2024 November EARTH & FIRE: the Artistic Journey of Kristine Souder

Earth and Fire: the Artistic Journey of Kristine Souder

Thursday, November 7 | 5pm to 7pm Opening Reception
Friday, November 22 | noon Lunch ala Art luncheon and gallery talk
Friday, November 22 | 7pm to 9pm FINALE

”I love the feel of the clay, the earthiness and the textures I can create with it.”
Kristine Souder

Kristine Souder is the youngest of five daughters born to Harriet and Walter Souder. Harriet Souder, was an art teacher, a prolific artist, and a strong influence on Kristine’s artistic development often making a game out of quizzing her children about artists and art movements. “She refused to have coloring books in our home. We learned to observe nature and draw what we saw,” says Kristine of her mother.
Souder first fell in love with clay as an art medium while creating a ninth-grade art project. She took a number of high school art classes from Julia Crew, an exceptional ceramic teacher who also had a major influence on her. She attended the University of Iowa receiving a Bachelor of Arts in art education with a concentration in ceramics including hand-building, wheel, and Raku. Kristine Souder went on to teach art in all grade levels from elementary through high school in Iowa, Illinois, and Colorado.
Souder uses clay to express herself and her deep respect for nature, depicting organic motifs or animal forms in bas relief to enhance the surface of the vessels with visual texture. The plasticity of clay is unlike other mediums and inspires her to become inventive with sculptures and pot forms. When Souder was able to return to Iowa, circumstances finally made a home ceramic studio possible for her. Having a space dedicated to working in clay fulfilled a lifelong dream. It has also allowed this artist to create a body of work for a one-person show, fulfilling another dream.
Everyone is invited to the Opening Reception of this retrospective exhibition on Thursday, November 7 from 5pm to 7pm in the Main Gallery at the FMAAA Art Center located at 825 Avenue G in Fort Madison, IA. It will be on display throughout the month until Friday, November 29. This exhibition is generously sponsored by Bartlett Instrument Company.

Article in local newspaper the Daily Democrat: https://www.mississippivalleypublishing.com/daily_democrat/kristine-souder/image_88eb9f44-9d64-11ef-bdec-9bf40364859f.html