Mystery Pot 33 Maker Bennett Bean

Mystery Pot 33 Maker Bennett Bean

Bennett Bean was one of the most notable American potters to come out of the 1960s. Best known for his pit-fired vessels, he continues to create artwork in a variety of materials from his studio in New Jersey.

Coming from a fine arts background with a focus on painting and sculpture, Bennett soon found himself in the mid-60s focusing on clay. He rapidly came to embrace the pleasures and challenges of the medium. Under the tutelage of Paul Soldner, he finished his Master's Degree in Fine Art at Claremont.

After teaching art for many years at Wagner College in New York, Bennett became a full-time studio artist in 1979. It was at that time he was beginning to develop his signature style which included rich and vibrant painted surfaces on pit-fired vessels. Using non-traditional materials on the pit fired surfaces, he created a new conversation about what clay could be, what a pot could be, and how an artist could go about creating a vessel in a new and dynamic way. He used acrylic paint here and there on his work which caused some controversy at the time. The vessels were stunning. Bennett was rapidly thrown on to the fast track with demands for shows and commissions. Our piece from the Bailey Collection comes from that period of time.

By 1983 Bennett was using 24-carat gold leaf on the interiors of his bowls. He was beginning to slice and manipulate his work into fluid rolling vessels which incorporated his complex surfaces with the increasingly complex forms. This work is more about painting and sculpture and certainly called on his earlier training in both. But, the reference to the vessel as a metaphor for containment was always present.


This is from a conversation with my husband, Jim Bailey, about Bennett when they both attended the Rhinebeck Craft Fair 40 years ago: 

"Bennett Bean and I go way back as exhibitors at the groundbreaking Rhinebeck Craft Fair of the 1970s. Originally run by the American Craft Council, it was the most prestigious craft show in the United States. It opened up the idea that fine-art educated artists could work in traditional craft materials to create something bold and new. And they did. It was a truly exciting time and many successful careers were launched from that glorious show.

It was around 1976. I can still recall talking to Bennett in his booth about his work. At the time he was making abstract airbrushed designs on unglazed pots. It was a period of intense creativity for many people and Bennett quickly moved forward with his work, making traditional pit-fired vessels with bright colorful painted surfaces. These break out pots were now incorporating his paintings in both glaze and acrylic paint. From there, his work exploded with an amazing array of dynamic patterns and bright colors.

His work was controversial at the time because of his use of acrylic paint on the clay surfaces of his work. In fact, it was this liberation, that allowed him to make some of the most exciting and successful work of that time period. Bennett changed the rules.

In the mid-80s Bennett called me to see if I could make him an extruder to create large columns for garden pagodas. Intrigued with the challenge, I designed a giant one-of-a-kind pneumatic extruder. The Mystery Pot from the Bailey Collection was a partial payment for this cool tool I built for him.

Over the years, I have been impressed with Bennett's endless creativity. He has explored many avenues of expression. His talents and energy seem limitless."

Outdoor Garden Pagoda by Bennett Bean

Bennett Bean's ceramic work can be found in numerous prestigious private collections. You can view his work in the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Newark Museum, the Smithsonian, and the Whitney Museum of American Art.
 

Bennett continues to make beautiful ceramic work but has also ventured into designing rugs, furniture and gardening utensils. He is a man of many talents!

www.bennettbean.com



We hope when you are near Kingston, New York you will visit us to see the Bailey Ceramic Collection. Made up of over 500 works they are all showcased in our offices.

Thank you for your interest in Mystery Pot. It is our way of sharing some of the history and evolution of the contemporary studio pottery movement.



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