Grossnickle Displays Pottery In Smithsonian Craft Show
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David Slone-dslone@timesuniononline.com
Only 121 artists were accepted to the Smithsonian Craft Show, including Warsaw Community High School 1996 graduate Brian Grossnickle. Forty-four of the 121 artists were new to the craft show this year. Of the new artists, Brian received a “best of show” ribbon. The juried art show and sale of fine American craft in Washington, D.C., was April 19-22 at the National Building Museum. First lady Michelle Obama is an honory chair of the craft show. Brian’s mother, Lori, said it’s a “very prestigious” show. Judges included Lloyd E. Herman, Jo Lauria and David Revere McFadden. Brian, a 2000 DePauw graduate, now lives in Tiejeras, New Mexico. He is married with two children. Lori said exhibitors at the craft show came from all over the country. This was the first year Brian applied to be in the show, Lori said, and he was notified he was accepted in November. The exhibitor across from Brian tried for 15 years before being accepted, she said. Lori said the Smithsonian purchased three of Brian’s pieces for the museum since he won a “best of show” honor. However, she didn’t know where the pieces were going to go. Brian took 87 of his pieces to the craft show, and came back with only eight, Lori said. She said Brian has his work at a gallery in Santa Fe, N.M., above Café Pasquale. He works in Micaceous Clay Cookware. The clay comes from the mountains, and Brian’s pieces are all hand built. He throws it, and none of it is done on the wheel. He bakes it in an open fire. No glaze is used, Lori said. Brian mentored under an Apache medicine man, master potter Felipe Ortega, Lori said, to learn how to make his pottery. “This is kind of what Native Americans did,” Lori said of Brian’s pottery. For more information, visit the craft shows’ website at smithsoniancraftshow.org; or Brian’s website at www.briangrossnickle.com
