August 2013

Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte, NC, Features Works by Janet Williams

Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte, NC, will present Janet Williams: A Topography of Touch, featuring a solo exhibition of work by internationally exhibited ceramic artist Janet Williams, on view in Ross Gallery I and II, from Aug. 12 through Sept. 26, 2013. A reception will be held on Aug. 28, from 5:30-7:30pm. A lunch lecture will be held on Sept. 9, at noon.

The exhibit will feature a collection of ceramic and porcelain works inspired by the concept of identification. Born in the United Kingdom, Williams recently became a citizen of the United States, a process that required the documentation of her physical body through fingerprinting. This experience inspired her to explore the ways people identity themselves from a cultural and geographical standpoint.

As a result, individuals who view Williams’ work will notice she commonly uses her fingerprint as a starting point; using digital and hand-on techniques, she translates it into a porcelain relief piece, with topographic and architectural structures. This juxtaposition, using a technological program to digitally map out ways to manipulate an ancient, organic material, led her to a new question of identity: humanity’s place in a technological world.

A recipient of a Pollock-Krasner Foundation grant and two McKnight Foundation fellowships, Williams earned an undergraduate degree in Fine Arts and Ceramics in London, and a master’s degree in ceramics from Cranbrook Academy of Art in Michigan. After co-founding and co-directing Art Farm, a nonprofit artist residency program in Marquette, NE, she taught ceramics at various universities. She is currently an assistant professor of ceramics and a ceramics area coordinator at UNC Charlotte. She has exhibited and attended residencies both within the United States and abroad.

Central Piedmont Community College is the largest community college in North Carolina, offering close to 300 degree and certification programs, customized corporate training, market-focused continuing education, and special interest classes. CPCC is academically, financially and geographically accessible to all citizens of Mecklenburg County. In 2002, the National Alliance of Business named CPCC the Community College of the Year for its response to the workforce and technology needs of local employers and job seekers through innovative educational and training strategies.

For further information check our NC Institutional Gallery listings, contact Grace Cote by calling 704/330-2722 ext 3183 or e-mail to (grace.cote@cpcc.edu).

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