Annette Gates

bio

Annette Gates is a studio artist and educator living in Amherst, MA. With a BFA from the University of Colorado and an MFA from the University of Georgia, Annette currently teaches at the University of Hartford in Hartford CT. Residencies include: the International Ceramic Center in Denmark, The Hambidge Center in Georgia, and the Women’s Studio Workshop in Rosendale NY. Annette regularly teaches workshops for adults and teens nationally, and has taught workshops at craft centers such as Arrowmont in Gatlinburg, TN, The Kiln Studio in Fairhope, AL, and MudFire in Atlanta. She is currently Director of Ceramics Programming at Snow Farm, the New England Craft Program in Williamsburg, MA.

artist statement

At the core of this work are connections between process, form and surface, texture and touch, and the intimacy one finds in objects of a small scale. I make functional handbuilt pottery and sculptural installations with an underlying core emphasizing delicacy and strength.  

My functional work is created by hand-rolling sheets of porcelain, and cutting out shapes using templates. The process is deeply rooted in and influenced by patterns used in the sewing of garments, with many of the same considerations being made to change volume as the pieces are brought upright, from flat to round. Delicacy, balance and fullness of form are emphasized as surfaces are selectively embellished to show inscribed line drawings, and are finished with accents of glaze and small bits of fused glass inlay.