Fragile: Pottery Expands West Virginia Artist Simon Feather's World


(MENAFN- EIN Presswire)

Simon Feather "Guy with Building on Head" Clay, Glazes. Courtesy Rare Nest Gallery

Simon Feather "Hagrid", clay with glazes. Courtesy Rare Nest Gallery

Simon Feather with "Crazy Guy" Ceramic Sculpture. Courtesy Rare Nest gallery Chicago

Artist has Fragile X syndrome, the most common inherited cause of intellectual disabilities.

Rare Nest Gallery in Chicago is honored and delighted to represent Simon Feather.” - Keith Bringe, Rare Nest Gallery Director

CHICAGO, IL, USA, June 16, 2023/einpresswire.com / -- Simon Feather started working seriously in clay while he was a high school student in Morgantown, West Virginia. He continued his exploration of the medium when he moved to New Jersey in 2001, studying with master potter Peter Syak at the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey. Upon his return to Morgantown in 2009, Simon began a partnership with artist Jeff Ryan at ZenClay Studio.

Simon, who lives with his mother Nancy Abrams in Morgantown, has Fragile X syndrome, the most common inherited cause of intellectual disabilities.

The tactile experience of working with clay is beneficial in many ways. Clay is heavy and requires some pounding. It's a good tool for working out frustration. Molding it provides stress relief and exercises fine motor skills. Pottery is fragile. Pieces break; glazes are difficult. But repetition, a characteristic of Fragile X, can be a strength both in creating objects and decorating them. Another characteristic of Fragile X – a vivid imagination – is well served by artistic expression.“The clay talks to me,” he says. Simon is particularly fond of putting faces on his creations. His work puts smiles on the faces of those who see it.

Simon's art expands his horizons in other ways. He has a community of fellow potters. He has worked with his current teacher for more than a decade. They also have a social relationship, going to dinner or events and working on other projects.

Simon's success in art is attributable to his teachers. They have recognized that some of the characteristics of fragile X – repetition, perseveration, mimicry – can be strengths in the world of the arts. Simon's pieces have been exhibited and sold and praised in three states. Simon's pursuit of art has expanded his circle of friends and fans. He has even earned a little money, though not quite enough to cover all his costs. It would help if he didn't insist on giving away his best work.

Simon's piece“Hagrid” won an Emeriti Award at the Visual Arts Center of New Jersey Members' Show in 2008. His work has been in several exhibitions and is in several private collections.

For more than 20 years, Simon Feather has expressed himself through pottery. Beginning in high school and continuing through adulthood, Simon's pursuit of art has expanded his circle of friends and fans and given him joy and confidence.

Simon is a busy guy: He has a part-time job and participates in recreation activities and Special Olympics. He loves all those things but his weekly clay class may be his favorite activity. He likes it even though it's hard, even though pieces break, even though it seems as though it takes forever before his stuff come out of the kiln. And then, another lesson: Pottery – dirt and water and glaze incinerated – is fragile. Fragile. We know that word.

Sometimes it's hard to get Simon to leave his room and all his screens.“I'll stay home,” is the usual response to an invitation. But he has never ever, not even once said,“I don't want to go to clay class.” He remembers every piece he has ever made. He has a story about each one. He recognizes their worth and in doing so recognizes his own.

Rare Nest Gallery in Chicago is honored and delighted to represent Simon Feather.

Keith Bringe
Rare Nest Gallery Chicago
+1 708-616-8671
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