NEWS & MEDIA

Ferrin Contemporary is pleased to present a collection of videos produced by our gallery and various partners, including artists, galleries, museums, and arts organizations on our Vimeo & YouTube Channels.

Launched in the summer of 2020, the collection will continually grow, so please check back for additional content and subscribe to our platforms for notifications of new videos.

RECORDING | Online Artist Talk: Courtney M. Leonard & Judy Chartrand

Watch an online artist talk with Courtney M. Leonard and Judy Chartrand from the 2023 International Ceramic Art Fair, hosted by the Gardiner Museum in Toronto, Ontario.

Video: LSU LECTURE | “Cumbrian Blue(s): New American Scenery, Transferwares for the 21st Century” Sunday, November 16, 5:00 pm Paul Scott, ceramics artist, will give a Paula G. Manship Endowed Lecture to the College of Art & Design on Wednesday, November 16, 2022 at 5:00 p.m. in 103 Design Building Auditorium.

Video by the Everson Museum of Art/ Music by: The High Llamas

Structure/Dissonance celebrates nearly five decades of work by New York-based artist Raymon Elozua, who first came to prominence in the 1970s with detailed trompe l’oeil ceramic sculptures of decaying industrial landscapes. Elozua’s first major museum exhibition since his 2003 retrospective at the Mint Museum, Structure/Dissonance focuses on three conceptual bodies of work that explore the combined physical properties of three elemental materials: ceramic, glass, and steel. This exhibition contextualizes these vital sculptures within Elozua’s intellectual landscape through the inclusion of a series of collections and research projects that are inextricably linked to his artistic output.

September 10—December 31, 2022 at the Everson Museum of Art in Syracuse, NY – curated by Garth Johnson

The catalog features essays by Johnson, Maria Porges, and Thyrza Nichols Goodeve, 2022

Published on Dec 27, 2022

SERGEI ISUPOV: Earth & Sky Fire Sculpture

June 11, 2022. Internationally renowned artist Sergei Isupov, in collaboration with Andres Allik of Estonia, built and fired the first petal kiln in New England. A unique spectacle, the petal kiln opened at the peak of firing to reveal the massive ceramic sculpture, called the Earth & Sky fire sculpture. Isupov’s Earth & Sky fire sculpture was the centerpiece of TurnPark’s Annual Summer Festival which presented an array of multicultural performances, visual artworks, and music under the theme of Healing Flames on June 11.

View Sergei Isupov: Earth & Sky Fire Sculpture on Vimeo.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ILLUSTRATION AND RACE

A series of compelling talks by Heather Campbell Coyle, Ph.D; Karen Fang, Ph.D; Michele Bogart, Ph.D.; Theresa Leininger-Miller, Ph.D.; and Leonard Davis, followed by conversation with the commentators.

These concise presentations by Imprinted: Illustrating Race catalogue authors and exhibition lenders will focus on widely-circulated historical representations of race in the press and in popular culture that established a sense of American nationalism for white audiences through the subjugation of Indigenous, Black, and Asian people and cultures.

Witness to History: Collecting Black Americana
Leonard Davis, designer and collector

View the Entire Symposium Playlist from the Norman Rockwell Museum

TIMESTAMPS

00:00 START
00:13 Welcome
04:49 Opening Remarks
22:50 Panel: Hidden in Plain Sight – Illustrated Ceramics and American Identity

HIDDEN IN PLAIN SIGHT: ILLUSTRATED CERAMICS AND AMERICAN IDENTITY

Panelists: Leslie Ferrin, Elizabeth Alexander, Jacqueline Bishop, Judy Chartrand, Niki Johnson, and Paul Scott.

Hidden in plain sight, illustrations on porcelain and ceramic ware have, throughout history, transformed functional objects into message-bearers for a wide range of political and propagandistic causes, whether exchanged by heads of state or acquired for use or display in domestic settings. Leslie Ferrin of Ferrin Contemporary will discuss the imagery, drawn from popular nineteenth-century prints, that was reproduced on widely distributed ceramics portraying historical events, indigenous people, and notable explorers, inventors, and politicians through a white European lens. The panel will explore how these seemingly ordinary objects, including Rockwell collector plates, have helped to establish firmly held beliefs about American identity. Artists Elizabeth Alexander, Jacqueline Bishop, Judy Chartrand, Niki Johnson, and Paul Scott, will discuss contemporary ceramics, which reject systems of racial oppression and invite reconsideration of the sanitized version of history that was presented for generations.

View Hidden in Plain Sight: Illustrated Ceramics and American Identity

TIMESTAMPS

0:00 Introduction to Symposium co-curators Stephanie Plunkett and Robyn Phillips Pendleton
23:00 Introduction
28:00 Leslie Ferrin Our America/Whose America?  collection and exhibition
46:00 Jacqueline Bishop
52:00 Paul Scott
1:02:00 Elizabeth Alexander
1:11:00 Johnson
1:21:00 Judy Chartrand
1:37:00 Q&A

ARTIST TALK | MELTING POINT: RISING WATERS with Courtney M. Leonard, Paul Scott, and Norwood Viviano, moderated by Jami Powell

September 15, 2021. Ferrin Contemporary Curator Conversation featuring artists Courtney M. Leonard, Paul Scott, and Norwood Viviano. Moderated by Jami Powell, Ph.D., Curator of Indigenous Art, Hood Museum, Dartmouth University (Hanover, NH).

View Artist Talk | MELTING POINT: Rising Waters on Vimeo.

GALLERY TALK | MELTING POINT

July 24, 2021 | Hosted by Ferrin Contemporary (North Adams, MA) and co-organized with Heller Gallery (New York), this artist talk in conjunction with the opening of MELTING POINT features artists Sydney Cash, Gregg Moore, Robert Silverman, Raymon Elozua, Sally Silberberg, and Tom Patti.

View Gallery Talk | MELTING POINT on Vimeo.

FOUNDERS’ HOUR FEATURING Paul Scott with Leslie Ferrin & Brian Gallagher

June 11, 2021 | The Mint Museum’s Founders’ Circle is pleased to present their first ever International Founders’ Hour featuring UK-based artist, Paul Scott. From his studio in Cumbria, Scott creates contemporary versions of traditional blue and white transferware ceramics, updating this historic media for the 21st century. Scott’s work engages political and social issues that resonate with our lives today, questioning the cultural history of transferware ceramics in the dissemination of national ideas and settler-centric narratives.

View Founders’ Hour featuring Paul Scott with Leslie Ferrin & Brian Gallagher on Vimeo.

FERRIN CONTEMPORARY IN CONVERSATION: RAID THE ICEBOX NOW with Elizabeth Williams, Beth Katleman, and Paul Scott

June 7, 2021 | For the 50th anniversary of Andy Warhol’s Raid the Icebox exhibition, RISD Museum invited eight contemporary artists and collectives to mine the museum, taking inspiration from objects or incorporating objects into new installations that reconsider how collections can be reimagined.

View Ferrin Contemporary in Conversation: Raid the Icebox Now with Elizabeth Williams, Beth Katleman, and Paul Scott on Vimeo.

FOUNDERS’ HOUR FEATURING Peter Pincus with Leslie Ferrin & Brian Gallagher

February 23, 2021 | Virtual program hosted by the Mint Museum’s Founder’s Circle with “ceramic techno star” Peter Pincus and an introduction by Brian Gallagher curator of Classic Black: The Basalt Sculpture of Wedgwood and His Contemporaries. We’re going to cover a lot of ground in 30 minutes, studio tour, artistic practice, research and recent work in response to Josiah Wedgwood and conceptual theories behind Sol LeWitt.

View Founders’ Hour featuring Peter Pincus with Leslie Ferrin & Brain Gallagher on Vimeo.

PETER PINCUS’ SNAP SNAP VIDEO

As this unusual time has moved us all to new digital and virtual platforms, we’re happy to present our In-Progress News & Media Page on our website, which includes our Newsletter Archives, Press & Blog Posts, Director’s Notes, Instagram Feed & this Video Library.

Thank you to the Always Creative Peter Pincus for our Newest & Most Amusing Video Yet!

PETER PINCUS VIRTUAL TOUR

Artist Peter Pincus narrates this virtual tour of his 2020 exhibition, ART IN THE AGE OF INFLUENCE: Peter Pincus | Sol LeWitt, presented at Ferrin Contemporary’s gallery on the campus of MASS MoCA in North Adams, MA.

View Virtual Tour: ART IN THE AGE OF INFLUENCE: Peter Pincus | Sol LeWitt on Vimeo.

EVERSON MUSEUM OBJECT STUDIES

Peter Pincus in conversation with Garth Johnson, Everson Museum of Art & Anne Forschler, Birmingham Museum of Art. The discussion will include a video tour of “ART IN THE AGE OF INFLUENCE: Peter Pincus | Sol Lewitt” at Ferrin Contemporary with director Leslie Ferrin on the campus of MASS MoCA, North Adams, MA. Pincus will be speaking from his studio in Rochester, NY.

View Ferrin Contemporary & Peter Pincus | In the Everson Museum’s Online Classes & Studio Tours  on Vimeo.

LAUREN MABRY | NATURE/NURTURE VIRTUAL TOUR

Virtual Tour of Lauren Mabry’s Glaze Flow Blocks, and cylinders in NATURE/NURTURE, the 2020 group exhibition of twelve contemporary female artists invited to explore the influence of gender and its impact on their practice at Ferrin Contemporary on the campus of MASS MoCA, North Adams, MA.

View Lauren Mabry Nature/Nurture Virtual Tour on Vimeo.

KADRI PÄRNAMETS | NATURE/NURTURE

Virtual Tour of Kadri Pärnamets Moor, Spring Announcers, Noon Dance, Sultry Night, and Waggle Dance in NATURE/NURTURE, the 2020 group exhibition of twelve contemporary female artists invited to explore the influence of gender and its impact on their practice at Ferrin Contemporary on the campus of MASS MoCA, North Adams, MA.

View Kadri Pärnamets Nature/Nurture Virtual Tour on Vimeo.

LINDA SORMIN | NATURE/NURTURE

Virtual Tour of Linda Sormin’s Reshaping Rage (when revenge makes perfect sense) in NATURE/NURTURE, the 2020 group exhibition of twelve contemporary female artists invited to explore the influence of gender and its impact on their practice at Ferrin Contemporary on the campus of MASS MoCA, North Adams, MA.

View Linda Sormin Nature/Nurture Virtual Tour on Vimeo.

LINDA SIKORA | NATURE/NURTURE

Virtual Tour of Linda Sikora‘s Faux Wood Group in NATURE/NURTURE, the 2020 group exhibition of twelve contemporary female artists invited to explore the influence of gender and its impact on their practice at Ferrin Contemporary on the campus of MASS MoCA, North Adams, MA.

View Linda Sikora Nature/Nurture Virtual Tour on Vimeo.

GISELLE HICKS | NATURE/NURTURE

Virtual Tour of Giselle HicksGroup of Vessels in NATURE/NURTURE, the 2020 group exhibition of twelve contemporary female artists invited to explore the influence of gender and its impact on their practice at Ferrin Contemporary on the campus of MASS MoCA, North Adams, MA.

View Giselle Hicks Nature/Nurture Virtual Tour on Vimeo.

GISELLE HICKS | SPHERE FORM PROCESS

This time-lapse video shows how ceramic artist Giselle Hicks builds her Sphere Forms.

View Giselle Hicks’ Sphere Form Process on Vimeo.

Courtney M. Leonard in BOUNDLESS at the Mead Museum, Amherst, MA

Courtney M. Leonard's BREACH: Logbook 21 | Collider Study #1 Featured in Boundless is a nearly museum-wide exhibition that features work by Native American writers and artists, grounded in but not contained to the Northeast. Boundless takes shape like water, moving across generations and geographies, and expanding conversations about kinship, presence, resistance, and history through its flow. TheContinue reading →

Jacqueline Bishop’s “History at the Dinner Table” in Black Atlantic: Power, People, Resistance at the Fitzwilliam Museum of Art, Cambridge, UK

Jacqueline Bishop's "History at the Dinner Table" Featured in Which stories get remembered, and why? This exhibition explores some new stories from history – stories that help us to separate fact from fiction and history from myth. By bringing together collections from across the University of Cambridge’s museums, libraries and colleges with loans from aroundContinue reading →

Ferrin Contemporary Presents | SERGEI ISUPOV | The Road to Cummington at Project Art

Sergei Isupov | The Road to Cummington In-person artist talks At Project Art at 54 Main Street during the 2023 Hilltown Open Studio Tour SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 30 & SUNDAY OCTOBER 1 CUMMINGTON, MA— Join Ferrin Contemporary as it sponsors its Open House/ Talk & Tour Event at the Cummington Space: In 2006, Sergei Isupov moved to Cummington, MAContinue reading →

ANNOUNCING | Ferrin Contemporary Anchors at Project Art in Cummington, MA

Ferrin Contemporary Anchors at Project Art in 2023 NORTH ADAMS, MA to CUMMINGTON, MA ARE WE THERE YET? is a celebration of Ferrin Contemporary’s 40+ years as leaders in the field of modern and contemporary ceramics. What began in 1979 as a woman-owned cooperative studio and gallery in Northampton, MA has flourished across the years andContinue reading →

ARE WE THERE YET? Featured in the Berkshire Eagle

'Are We There Yet?' celebrates the history and artists of Ferrin Contemporary Berkshire Eagle, Jennifer Huberdeau July 28, 2023 A JOURNEY IN CERAMICS NORTH ADAMS — Sometimes, the only way to move forward is to look back. Leslie Ferrin, director of Ferrin Contemporary, at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art is doing just that withContinue reading →

Linda Sikora on Tales of a Red Clay Rambler

PODCAST: Tales of a Red Clay Rambler Hosted by Ben Carter Two-part interview featuring Linda Sikora. 473: Linda Sikora on the concepts of service, storage, and display July 14, 2023 In this episode, Sikora talks about growing up in Canada, her path to being a potter, and how the ideas of service, storage, and displayContinue reading →

CERAMICS GALLERIST LESLIE FERRIN & “ARE WE THERE YET?” Featured in Rural Intelligence

CERAMICS GALLERIST LESLIE FERRIN TRACKS HER 40-YEAR JOURNEY IN “ARE WE THERE YET?” Rural Intelligence, Julia Dixon July 10, 2023 “Are We There Yet?” opening at Ferrin Contemporary on July 15 is not just another Berkshire summer gallery exhibition. Well, it is and it’s not. Most works, including newly created pieces, are for sale. But some are on loanContinue reading →

Underneath Everything: Humility and Grandeur in Contemporary Ceramics

Featuring work by Rae Stern Anina Major During an artist lecture in December 2021, Theaster Gates evoked a fascinating paradox in contemporary ceramics practice. Clay is the humblest of materials, often overlooked and more readily associated with a morning cup of coffee than with the international art world. But it is underneath everything. There isContinue reading →

Courtney M. Leonard featured on NewsdayTV

VIDEO: Shinnecock artist Courtney Leonard showcases work at Heckscher Museum of Art Reported by Macy EgelandCredit: Newsday/Thomas A. Ferrara June 2023 Watch the Interview Here "Courtney Leonard is the local artist behind two new exhibits on Long Island, at the Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington and Planting Fields in Oyster Bay. The Heckscher exhibitContinue reading →

Courtney M. Leonard featured in WSHU Public Radio

Loving whales, Shinnecock artist explores climate change through Indigenous knowledge by Marie Lynders June 22, 2023 Read the Interview Here "Leonard has opened her first retrospective art exhibition at The Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington. It showcases her work over the years, exploring ecological issues and Indigenous culture with the whale as a common thread.Continue reading →
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FERRIN CONTEMPORARY ON-THE-ROAD & INSTAGRAM

Follow Ferrin Contemporary’s instagram feed for visual updates on our artists and gallery activities. Follow Leslie Ferrin, director and founder, on her travels as she takes Ferrin Contemporary on the road to explore and discover great contemporary ceramic art around the US and abroad.

Want more? For full Instagram feeds, visit and follow instagram.com/ferrincontemporary and instagram.com/leslieferrin.