Ceramics artist and Bluffton University professor of art Gregg Luginbuhl has received the Friends of Phyllis Clark Award for Excellence in Functional Ceramics for his work, "Rustic Decanter XVIII," in the "Best of 2010" juried members' exhibition at the Ohio Craft Museum in Columbus.

He was 15 artists honored with awards for excellence in Ohio Designer Craftsmen's 27th annual juried members' competition, "Best of 2010."

Opening May 2 and continuing through June 20 at the Ohio Craft Museum, the exhibition features over 100 works in clay, glass, metal, wood, fiber and mixed media by 80 artists. Juror Albertus Gorman, director of studio arts for the Zoom Group in Louisville, Ky., chose the work from over 320 entries by 124 artists.

Award winners will be honored during the exhibition's opening reception, to be held May 2 at the Ohio Craft Museum from 1 to 4 p.m.

After closing at the Ohio Craft Museum, the exhibition will travel to the Walter E. Terhune Art Gallery at Owens Community College in Perrysburg, where it will be on view Aug. 9-Sept. 25, then on to Artspace/Lima, where it will be shown Nov. 5-Dec. 18.

The Ohio Craft Museum is located at 1665 West Fifth Ave., Columbus. Hours are Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday, 1-4
p.m., during exhibitions only. Admission and parking are free. Its website is www.ohiocraft.org.

The museum is owned and operated by Ohio Designer Craftsmen and receives ongoing funding from the Greater Columbus Arts Council, Ohio Arts Council and the Columbus Foundation.

Artist's statement regarding the rustic Decanters

The ubiquitous metal containers still found in rural environments inspire this series.

Originally designed to hold water, kerosene, gasoline, and oil, they now represent a bygone era, since molded plastic containers have largely replaced them.

My porcelain forms imitate the down-to-earth, unpretentious beauty of these aged and heavily used containers. Surfaced by years of exposure and neglect, their slowly acquired patinas of old worn paint and oxidized metal reflect their character.

Beautifully marked with accidental dents and hastily painted labels, these old farm dispensers often radiate an aura of strength, hard work, and long selfless lives of service.

My fuel cans are made with porcelain or stoneware clay and fired to cone 10. They are wheel thrown in sections, altered and textured, and assembled. Fluting on the sides is done by hand just after throwing. Caps and spouts are thrown and screw devices are formed with trimming tools.

I assemble the thrown parts and model details when the clay is leather hard. I fire on glazes and metal oxide stains in a single cone 10 firing to imitate used, worn patinas on the surface of the clay. The handles of wire and wood are appropriated from actual containers.

-Gregg Luginbuhl