Owning our story can be hard but not nearly as difficult as spending our lives running from it.
Brenée Brown

Here are some impressions from the opening of my first solo show at Lanesboro Arts in Lanesboro, Minnesota. I had started sketching, delving into memories of my childhood and youth in Germany, and making pieces for this show about 2 1/2 years ago. To see it all come together in a beautifully set up show, and have so many people come and listen to my stories, either through my sculptures or through direct conversation with me, was absolutely wonderful. What was equally wonderful was to hear visitors share their own stories with me, and how they feel that our stories are connected. That experience is one of the reasons I make sculptures.
Pictures in this post show a few scenes from our beautiful Friday afternoon in Lanesboro, opening night, and a wondrous discovery I made at our Bed&Breakfast – beautiful objects of the Jewish culture displayed in the dining room of the old mansion. Their presence felt like a ray of reconciliation and possible forgiveness to me.
The show will run through December 10. It is a pleasant and scenic two hour drive down to Lanesboro and maybe one of these days you’ll feel like making it!

My very first at home Raku firing, and it was a success! This is such an addictive process. To see the colors and the crackle effect emerge while the pieces are cooling, and then scrub off the soot to see the full effect – it’s such unadulterated fun. I’m very grateful that nothing cracked and nothing baked to a kiln brick. Let’s hope this is a trend 😊😀❤️ Thanks so much to Mark J Lusardi for setting me up with this perfect for me sized Raku kiln and equipment!!!

I received the most beautiful professional photographs today, taken @eaganarthouse where two of my pieces are installed and on view outside surrounded by a beautiful wildflower meadow on the grounds of the art center. Thank you to @rickgravesphotography for sharing these shots that captivate the magic of this art in nature situation so well. The bust is titled ‘Rebirth ‘ and the standing figure’Letting go of Blue’, and the plants surrounding really amplify these messages for me. This truly is the most beautiful way these pieces have ever been displayed. Thanks also to @eaganarthouse for including me in this beautiful show titled ‘Momentary Certainties’.

I made it! I am soooo exhausted today, but also very happy, after working for 12 hours at Studio Here‘s artist in residence at the Minnesota State Fair yesterday. Thanks to @nbaxterpottery ‘s ability to help me out with an emergency firing, I had plenty of interesting studio projects to demonstrate, such as glazing bisqued pieces, sgraffito, and showing the whole process of building a small bust from rolling out a slab to finishing the facial features. Being there has definitely been worth the effort and the building nervousness I’ve experienced ever since agreeing to do it 😊 the chance to share my process and motivation to make art with such a wide range of people and the genuine and heartfelt conversations I had throughout the day were so inspiring and heartening. Thank you to the Minnesota State Fair and to Minnesotan Fair goers for being such art enthusiasts. A State Fair with a strong art component is a unique and wonderful thing.

I made it! I am soooo exhausted today, but also very happy, after working for 12 hours at Studio Here‘s artist in residence at the Minnesota State Fair yesterday. Thanks to @nbaxterpottery ‘s ability to help me out with an emergency firing, I had plenty of interesting studio projects to demonstrate, such as glazing bisqued pieces, sgraffito, and showing the whole process of building a small bust from rolling out a slab to finishing the facial features. Being there has definitely been worth the effort and the building nervousness I’ve experienced ever since agreeing to do it 😊 the chance to share my process and motivation to make art with such a wide range of people and the genuine and heartfelt conversations I had throughout the day were so inspiring and heartening. Thank you to the Minnesota State Fair and to Minnesotan Fair goers for being such art enthusiasts. A State Fair with a strong art component is a unique and wonderful thing.

My sculpture residence at the Minnesota State Fair Fine Arts building is drawing close! I will be working in a designated studio area from 9 am to 9 pm on Labor Day, Sept 6, and show how I make my slabs and how I sculpt. I will also demonstrate the sgraffito technique, and glaze some of my busts. There will be two artists talks throughout the day, but I will be available for questions about my process in between those as well. Come and stop by if you can! I am fully vaccinated and will be wearing a mask the entire time I’m there; and I hope so will most other people present inside the building.

Some wonderful news that have kept me going recently:
I have been invited as an artist in residence to the Minnesota State Fair Fine Arts competition! This means that I will work in a designated, open studio area at the State Fair Fine Arts Building for 12 hours on September 6th, last day of the fair and Labor Day. Visitors will be able to see my work process, interact and ask me questions. I will be there from 9 am to 9 pm – mark your calendars! One of the best parts of this residency is that I got to pick a piece to be exhibited in the State Fair Fine Arts Show! I chose one of my newest and most challenging pieces – my badass female superhero that symbolizes my journey to expel toxic people from my life. I have called her ‘Take Care’ which I find a nice twist on this somewhat overused phrase. The outdoors sunlight really brings out the beauty of the crackle glaze, and the incredible rich hues of the stainless steel base that @kfokkenart custom made for this piece. I think it will look great at the fair, and send a good message. I’ll close with this great quote:

“Self defense is not just a set of techniques; it’s a state of mind, and it begins with the belief that you are worth defending.” – Rorion Gracie

Even with the pandemic, or maybe because of it, this year is moving fast for me and now it’s time for the Northeast Minneapolis Art-A-Whirl® already! This wonderful event to experience the art and artists of the Northeast Minneapolis Arts District, and to view and shop their work, will happen this coming weekend, May 14 through 16, safely modified to keep everyone healthy.
I’ve made some time to create small, cute and giftable one-of-a-kind art for the event (think unique 3D fridge magnets!) Just like last year and due to Covid, my art will be available online only through my online store. The magnets will drop in my shop Friday, May 14 at 5pm! My larger sculpture pieces are also available through this store.
I hope you’ll take some time this weekend to browse the amazing art this town has to offer, and to stop by my shop as well. Link to my shop:

https://nemaa.org/artists/kordula-coleman/

The announcement for my show is up on the @lanesboroarts website now! The show will take place at Lanesboro Arts in Lanesboro, MN, and will run from October 23 through December 10 2021. It will be my first solo show (gasp!) and I’m so grateful and excited about this opportunity to share the stories and experiences of my German childhood with a wider audience, through my sculptures.

Link to show:https://lanesboroarts.org/…/dappled-with-shadow-and…/

Hello friends! Thanks for checking out my website. I have updated my online store I. Time does the holidays with small, affordable, but still one of a kind art pieces that could make somebody’s holiday very special! The ornaments and magnets feature pictures of my sculptures that I have transferred onto polymer clay, and vintage brass hardware and fabrics. Each piece is one of a kind. Take a look at my shop here:

https://shop.nemaa.org/artists/kordula-coleman/