Arizona State University

The ASU Museum of Anthropology announces the opening of its concurrent spring exhibits: Simply Formal and Past Forms. A free public reception, including light refreshments, will be held 6-9 p.m., April 3. The exhibits run April 3-May 31.

Simply Formal, a contemporary ceramics exhibition organized by artist Susan Filley, comes to ASU in conjunction with the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts’ (NCECA) annual conference, Apr. 8-11. Simply Formal is unique in its elegance and sophistication. Twelve artists have been thoughtfully selected for the legacy of their work over many years. Their enduring attention to the effect of form in balance with other attributes speaks to their extraordinary understanding of the sense of presence that beautiful form embodies.

This exhibition, with an underlying element of historical reverence, steps away from what is now mainstream. The exhibition brings together artists who seek and embrace beauty in the power and strength of form. They share a consummate challenge to let the simplicity of form, be it quietly elegant or decisively dramatic, carry the work to completion.

Graduate students in ASU’s museum anthropology program have created Past Forms, an assemblage of archaeological and historical ceramic pieces from collections at the university. These pieces represent a diverse range of times and cultures. Presented together, they inspire reflection on the timeless continuity of handmade forms and their social and aesthetic significance.

The ASU Museum of Anthropology is open 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. when school is in session. For more information about the exhibits and upcoming events, contact the museum at 480-965-6224, or visit asuma.asu.edu. The ASU Museum of Anthropology is located in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change Building, room 240, on ASU’s Tempe campus. A map of ASU’s museum locations is online at asu.edu/museums/map.htm.   

SOURCE:
Catherine Nichols, anthro.museum@asu.edu
480-965-6224