[VIDEO] Fine Art Pottery on Exhibit in Ankeny

The artists of Omaha Clay works will be displaying as a group at the Ankeny Art Center from June 3rd to July 27th. Omaha Clay Works is a fully equipped facility which offers a unique opportunity for those interested in clay art. The facility provides classes, studio space for working clay artists and a small sales gallery. Artist Tom Harnack, owner and founder of Omaha Clay works, will be displaying his work and will also be speaking after the opening reception at the Ankeny Art Center on Thursday, June 5th from 5:00pm to 7:00pm.

Both the exhibit and reception is free and open to the public.

Tom started working in clay in the mid-70’s at an early age. By the time he reached junior high school, he could center and throw with proficiency and achieved Scholastic awards throughout high school, including the 1984 Director Award in Ames, Iowa. He later received an art scholarship to the University of Northern Iowa and studied ceramics until 1987 when the program was closed down. Tom then moved onto an apprenticeship doing production pottery in central Iowa for a year.

In 1988, he moved to Omaha to work in an old brickyard called Omaha Brick Works. The owner, Maurice Cullen, has supported both national and international clay artists to work and fire with the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts. It was there he met Jun Kaneko and worked with him on the Fremont California Project. In 1992 he was accepted into the graduate program at the University of Iowa and by 1995 achieved his Master of Fine Arts degree. Tom then moved back to Omaha and taught classes for Metropolitan Community College and Iowa Western Community College along with furthering his work as a professional artist.

In the fall of 1997 Tom was invited to Shigaraki, Japan to work with Taku Kawasaki. It was there he met Shiho Kanzaki and fired with him for 10 days in a traditional anagama wood firing kiln. "It inspired me to return to Nebraska and build a 300 cu/ft anagama kiln into the side of a hill in Fort Calhoun, Nebraska. Since then, the kiln has been fired 42 times in the last decade. It takes two days to load 300-400 pieces of work, firing 6-7 days to reach temperatures of 2400º F. with 14 days of cooling." –Tom Harnack

"The color and the aesthetic value of the pieces are determined by the position, placement in the kiln and the wood that is used. Each piece is unique and made by kiln design, the clay that is formulated, and the process in which we proceed that makes the art work one of a kind. The work I produce is about being self-sufficient, creating my own energy and glazes (ash). It is a conscience state of moving away from dependence. I try to understand each part of the process in which I am involved."-Tom Harnack

Tom was a recipient of the Greenfield scholarship as an Artist in Residence at the Armory Arts Center in West Palm Beach, Florida. There he built a number of kilns and worked with the Lighthouse School of Art in Tequesta, Florida. In the spring of 2005, Tom built a kiln and conducted a two-week workshop in Arrezzo, Italy with Terry Thommes, a sculptor from Stuart, Florida.

In 2000, Tom Harnack opened Omaha Clay Works in the Old Market with Dan Toberer. Omaha Clay Works provides working space, gallery and a teaching facility for local artists. OCW has an accomplished a history of supporting clay in the surrounding area as an educational facility, as well as some of the finest clay being produced in the area.

The Ankeny Art Center is located at 1520 SW Ordnance Road, (Ankeny) in a city park at SW Third and State Front Road. Gallery hours are Tuesday and Wednesday 9 am to 1 pm, Thursday 4 pm to 7 pm, Friday 9am to 1pm and Saturday 9 am to noon. The Center is closed Sunday and Monday. For more information about the Ankeny Art Center, please visit http://www.ankenyartcenter.com.

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