Natalie receives Award of Excellence!

Natalie received a 2010 Award of Excellence from the American Craft Council at The American Craft Council Show in Baltimore, February 25-28. Eight talented artists were selected from more than 700 of the nation’s leading contemporary craft artists to receive this honor. Six awards were presented to artists whose overall body of exhibited work demonstrated the best understanding or interpretation of the elements of art and design, a mastery of materials and techniques, imagination, inventiveness and individuality, and aesthetic consistency. Additionally, two awards were bestowed for “Best Booth Design,” which emphasized excellence in the relationship between the artist’s work and their booth designs and displays.

Here’s what the ACC had to say: “Our second Award of Excellence was given to Natalie Blake, a ceramic artist who creates beautifully embellished vessel forms and sculptural wall tiles. Josephine and Jane both appreciated the cohesive nature of Natalie’s designs, in which she carves the sinuous lines of trees and underwater plants into the clay and highlights them in black on brightly colored vessels and 3-D wall works. The jurors also appreciated the modular nature of Natalie’s wall tiles, which can be purchased individually or as groups, allowing a collector to build up a substantial installation over time.”

Jane Milosch, curator for contemporary craft and decorative arts at the Smithsonian American Art Museum (Renwick Gallery); and Josephine Shea, curator of the Edsel & Eleanor Ford Hours, a historic house museum outside of Detroit, served as jurors for the 2009 Awards of Excellence at the 33rd annual Baltimore show.

Natalie to exhibit at Tell Tale Tiles and Fractured Fantasies

Natalie will be exhibiting her piece “Tree of Life” in the Tell-Tale Tiles & Fractured Fantasies exhibit, March 19 – April 19 2010 at the Philadelphia Magic Gardens, Philadelphia, PA. The exhibit explores contemporary tile making and ceramic mosaic as a story-telling medium in the spirit of artists Henry Chapman Mercer and Isaiah Zagar. The scope of the exhibition will be broadened to include social, political, personal and family stories. The exhibition is co-presented by Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens and theTile Heritage Foundation. The exhibition will be held at Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens, 1020-1026 South Street, Isaiah Zagar’s enormous mosaic labyrinth. The venue will provide a space for tile and mosaic artists from around the country and abroad to make powerful statements in their medium that are socially meaningful to both themselves and the community.

Here’s the narrative that will accompany Natalie’s tile piece: “The Tree of Life, a universal symbol found in many spiritual traditions, is a symbol of healing, growth and regeneration. Tall and strong, it has deep roots. It reaches skyward. It loses its leaves and grows new ones; it gives shelter. With nurture and care, it lives for generations. A tree also bears seeds or fruits, which contain the essence of the tree, and this continuous regeneration is a potent symbol of immortality.

The resounding feature of my work is the appearance of softness and lushness, as if one is looking at a wall textile. The work invites the hand to flow over the carved lines. The fluidity of the carved lines, combined with the strength and solidity of the imagery provides energy and a welcoming presence in any room.”