Carl Solway presents a major exhibition of ceramic sculpture and drawings by internationally recognized artist, Kirk Mangus (1952-2013).  The show includes more than 40 pieces created over a period of approximately 35 years, from the mid 1970s through 2013.  The works range from small ceramic cups, to medium-sized vases, to large pots and life-size sculptures to wildly imaginative drawings and watercolors. His prolific output draws from a staggering variety of influences, from comics to prehistoric representations of animals, modernist abstraction to West Coast 1970s Funk, African sculpture to Japanese woodblock prints.  His ceramics exhibit respect and affection for traditions as varied as North American folk pottery, Meso-American reliefs, and Asian vessels.  In addressing the question posed to ceramic artists regarding the distinction between functional objects and fine art, Mangus wryly stated,  “My work is useful to look at.”

Mangus became interested in ceramics as a teenager and he developed a life long passion for every aspect of the process, from digging his own clay to building his own kilns to producing an astonishing array of exuberant sculptures.  His work is known for its playful, gestural style, roughhewn forms and experimental glazing.  His highly animated surfaces are deeply incised, stamped or glazed with teeming figurative references – human body forms, animals, plants, etc.  His images are informed by his observations of friends, family and people on his travels near and far.  He invented his own definition of beauty.

Kirk Mangus (1952, Sharon, PA-2013, Kent, OH) was the Head of Ceramics at Kent State University from 1985-2013, where he was regarded as a beloved mentor to generations of students.  He received a B.F.A. from the Rhode Island School of Design and an M.F.A. from Washington State University, Pullman.  He lectured widely in China, Japan, Korea, France, Italy, Finland, Lithuania, Canada and throughout the United States.  His pottery wheel demonstrations were viewed as extraordinary performances.  He was the recipient of two National Endowment for the Arts grants, four Ohio Arts Council Fellowships, a Pennsylvania Council on the Arts Fellowship, and a McKnight Fellowship Residency at the Northern Clay Center in Minneapolis.

Mangus’s work is held in numerous collections including the Cleveland Museum of Art; Cranbrook Art Museum, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan; The Fabric Workshop, Philadelphia; DeYoung Museum, San Francisco; Finnish Craft Museum, Helsinki; Inchon World Ceramics Center, Suwon, Korea; and National Museum of Contemporary Art, Seoul, Korea. In 2014-2015, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Cleveland organized the major retrospective exhibition, Kirk Mangus: Things Love.