No names loom larger in the history of Colorado ceramic art than Jim and Nan McKinnell, who lived briefly in Boulder in 1950-51 and settled permanently in Fort Collins in 1970, teaching extensively for nearly two decades afterward.
In her book, “Modern Clay in Denver (1948-1972),” author Elizabeth Schlosser noted that all 10 of the other artists she highlighted besides the McKinnells cited Nan as a teacher and inspiration.
“All roads to Denver’s clay artists intersect with Nan McKinnell,” Schlosser wrote.
The five-decade careers of Jim McKinnell, who died in 2005 at age 86, and Nan, 95, are celebrated in a thoughtful, tastefully arranged exhibition, which continues through Oct. 31 in the new Byers-Evans House Gallery.
To boost its visitorship and expand the scope of its activities, the Byers-Evans House Museum converted its former visitor center and bookstore into a 600-square-foot gallery for changing exhibitions of art related to the Rocky Mountain West. It opened in October 2007.
This intimate, independent space is a welcome addition to Denver’s ever-growing art scene and an ideal complement to the Denver Art Museum and other nearby galleries in the Golden Triangle.
The ever-productive McKinnells, who traveled extensively and created tens of thousands of pieces, are known nationally and even internationally for their consummate artistry and technical innovations. Among the latter is the development of the double-chambered, loose-brick kiln.
This survey consists of 84 pieces, including 24 minatures, each just a few inches tall, all drawn from area private collections. Also on view are some of the McKinnells’ tools and correspondence, along with framed photographs and loose snapshots.
The selections date from the artists’ student years to the 1990s. Early examples include a clean-formed tea set from 1948, when Nan was working on a master’s degree at the University of Washington, and a 33-inch- tall abstract planter, created by Jim while teaching at the famed New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University in 1965-66.
This chunky, angular piece, which vaguely suggests an upstretched, cupped hand, shows the influences of Jim’s studies in 1957-1959 at the Los Angeles Art Institute with Peter Voulkos, one of the most important American ceramicists of the 20th century.
For the most part, the McKinnells stuck to conventional vessel forms — plates, vases, bowls, jars, pots and bottles. Even the aforementioned planter, one of the most sculptural works in the show, is invested with a loose functionality.
But while hewing to tradition, the two artists managed to achieve amazing diversity within their output, with subtle variations of form and a seemingly limitless variety of finishes — smooth and textured, lustrous and natural.
Highlights include a tapered, 11-by-10-inch centerpiece bowl (1991) with an irregularly striped main body and a scalloped, pebbled border around the top with a luster finish, and a contrasting 18-inch-tall incised floor bottle (ca. 1970s) with an earthy, natural look.
The McKinnells collaborated on nearly everything they did, with one often shaping a piece and the other decorating it, making it difficult to assign credit for individual works. For this display, the artist who shaped the piece is the one listed on the label.
The exhibition was curated by Paul Harbaugh, a Denver art collector, and his wife, Teresa, a potter who has taken classes at Arapahoe Community College, the repository for the Mckinnells’ archives.
Kathy Holt, who heads Arapahoe’s ceramics program, is putting together an overdue book on the two the artists, drawing in large part on those holdings. It is expected to be published some time next year.
The next exhibition in the Byers-Evans House Gallery will be “Laura Gilpin Masterworks 1917 to 1970,” which is set for Nov. 7 through Dec. 31.
“Clay and Glaze: The Ceramic Art of Nan and Jim McKinnell”. Byers-Evans House Gallery, 1310 Bannock St. A career survey of the accomplishments of these two longtime pillars of Colorado clay art. Through Oct. 31. 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays. Free. 303-620-4933 or coloradohistory.org.
Kyle MacMillan: 303-954-1675 or kmacmillan@denverpost.com
