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Alice Kagawa Parrott papers

Creator:
Parrott, Alice Kagawa, 1929-2009  Search this
Extent:
7.1 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Date:
circa 1950-2010
Summary:
The papers of Japanese American fiber artist and ceramicist Alice Kagawa Parrott measure 7.1 linear feet and date from circa 1950 to 2010. The papers document Parrott's career as a textile artist and weaver based in Santa Fe, New Mexico. There is a small amount of biographical material; correspondence with family, friends, and art institutions; personal business records mostly of financial records related to Parrott's business The Market later known as Parrott Fabrics Inc.; studio practice files related to equiment, materials, and designs for wall hangings, clothes, and tapestries; printed material such as exhibition catalogs and clippings mostly on Parrott and her arwork but also on other artists; and photographs and slides of Parrott, her weavings, family and friends, and her studio and home.
Scope and Contents:
The papers of Japanese American fiber artist and ceramicist, Alice Kagawa Parrott, measure 7.1 linear feet and date from circa 1950 to 2010. The collection mainly documents Parrott's work as a fiber artist based in Santa Fe, New Mexico. There is a small amount of biographical material; correspondence with family, friends, and colleagues; personal business records mostly of financial records related to Parrott's business The Market later known as Parrott Fabrics Inc.; studio practice files related to equiment, materials, and designs for wall hangings, clothes, and tapestries; printed material such as exhibition catalogs and clippings mostly on Parrott and her arwork but also on other artists; and photographs and slides of Parrott, her weavings, family and friends, her studio and home, and dyeing process.
Arrangement:
The collection is arranged as 6 series.

Series 1: Biographical Material, circa 1957-2009 (0.3 linear feet; Box 1)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1953-2009 (1.2 linear feet; Boxes 1-2)

Series 3: Personal Business Records, circa 1957-2009 (1.9 linear feet; Boxes 2-4, 9)

Series 4: Studio Practice Files, 1951-2005 (2.2 linear feet; Boxes 4-6, 9)

Series 5: Printed Material, 1954-2008 (0.8 linear feet; Boxes 6-7, 9)

Series 6: Photographic Material, circa 1950-2010 (0.7 linear feet; Boxes 7-9)
Biographical / Historical:
Alice Kagawa Parrott (1929-2009) was a Japanese American fiber artist and ceramicist based in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Parrott was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, in 1929 to Takato and Isono Kagawa who were Japanese immigrants. She graduated from the University of Hawaii at Manoa in 1952, then studied weaving at Cranbrook Academy of Art, where she met ceramicist Toshiko Takaezu, who became a lifelong friend. After graduating from Cranbrook in 1954, she taught weaving and ceramics at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

In 1956, she married Allen Morgan Parrott and they moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico, where they bought a home and adopted their sons Ben and Tim. Also that year, she opened a weaving and craft shop called The Market, which later became Parrott Fabrics Inc. Parrott had many commissions and customers, such as the woodworker Sam Maloof. A notable early commission was from the Santa Fe Opera. From 1971-1972, Parrott was an artist-in-residence in Maui, where she taught workshops and created tapestries for several public commissions. In 1977, she became an American Craft Council Fellow. Parrott participated in numerous exhibitions over the course of her career. Parrott passed away in 2009 in Santa Fe.
Provenance:
The Alice Kagawa Parrott papers were donated in 2019 by Paul Kagawa and Diane Leavitt, trustees of the Alice Kagawa Parrott Family Trust.
Restrictions:
This collection is open for research. Access to original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C. Research Center.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Artists -- New Mexico -- Santa Fe  Search this
Ceramicists -- New Mexico  Search this
Topic:
Women artists  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Asian American art  Search this
Japanese American art  Search this
Asian American fiber artists  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Citation:
Alice Kagawa Parrott papers, circa 1950-2010. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.parralic
See more items in:
Alice Kagawa Parrott papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9288e78de-5af2-41d7-a866-c6c2f8e67ec0
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-parralic
Online Media:

Patti Warashina papers

Creator:
Warashina, Patti, 1940-  Search this
Names:
Lee Nordness Galleries  Search this
Currier, Anne, 1950-  Search this
Kottler, Howard, 1930-1989  Search this
Lipofsky, Marvin, 1938-2016  Search this
Lucero, Michael, 1953-  Search this
Sperry, Robert, 1927-1998  Search this
Extent:
4.8 Linear feet
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Video recordings
Photographs
Date:
circa 1900-1991
bulk 1970-1989
Summary:
The papers of ceramicist and sculptor Patti Warashina (b. 1940) date from circa 1900 and 1957 through 1991, bulk 1970-1989. The collection consists of 4.8 linear feet of correspondence and printed material reflecting the many ceramic and craft exhibitions and other projects Warashina participated in throughout the United States, and her associations with other ceramicists. Also included are biographical documents, writings, art works, several photographs, and a video.
Scope and Content Note:
The Patti Warashina papers measure 4.8 linear feet and date from circa 1900 and 1957 through 1991 (bulk 1970-1989). The collection documents the artistic and teaching career of Seattle-based sculptor and ceramicist Patti Warashina predominantly through correspondence and printed material reflecting the many ceramic and craft exhibitions and other projects Warashina participated in throughout the United States, and her associations with other ceramicists. Also included are biographical documents, writings, art works, several photographs, and a video.

Biographical material includes family trees, diplomas, awards, and documents relating to Warashina's family Japanese internment during WWII. Correspondence, 1968-1991, relating to exhibitions and other projects, is with galleries, museums, purchasers, publishers, and others, among them the Lee Nordness Gallery (N.Y.), Morgan Gallery (Kansas City), and Theo Portney Gallery (Seattle). Additional correspondence files contain letters received, 1977-1990, many addressed to Warashina and her husband Bob (Robert Sperry), from friends, colleagues, former students and family members, including Nancy Carmen, Anne Currier, Deborah Horrell, Matthew Kangas, Howard Kottler, Marvin Lipofsky, Michael Lucero, and others.

Ten photographs, circa 1900-1944, are portraits of Warashina's relatives and family, and several snapshots, circa 1970s, are of former students and works of art. Printed material, 1961-1990, includes newspaper and magazine clippings, programs, journals, newsletters, exhibition announcements, exhibition catalogs, and workshop announcements for Warashina's various sculpture and ceramic lectures. Writings include both published and unpublished works by Warashina, including an artist's statement for a possible lecture at the 1986 conference of the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA). Also found here are handwritten notes on a panel discussion titled Cultural and Racial Heritage: Sources and Imagery in which Warashina was a participant along with artists Aminah Brenda Lynn Robinson, MarĂ­a Brito Avellana, and Indira Johnson. Art work consists of blue line drawings for her sculpture "Red Earth," 1986 as well as a pen and ink sketch of Warashina by an unidentified artist. A videocassette, 1987, is of the television program "The Big A: Different Ways of Seeing", in which Warashina appears briefly.
Arrangement:
The Patti Warashina papers are arranged as seven series based primarily on type of material. The correspondence in Series 2 is arranged chronologically for exhibitions and projects and general letters received. Additional letters received are arranged by name of author.

Missing Title

Series 1: Biographical Material, 1974-1991, undated (Box 1; 3 folders)

Series 2: Correspondence, 1957, 1967-1991, undated (Boxes 1-3; 2.0 linear feet)

Series 3: Photographs, circa 1900- circa 1959, 1971, undated (Box 3; 3 folders)

Series 4: Printed Material, 1961-1990, undated (Boxes 3-6, OV 7; 2.0 linear feet)

Series 5: Writings and Notes, 1984, 1986, 1989, undated (Box 6; 4 folders)

Series 6: Artwork, 1986, undated (Box 6; 2 folders)

Series 7: Miscellany, 1987, undated (Box 6; 2 folders)
Biographical Note:
Patti Warashina is a Japanese American ceramicist and sculptor. She was born in 1940 as Masae Patricia Warashina in Spokane, Washington to third generation Japanese emigrants. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Washington, Seattle, where she studied with sculptors Robert Sperry, Harold Myers, Rudy Autio, Shoji Hamada, Shinsaku Hamada, and Ruth Penington. She received her first solo exhibition in 1962 at the Phoenix Art Gallery in Seattle the same year she graduated with an M.F.A. from the University of Washington. Warashina later married fellow student Fred Bauer and from 1964 to 1970 exhibited as Patti Bauer.

Influences in Warashina's art include California funk and sculptural ceramics. Her work is best known for its whimsical themes expressed through low-fire highly colored figurative images. Together with fellow artists Robert Sperry, Howard Kottler and Fred Bauer, she brought national recognition to the department of ceramics at the University of Washington's School of Art beginning in the 1980s.

Patti Warashina is a recipient of several awards for achievements in the field of crafts, most recently the Twining Humber Award granted by Seattle's Artists Trust in 2002. She received the Governor's Award of Special Commendation for the Arts in 1980 in addition to grants from the National Endowment for the Arts in both 1975 and 1986. In 1978, Warashina was awarded a World Craft Council Travel Grant which allowed her to conduct research on the ceramic arts process in Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Bali and the Philippines. Warashina's teaching career spans over 30 years and includes positions at the University of Wisconsin, Eastern Michigan University, and at her alma mater where she has taught for over 25 years. Her work is featured in several museum collections in both the U.S. and abroad including the American Craft Museum in New York, the Seattle Art Museum and Henry Art Gallery, the Smithsonian American Art Museum's Renwick Gallery (Washington, DC), the Art Gallery of Western Australia, and the Ichon World Ceramic Center in Korea. Since her marriage to ceramicist Robert Sperry in 1976, she has used Patti Warashina as her professional name. Patti Warashina is a resident of Seattle, Washington.
Provenance:
The Patti Warashina papers were donated by the artist to the Archives of American Art in 1991.
Restrictions:
The collection is open for research. Use requires an appointment.
Rights:
The Archives of American Art makes its archival collections available for non-commercial, educational and personal use unless restricted by copyright and/or donor restrictions, including but not limited to access and publication restrictions. AAA makes no representations concerning such rights and restrictions and it is the user's responsibility to determine whether rights or restrictions exist and to obtain any necessary permission to access, use, reproduce and publish the collections. Please refer to the Smithsonian's Terms of Use for additional information.
Occupation:
Ceramicists -- Washington (State) -- Seattle  Search this
Sculptors -- Washington (State) -- Seattle  Search this
Topic:
Japanese American families -- Photographs  Search this
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Japanese American art  Search this
Japanese American artists  Search this
Asian American sculptors  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women ceramicists  Search this
Women sculptors  Search this
Genre/Form:
Video recordings
Photographs
Citation:
Patti Warashina papers, circa 1990-1991, bulk 1970-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Identifier:
AAA.warapatt
See more items in:
Patti Warashina papers
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw959631d63-cd0b-4c29-b6df-dadc4b149ee0
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-warapatt
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Fong Chow, 2002 February 6

Interviewee:
Chow, Fong, 1923-  Search this
Interviewer:
Carney, Margaret, 1949-  Search this
Subject:
Parker, Glidden  Search this
Alfred University  Search this
Glidden Pottery (Alfred, N.Y.)  Search this
Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.)  Search this
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Type:
Interviews
Sound recordings
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Fong Chow, 2002 February 6. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Art -- Technique  Search this
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Chinese American art  Search this
Chinese American artists  Search this
Decorative arts  Search this
Asian American photographers  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Asian American curators  Search this
Ceramics  Search this
Theme:
Asian American  Search this
Photography  Search this
Craft  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)12375
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)229517
AAA_collcode_chow02
Theme:
Asian American
Photography
Craft
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_229517
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Jun Kaneko, 2005 May 23- 24

Interviewee:
Kaneko, Jun, 1942-  Search this
Interviewer:
McInnes, Mary  Search this
Subject:
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Type:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Jun Kaneko, 2005 May 23- 24. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Art -- Economic aspects  Search this
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Decorative arts  Search this
Asian American sculptors  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Ceramicists -- Nebraska -- Interviews  Search this
Theme:
Asian American  Search this
Craft  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)12628
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)252375
AAA_collcode_kaneko05
Theme:
Asian American
Craft
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_252375
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Patti Warashina, 2005 September 8

Interviewee:
Warashina, Patti, 1940-  Search this
Interviewer:
Jeck, Doug, 1963-  Search this
Subject:
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Type:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Patti Warashina, 2005 September 8. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Decorative arts  Search this
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Japanese American art  Search this
Japanese American artists  Search this
Asian American sculptors  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Theme:
Asian American  Search this
Craft  Search this
Women  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)12864
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)255215
AAA_collcode_warash05
Theme:
Asian American
Craft
Women
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_255215
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Toshiko Takaezu, 2003 June 16

Interviewee:
Takaezu, Toshiko, 1922-2011  Search this
Interviewer:
Williams, Gerald, 1926-2014  Search this
Subject:
Horan, Claude.  Search this
Grotell, Maija  Search this
Cleveland Institute of Art  Search this
Cranbrook Academy of Art  Search this
Princeton University  Search this
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Type:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Toshiko Takaezu, 2003 June 16. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Asian American women artists  Search this
Decorative arts  Search this
Japanese American art  Search this
Japanese American artists  Search this
Japanese American women artists  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women potters  Search this
Ceramics  Search this
Theme:
Asian American  Search this
Women  Search this
Craft  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)12097
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)256539
AAA_collcode_takaez03
Theme:
Asian American
Women
Craft
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_256539
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Akio Takamori, 2009 March 20-21

Interviewee:
Takimori, Akio, 1950-  Search this
Interviewer:
Riedel, Mija, 1958-  Search this
Subject:
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Type:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Citation:
Quotes and excerpts must be cited as follows: Oral history interview with Akio Takamori, 2009 March 20-21. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Japanese American art  Search this
Japanese American artists  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Theme:
Asian American  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)15660
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)282416
AAA_collcode_takamo09
Theme:
Asian American
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_oh_282416
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Toshiko Takaezu

Interviewee:
Takaezu, Toshiko  Search this
Interviewer:
Williams, Gerald, 1926-2014  Search this
Creator:
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Names:
Cleveland Institute of Art -- Faculty  Search this
Cranbrook Academy of Art -- Students  Search this
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Princeton University -- Faculty  Search this
Grotell, Maija  Search this
Horan, Claude.  Search this
Extent:
33 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
2003 June 16
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Toshiko Takaezu conducted 2003 June 16, by Gerry Williams, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, in Quakertown, N.J.
Takaezu describes growing up in Hawaii in a large family; her first work as a commercial potter; working with Claude Horan; how religion factors into her work; studying ceramics at Cranbrook Academy of Art with Maija Grotell; the role of universities and apprenticeships in the craft movement; teaching at Princeton and the Cleveland Institute of Art; visiting artists in Japan; setting up a studio in Clinton, N.J.; her teaching philosophy; the evolution of her work from functional to closed vessels; the inside of her large pots; the importance of color and glazes; her career highlights; the inspiration she finds in nature; her role in political and social activities; her relationship with galleries, including Perimeter and Charles Cowles Gallery; her exhibition history; and the changing face of the American craft movement. She also recalls Claude Horan, Maija Grotell, Otagaki Rengetsu, Kaneshige, Rosanjin, Jeff Schlanger, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Toshiko Takaezu (1922-2011) was a Japanese American ceramist of Quakertown, New Jersey. Gerry Williams (1926- ) is the co-founder and former editor of Studio Potter in Dunbarton, New Hampshire. Takaezu's birth date is also cited as 1929.
General:
Originally recorded on 1 sound cassette. Reformatted in 2010 as 2 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 38 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Occupation:
Ceramicists -- New Jersey  Search this
Topic:
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Asian American women artists  Search this
Decorative arts  Search this
Japanese American art  Search this
Japanese American artists  Search this
Japanese American women artists  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women potters  Search this
Ceramics  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.takaez03
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw922563297-8b8e-452b-bb2b-c8485197f8a8
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-takaez03
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Jun Kaneko

Interviewee:
Kaneko, Jun, 1942-  Search this
Interviewer:
McInnes, Mary, 1956-  Search this
Creator:
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Names:
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Extent:
43 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
2005 May 23- 24
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Jun Kaneko conducted 2005 May 23-24, by Mary Drach McInnes, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, at the artist's studio, in Omaha, Nebraska.
Kaneko speaks of his parents and grandparents; growing up in Japan; taking art lessons as a child; moving to Los Angeles; living with ceramic collectors Fred and Mary Marer; attending Chouinard Art Institute; making and exhibiting his first ceramic pieces; working as a studio assistant to Peter Voulkos; being artist in residence at the Archie Bray Foundation; building his first studio; getting a graduate degree at Scripps College; returning to Japan and building a studio; being hired to teach at Cranbrook Academy of Art; working with art dealers; how the ceramics market has changed during his career; working in the international craft market; his current studio and living space; the inspiration for his work; his interest in patternmaking; making large-scale pieces; why he likes clay; selection of color; moving to Omaha; traveling and working on various projects; working at industrial sites; making ceramic tile walls; influential artists; how critics view his work; the future of ceramic art; and working in different media. Kaneko also recalls Jerry Rothman, Paul Soldner, Jim Melchert, Ralph Bacerra, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Jun Kaneko (1942- ) is a ceramicist and sculptor from Omaha, Nebraska. Mary Drach McInnes is an art history professor from Alfred Station, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded on 3 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 6 digital wav files. Duration is 3 hr., 43 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Occupation:
Ceramicists  Search this
Topic:
Art -- Economic aspects  Search this
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Decorative arts  Search this
Asian American sculptors  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Ceramicists -- Nebraska -- Interviews  Search this
Function:
Artists' studios
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.kaneko05
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw901dc71b9-3a7a-49be-be74-1b702e6bc68a
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-kaneko05
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Akio Takamori

Interviewee:
Takamori, Akio, 1950-  Search this
Interviewer:
Riedel, Mija, 1958-  Search this
Creator:
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Names:
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Extent:
8 Items (wav files (7 hr., 51 min.), digital)
184 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
2009 March 20-21
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Akio Takamori conducted 2009 March 20-21, by Mija Riedel, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, at Takamori's studio, in Seattle, Washington.
Interview of Akio Takamori, conducted by Mija Reidel for the Archives of American Art, in Seattle, Washington on March 20, 2009. Takamori speaks of growing up in Nobeoka, Japan where his father ran a medical clinic in a diverse part of town; the post war structure of society and the buildings themselves; his interest in art as a young childing drawing figural scenes; class and social situations he observed as a child; his father's interest in both Japanese and Western art; an interest in Peter Bruegel that turned into a lifelong inspiration; the role of politics in his family; moving to Miyazaki, Japan as a young teenager to live with his grandparents while going to school; joining the art club in high school and his fellow club mates who introduced him to more contemporary Japanese and European art; creating Happenings in high school; his interest in county folklore and superstitions and its eventual role in his art; the interaction between Western contemporaries and Japanese traditions in his work; his interest in art history; attending Musashino Art College in Tokyo, Japan where he majored in industrial ceramics; being dissatisfied with college; his political activism while in college; experimenting with paper mache to create three dimensional objects; the mingei movement; his apprenticeship in Koishiwara, Japan where he learned the fundamentals of functional potter; meeting lifelong friends such as Christ Holmquist and mentor Ken Ferguson while in Koishiwara; moving to the United States in 1974 and attending Kansas City Art Institute under the direction of Ferguson; various projects he undertook while finishing his degree at Kansas City; receiving his MFA from Alfred University, where he experimented with the idea of what contemporary art should be; his slab pieces; his first residency at the Archie Bray foundation in Helena, Montana and his continued relationship with the Foundation; traveling between Japan and the United States while acting as a substitute professor at various universities; his relationship with Garth Clark's gallery for over 20 years; teaching full time as a professor at the University of Washington in Seattle, beginning in 1993; the importance of stressing both technique and creativity; his joy at watching the development of his students; transitions in his work brought on each decade and through constant travel; the role of globalization in his work; the narrative of the group pieces he has created in recent years; his memory as constant inspiration and more recent projects, including larger, figurative works. Takamori also recalls Victor Babu, Val Cushing, Wayne Higby, Tony Hepburn, Ted Randall, Robert Turner, William Perry, Peter Voulkos, Rudy Autio, David Shaner, Jun Kaneko, Jamie Walker, Doug Jeck, Amie McNeel, Mark Zirpel, Patti Warashina, Viola Frey, Betty Woodman, Elizabeth Brown, Josh DeWeese and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Akio Takamori (1950-2017) was a Japanese American ceramist based in Seattle, Washington.
General:
Originally recorded on 4 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 8 digital wav files. Duration is 7 hr., 51 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Occupation:
Ceramicists -- Washington (State) -- Seattle  Search this
Topic:
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Japanese American art  Search this
Japanese American artists  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.takamo09
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9628dccf5-4268-4cbe-b7e0-00d9634d554b
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-takamo09
Online Media:

Oral history interview with Patti Warashina

Interviewee:
Warashina, Patti, 1940-  Search this
Interviewer:
Jeck, Doug, 1963-  Search this
Creator:
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Names:
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Extent:
42 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Sound recordings
Interviews
Date:
2005 September 8
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Patti Warashina conducted 2005 September 8, by Doug Jeck, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, at the artist's home and studio, in Seattle, Washington.
Warashina discusses her childhood in Spokane, Washington, as the youngest of three children of Japanese immigrants; her first experience with art, which was working on murals in elementary school; getting through school by doing visual art projects, including one on fashion design for a French class; her great-grandmother who sold pottery and rice off a cart in her native Japan; her working processes and moving from high-fire to low-fire glazes, as well as dealing with color and decoration in her work; making increasingly larger pieces and thus discovering more surfaces on which to paint; learning how to make hand-built pieces, and in general learning how to control her material; spending her early years working in a vacuum because she was busy raising a family during the day and working in the studio all night; the influence of Surrealism, the Funk movement, and the Chicago Hairy Who on her work; her love of clay as a medium because it presents challenges and technical variables that keep the work interesting; the status of clay as a valid artistic material, and how that has changed over the course of art history; her own personal definition of art as something that "raises your blood pressure," and what makes a "a good pot into a work of art instead of just a pot"; the difference between her early and later work, which she calls cumulative process; her move to the figure, which came naturally out of her earlier work and was in keeping with the Surrealist images to which she was so attracted; recent series of her work, including Mile Post Queens, and Sake Sets: The Drunken Power Series; the role of the figure in her work and the unique challenges they present; being a self-proclaimed "news junkie" and listening to jazz while she works; spending 30 years teaching and the influence it had on her career; her mother as a strong influence and role model in her life, as well as her mother's interest in crafts and gardening; and the influence of artists such as Hieronymous Bosch, RenĂ© Magritte and Joan MirĂ³ on her work. Warashina recalls Robert Sperry, Fred Bauer, Peter Voulkos, Robert Arneson, Toshiko Takaezu, Henry Takemoto, Garth Clark, Howard Cotler, Matthew Kangas, Warren McKenzie, Nan McKinnell, Bernard Leach, Shoji Hamada, Soetsu Yanagi, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Patti Warashina is a Japanese American ceramicist and sculptor. She was born in 1940 as Masae Patricia Warashina in Spokane, Washington to third generation Japanese emigrants. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Washington, Seattle, where she studied with sculptors Robert Sperry, Harold Myers, Rudy Autio, Shoji Hamada, Shinsaku Hamada, and Ruth Penington. She received her first solo exhibition in 1962 at the Phoenix Art Gallery in Seattle the same year she graduated with an M.F.A. from the University of Washington. Warashina later married fellow student Fred Bauer and from 1964 to 1970 exhibited as Patti Bauer.
General:
Originally recorded on 3 sound discs. Reformatted in 2010 as 5 digital wav files. Duration is 1 hr., 54 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Occupation:
Ceramicists -- Washington (State) -- Seattle  Search this
Topic:
Decorative arts  Search this
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Japanese American art  Search this
Japanese American artists  Search this
Asian American sculptors  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Genre/Form:
Sound recordings
Interviews
Identifier:
AAA.warash05
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw95bb0c061-8162-4c68-ba10-4674346eafbd
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-warash05
Online Media:

Margaret Carney interviews with ceramicists

Creator:
Carney, Margaret, 1949-  Search this
Names:
Gardner, Paul Vickers, 1908-1994  Search this
Woo, Margaret, 1928-  Search this
Extent:
0.02 Linear feet
0.749 Gigabytes
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Gigabytes
Interviews
Sound recordings
Date:
1993-2019
Scope and Contents:
Two interviews conducted by Margaret Carney, one with ceramicist Paul Vickers Gardner and one with Chinese American ceramicist, Marie Woo. Carney was compelled to interview Gardner and Woo out of interest. The interview with Gardner was conducted September 27, 1993 at Gardner's home in Washington, D.C. on two sound cassettes and is transcribed (42 pages.) The interview with Woo was conducted digitally on March 5, 2019 (74 minutes, 15 seconds) and is transcribed.
Biographical / Historical:
Margaret Carney (1949- ) is the Director of the Dinnerware Museum, Ann Arbor, Michigan and was the director of the Schein-Joseph International Museum of Ceramic Art in Alfred, N.Y. Carney used to go by the name Margaret Carney Xie.
Related Materials:
Also in the Archives of American Art are interviews of four ceramicists conducted by Margaret Carney for the Archives' Oral History Program, 2001 and 2002, including Val Cushing, Robert Chapman Turner, Fong Chow, and William Underhill.
Provenance:
Donated 2016 and 2019 by Margaret Carney.
Restrictions:
Use of original papers requires an appointment and is limited to the Archives' Washington, D.C., Research Center. Access to audiovisual recordings with no duplicate copy requires advance notice.
Occupation:
Ceramicists  Search this
Topic:
Ceramics  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Chinese American art  Search this
Chinese American artists  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Genre/Form:
Interviews
Sound recordings
Identifier:
AAA.carnmarg
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9fc286095-48f5-43e9-b508-1855df626b0e
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-carnmarg

Oral history interview with Fong Chow

Interviewee:
Chow, Fong  Search this
Interviewer:
Carney, Margaret, 1949-  Search this
Creator:
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Names:
Alfred University -- Students  Search this
Glidden Pottery (Alfred, N.Y.)  Search this
Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, N.Y.) -- Employees  Search this
Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America  Search this
Parker, Glidden, 1913-1980  Search this
Extent:
27 Pages (Transcript)
Type:
Collection descriptions
Archival materials
Pages
Interviews
Sound recordings
Date:
2002 February 6
Scope and Contents:
An interview of Fong Chow conducted February 6, 2002, by Margaret Carney, for the Archives of American Art's Nanette L. Laitman Documentation Project for Craft and Decorative Arts in America, at Chow's home, in New York, N.Y.
Chow speaks of his family, specifically, his grandfather who was sent to Hartford, Connecticutt, in 1874, for schooling, then studied at Columbia University and returned to China, working as general manager of one of the earliest railroads in north China; the schools Chow attended in Hong Kong; working in different media, including painting and photography; attending the Boston Museum School and then Alfred University; his relationship with Charles Harder, the head of the ceramic design department at Alfred; the "wonderful" teachers at Alfred in the early 1950s, including Katharine Nelson in painting, Marion Fosdick in sculpture, Daniel Rhodes and Ted Randall; learning production methods, as well as "studio potters work"; developing forms, new glazes, and decorations at Glidden Pottery; his "famous" pieces for Glidden Pottery, such as "New Equations" and "Charcoal and Rice"; how he became involved with the Metropolitan Museum of Art and his relationship with Alan Priest, curator of Far Eastern art; working at the Met as a curator for more than 20 years; changes at the Met during his tenure there; and his hiatus from making ceramics while working at the Met. He discusses his return to clay in 1983 and his studio near Cooper Union; he describes visiting his best friend from childhood, Pan He, a sculptor in China. He also discusses his health; his wife Chao-Ling and how they met; his current focus on photography. Chow also recalls Glidden Parker, James Romer, Bo Gyllensvard, Sergio Dello Strologo, Theodore Hobby, Paul Bollardo, Norman Arsenault, and others.
Biographical / Historical:
Fong Chow (1923- ) is a Chinese American ceramicist, curator, and photographer from New York, N.Y. Margaret Carney (1949- ) is the director of the Schein Joseph International Museum of Ceramic Art in Alfred, N.Y.
General:
Originally recorded 3 sound cassettes. Reformatted in 2010 as 5 digital wav files. Duration is 2 hr., 41 min.
Provenance:
This interview is part of the Archives of American Art Oral History Program, started in 1958 to document the history of the visual arts in the United States, primarily through interviews with artists, historians, dealers, critics and administrators.
Restrictions:
Transcript available on the Archives of American Art website.
Occupation:
Ceramicists -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Photographers -- New York (State) -- New York  Search this
Topic:
Art -- Technique  Search this
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Chinese American art  Search this
Chinese American artists  Search this
Decorative arts  Search this
Asian American photographers  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Asian American curators  Search this
Ceramics  Search this
Genre/Form:
Interviews
Sound recordings
Identifier:
AAA.chow02
Archival Repository:
Archives of American Art
GUID:
https://n2t.net/ark:/65665/mw9f01edc96-bb0b-4ce0-bb04-22e0907cd4c7
EDAN-URL:
ead_collection:sova-aaa-chow02
Online Media:

Alice Kagawa Parrott papers, circa 1950-2010

Creator:
Parrott, Alice Kagawa, 1929-2009  Search this
Citation:
Alice Kagawa Parrott papers, circa 1950-2010. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Women artists  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Asian American art  Search this
Japanese American art  Search this
Asian American fiber artists  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Theme:
Asian American  Search this
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)21722
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)398595
AAA_collcode_parralic
Theme:
Asian American
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_398595

Patti Warashina papers, circa 1900-1991, bulk 1970-1989

Creator:
Warashina, Patti, 1940-  Search this
Subject:
Lipofsky, Marvin  Search this
Lucero, Michael  Search this
Kottler, Howard  Search this
Sperry, Robert  Search this
Currier, Anne  Search this
Lee Nordness Galleries  Search this
Type:
Video recordings
Photographs
Citation:
Patti Warashina papers, circa 1900-1991, bulk 1970-1989. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Japanese American families -- Photographs  Search this
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Japanese American art  Search this
Japanese American artists  Search this
Asian American sculptors  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Women ceramicists  Search this
Women sculptors  Search this
Theme:
Craft  Search this
Women  Search this
Asian American  Search this
Lives of artists  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)5577
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)214325
AAA_collcode_warapatt
Theme:
Craft
Women
Asian American
Lives of artists
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_214325
Online Media:

Margaret Carney interviews with ceramicists, 1993-2019

Creator:
Carney, Margaret, 1949-  Search this
Subject:
Woo, Margaret  Search this
Gardner, Paul Vickers  Search this
Type:
Interviews
Sound recordings
Citation:
Margaret Carney interviews with ceramicists, 1993-2019. Archives of American Art, Smithsonian Institution.
Topic:
Ceramics  Search this
Women artists  Search this
Asian American art  Search this
Asian American artists  Search this
Chinese American art  Search this
Chinese American artists  Search this
Asian American ceramicists  Search this
Theme:
Asian American  Search this
Research and writing about art  Search this
Record number:
(DSI-AAA_CollID)17415
(DSI-AAA_SIRISBib)384519
AAA_collcode_carnmarg
Theme:
Asian American
Research and writing about art
Data Source:
Archives of American Art
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:AAADCD_coll_384519

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