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Louis Mendez is a versatile artist in many media. His work explores human and animal forms with equal intensity in large-scale sculpture, graphic images, mask designs and traditional ceramics. Born in New York City, Mendez holds BFA and MFA degrees in industrial design from the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University. The artist is a recipient of a Louis Comfort Tiffany award for design and development of large-scale ceramic art in architectural settings. Although he has always maintained an independent studio and active exhibition schedule, Mendez has held professional positions in both industry and higher education. His work is included in numerous public and private collections throughout the Americas, Europe and Japan.
Mendez lives and works in the heart of SoHo where collectors, curators and connoisseurs are welcome to view his entire collection by appointment. Dealer inquiries welcome. [ Contact ]
Louis Mendez
421 West Broadway, 2nd Floor, New York, NY
BFA 1952, MFA 1954, New York State College of Ceramics, Alfred University
Selected Exhibitions:
| 2005 |
Two Person Show, Phoenix Rising Gallery, Seattle, WA |
| 2005 |
Group Show, Berkeley College, New York, NY |
| 2004 |
Group Show, Galeria Omar Alonso, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico |
| 2004 |
"Theme and Variations in Clay", One Person Show, Curated by Midori Yoshimoto, NJCU Visual Arts Gallery, Jersey City, NJ |
| 2004 |
"Louis Mendez: A Sculptor's Odyssey in Clay", Capeluto Arts, NYC |
| 2004 |
One Person Show, Gallery Camino Real, Boca Raton, FL |
| 2004 |
One Person Show, Curated by Robert Keiber, Berkeley College, NYC |
| 2003 |
"Manhattan to Mexico...and Back", The Art Alliance, co-sponsored by the Mexican Cultural Institute, NYC |
| 2003 |
One Person Show, Museo Michoacano, Morelia, Mexico |
| 2002 |
Invitational Show, Santa Fe Clay, Santa Fe, NM |
| 2000-03 |
SOFA New York, Represented by Loveed Fine Arts, Lexington Avenue Armory, New York, NY |
| 2001 |
Internazionale Biennale dell' Arte Contemporanea, Florence, Italy |
| 2000 |
"Materials Hard and Soft", The Meadows Gallery, Center for Visual Arts, Denton, TX |
| 2000 |
13th San Angelo National Ceramic Competition, San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, San Angelo, TX |
| 1999 |
International Juried Show, New Jersey Center for the Visual Arts, Summit, NJ |
| 1997 |
Contemporary New York State Crafts, NYS Museum, Albany, NY |
| 1995 |
One Person Retrospective Show, Ocean County Community College Fine Arts Gallery, Toms River, NJ |
| 1994 |
"Masks and Ceramic Interpretations", Sylvia Ullman Gallery, Cleveland, OH |
| 1993 |
"Objects and Images", The Lanning Gallery, Sedona, AZ |
| 1991 |
One Person Show, The Portsmouth Collection, Portsmouth, NH |
| 1989 |
One Person Show, David Rodale Gallery at the Baum School of Art, Allentown, PA |
| 1988 |
"Perceptions", Federal Plaza Gallery, New York, NY |
| 1986 |
"Affinity: Seven Latin Artists", 101 Wooster Gallery, New York, NY |
| 1985 |
New Art in New York, Parsons School of Design, New York, NY |
| 1982 |
One Person Sculpture Show, Wadsworth Gallery, Bryn Mawr, PA |
| 1981 |
One Person Sculpture Show, Handcrafter's Gallery, Portland, ME |
| 1975 |
One Person Sculpture Show, Clark-Whitney Gallery, Lenox, MA |
| 1970 |
One Person Sculpture Show, Wooster Craft Center, Wooster, MA |
| 1969 |
One Person Sculpture Show, Silvermine Guild of Artists, Silvermine, CT |
| 1968 |
Twenty American Potters, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England |
| 1968 |
Beaux Art Show, Columbus Gallery of Fine Art, Columbus, OH |
| 1967 |
Sculpture in Clay, Otterbein College, Westerville, OH |
| 1967 |
Group Show, Museum of Contemporary Crafts, New York, NY |
| 1966 |
Exhibition '66, Columbus Gallery of Fine Art, Columbus, OH |
| 1965 |
10th International Exhibition of Contemporary Crafts, Smithsonian Institution, Weshington, DC |
| 1965 |
Collector: Object and Environment, Museum of Contemporary Crafts, New York, NY |
| 1964 |
Curator's Choice, Museum of Fine Arts, Philadelphia, PA |
| 1964 |
Featured Artist, New York World's Fair, New York, NY |
| 1963 |
Craftsmen of the Eastern United States, Worcester Art Museum, Worcester, MA |
| 1961 |
Invitational Show, Scripps College, Claremont, CA |
| 1958 |
Group Show, Silvermine Guild of Artists, Silvermine, CT |
| 1956 |
"Young Americans and Young Scandanavians", Museum of Contemporary Crafts, New York, NY |
| 1954-64 |
Ceramic National Biennial Exhibition, Everson Museum, Syracuse, NY |
Selected Publications, Grants and Awards:
| 2004 |
500 Figures in Clay: Ceramic Artists Celebrate the Human Form, Veronika Gunter, Editor, Lark Books |
| 2003 |
"Louis Mendez: An Addiction to Heads", by Ronald A. Kuchta, Kerameiki Techni, Greece |
| 2002 |
"Searching the Ancient for the Contemporary - The Ceramics of Louis Mendez", by Ronald A. Kuchta, Ceramic Art & Perception, Australia |
| 2001 |
Lorenzo Il Magnifico, Award for Sculpture, Florence Biennale, Italy |
| 1999 |
Audubon Artists, Award for Sculpture, New York City |
| 1994 |
New Jersey Eye on the Arts, Channel 6 Documentary, NJ |
| 1992 |
Sculpting Clay by Leon Nigrosh, USA |
| 1989 |
Claywork by Leon Nigrosh, USA |
| 1983 |
People, People, Cablevision Documentary, (1983), NY |
| 1966 |
Carleton Atherton Memorial Award, Columbus Gallery of Fine Arts, OH |
| 1964 |
Louis Comfort Tiffany Award for Design and Development of Architectural Ceramics, USA |
Professional Activity:
| 2005 |
Adjunct Professor of Ceramics, New Jersey City University, Jersey City, NJ |
| 2005 |
Pottery, Mask and Sculpture Workshops, Manhattan Redevelopment Houses, New York, NY |
| 2004 |
Clay Handbuilding Sculpture and Pottery Workshop, Monmouth County Park, Lincroft, NJ |
| 2003-05 |
Clay Handbuilding Sculpture and Pottery Workshops, Clay Education Center, Lodi NJ |
| 2002-03 |
Sculpture in Clay Lecture and Workshop, Art+Clay, Santa Fe, NM |
| 2002 |
Artist-in-Residence, A Fuego Lento, Valle de Bravo, Mexico |
| 2001 |
Artist-in Residence, Juniata College, Huntingdon, PA |
| 1999-Present |
Instructor, Ceramic Sculpture, 92nd Street Y, New York, NY |
| 1965-1968 |
Associate Professor of Art, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH |
| 1963-1965 |
Assistant Professor of Art, Philadelphia College of Art, Philadelphia, PA |
Selected Collections:
Amherst College, Amherst, MA
Columbia Museum of Art, Columbia, SC
Lima Art Museum, Lima, OH
Memorial Art Gallery, Rochester, NY
Mint Museum of Craft & Design, Charlotte, NC
Museo del Barrio, New York, NY
Museum of Art and Design, New York, NY
New Jersey City University Foundation, Jersey City, NJ
New York Historical Society, Here is New York September 11 Photo Archive, New York, NY
Otterbein College, Westerville, OH
Schein-Joseph International Museum of Ceramic Art, NYS College of Ceramics at Alfred
Artist's Statement
The plastic qualities of clay have held me spellbound from the time I made my first pot on the wheel and fashioned my first sculpture. Over the course of my career, I have explored many different modes of expression: fabrication, form, function, color, texture, style and scale. My work has ranged from miniature 1" high pieces to 9' high monoliths and 32' long ceramic and multimedia walls.Although I often produce work on a relatively intimate scale, my inspiration finds great fulfillment in the creation of wall-hung or freestanding sculptural works and totemic pieces. As a synthesis of organic and rock-like formations, these works are best expressed on a large scale. They are usually designed with architectural spaces in mind and are often created for defined interior and exterior locations.
My recent sculptural forms have explored the mystery and power of monolithic heads, figures and torsos. Originally inspired by works produced by the Olmec, Easter Island and Stonehenge cultures, these works have grown into a highly personal expression of the struggle between the internal and external forces shaping the human condition.
The mask, a universal vehicle of transformation in all its manifestations, has been another focus of my work. Each mask is yet another mysterious discovery of an ancient or contemporary mythology that speaks across cultural and temporal divides. The masks, and their larger siblings that I call "robots", are highly decorated with ever evolving incised, stamped and painted graphic patterns.
My earliest artistic involvement was in drawing and painting, media to which I have returned in recent years. I am especially intrigued by the process of layering multiple colors and gritty textures to enhance the expression and exploration of mysterious evocative and expressionistic images. This early interest in drawing and painting plays a continuing role in my work.
Born in New York City, I earned my BFA and MFA degrees in industrial design with a major in ceramics from the New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University. Although I have always maintained an independent studio and an active exhibition schedule, I have also held professional positions in both industry and higher education.
Studio: 421 West Broadway, 2nd Floor, New York, NY 10012
Tel: 212-334-4956 Fax: 413-832-4603
http://www. louis mendez.com E-mail: info@louismendez.com
The Artist
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