Guest Artists

Pottery by Pat Newton

Pat grew up in the small Indiana town of Logansport, attended Logansport High School, and graduated from Northwestern University.  Afterwards, he worked in Chicago for a number of years with the computer industry.  After many trips to Colorado and Utah, he moved to the Denver area in 1989.

In the early 1990’s, inspired by the landscape of Southern Utah, where he would often camp and hike, he began creating pottery.  His formal training has been at Red Rocks Community College where he continues to take classes. 

The firing techniques he uses are – raku, horsehair, saggar, burnishing - are low fire methods so the pieces remain somewhat porous, will not easily retain water, and are not food safe. He will occasionally do soda and wood firings as well.  His pottery is meant to be decorative rather than utilitarian as this allows him to experiment with shape, color, and design. 

He’s been greatly influenced by the colors of the Southwest, geometric designs, Anasazi pottery, the burnished pottery of Maria Martinez, and the pottery of Bob Smith. Generally, he does not like a blank pot so he will embellish it by carving into it or adding horsehair and terra sigillata (a smooth reflective clay coating).

Pottery by Mary Firestone

Mary Firestone was born and raised in North Carolina, where at a young age, she discovered her medium while playing with the indigenous red clay in her own backyard. She set her art on the back burner, however, while she pursued a botany degree at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

She now resides and works in Eden, a 4.5 acre garden she created in northeast Tippecanoe County. Mary is an Advanced Master Gardener, spending many volunteer hours “helping others grow.” Her love of plants and nature is evidenced in her choice of motifs and glaze colors in her pottery.

Her work consists of mostly functional items for the home and garden created in high-fired stoneware and porcelain. She encourages collectors of her pieces to enhance their lives by using art on a daily basis.

 

 Sculptures by Richard Gorden 

 

 

Wood Boxes by Jim Harper

We are pleased to have Jim Harper exclusivly join us as our "wood guy" at the Gallery.  After Phil Conlon had to stop creating his high quality boxes, he recommended Jim to take his place here at the Opera House Gallery.  Jim produces the most beautiful jewelry boxes that we have seen.  His jewelry boxes come with 5 lined removable shelves to carefully place ones valuable pieces. Each unique box comes with a label describing the species used in its construction.

He also creates other boxes that may be used for a variety of purposes or just to have on display.  One does not develop a full appreciation of Jim's work until you touch and feel the quality of his workmanship. 

 

  

Pottery by Gail Johnston

Gail is a studio potter working with stoneware, porcelain, and raku clays that require a multitude of decoration and firing approaches. Her pottery is unique and distinctive with special attention given to design, texture and form. Her work reveals a desire to reflect the beauty of creation. Representational sculpture is incorporated in many pieces that may develop into a thematic series. Gail’s present work is moving from the more functional dinnerware, fountains, sinks and vases to utilizing nature objects, such as seed pods, flowers, and shells for her inspiration in creating vases and wall hangings. 

 

  

Glass by Sharon Owens

Sharon is from Lafayette, Indiana.  She was born and raised in Lafayette, and moved away to learn glass blowing because there wasn’t any glass here.  Chemistry glass blowing at Purdue University is the first hands-on experience she could get.  From there, she had an apprenticeship at Florida for three years.  She learned cross-fires, using a neon set-up and used lead crystal (which is kind of unusual for most people).  From there, she was somewhat self-taught.  When the opportunity arose, she started taking as many classes as possible from different masters.  When she had the chance to travel, she went to Seattle; Corning, New York; North Carolina; and many other places to learn glass blowing because nothing was offered in the area.  Visit her web page, "Inspired Fire" for more information.