent voyage throughout his inconceivable life filled with adventures,” Peck writes. “The ceramic work in this physical and spiritual journey includes influences from Pre-Columbian architecture, American Shaker design styles, Etruscan pottery, and the Japanese Edo period. Fenci brings each person with him on his splendid tour to experience these diverse places of tradition that made him who he is today.”
Fenci, who is a Micky Elliott College of Fine Arts Dean’s Circle Endowed Professor award recipient, has been with SFA since 1975 and has distinguished himself as both an artist and an educator. His ceramic vessels have been featured in Ceramics Monthly, American Ceramics, The Contemporary Potter and Clay and Glazes for the Potter. In 2004, he founded the first university program in contemporary ceramic art in the history of northern Mexico at la Universidad Autonoma de Chihuahua in Chihuahua City, and he continues to travel there to mentor the program. Fenci has earned an international reputation as a ceramist, exhibiting his work from coast to coast and in Italy, Russia and Mexico. He was named “Texas Master” by the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, becoming the fourth person (and the first ceramist) in the state to be honored with the award. Fenci lives and shares a studio with his sculptor wife, Elizabeth Akamatsu. His work is represented in private and public collections, including the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; the Schein-Joseph International Museum of Ceramic Art, Alfred, New York; and in the Tyler Museum of Art, Tyler.
In artist’s statements, Fenci describes his work in both serious and fun ways. “Intimate scale, the history of use, the tactile qualities of touching and lifting, and, above all, the interaction of surface and form are central concerns in my work. I have developed a deep attachment to many types of functional objects.” Fenci also states that he has always defined himself by the work he has done, ranging from busboy and short order cook, to scallop shucker and sailing instructor, to bartender, banker and roustabout, to artist and college professor for 48 years. “And I’m not done yet,” he writes. “Lots of irons in the fire. As the old timers I worked with banging nails on Nantucket Island as a young man used to say, ‘Onward through the fog!’”
The Museum of Biblical Art is located at 7500 Park Lane in Dallas. Museum hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. Contact the museum at (214) 368-4622 or biblicalarts.org. For more information about the artist, visit pierofenci.com. For information about the SFA School of Art, call (936) 468-4804 or visit sfasu.edu/art.