"I enjoy the absoluteness of the clay expression." Kari Christensen, Juror, 17th Annual Fletcher Challenge
Born in New York, Susannah Israel has a gritty yet passionate view of humanity, drawn from city life. Humor and struggle are always part of the message. Israel's expressive work is widely exhibited, appearing in catalogs and collections around the world. Career distinctions include the prestigious Fletcher Challenge Premier Award, a Virginia Groot Foundation Award, an MFA in Ceramics at SF State University, residencies at the Archie Bray and the Doelger Art Center, and writing on contemporary clay artists. Israel has given many workshops, and also worked in factory sites in California and Kansas, sculpting massive industrial clay pipe. At home in Oakland, she works in her studio at Vulcan 5 and teaches college courses in art.
There is an inherent paradox when working with so responsive a material as clay. Traces of touch - fingerprints, knuckle marks - are formed, moment by moment, with relentless fidelity. Such intimate contact of hand and clay remains far beyond the process, beyond even the life of the artist; it is a permanent record of impermanence.
From both my husbands, composer Ted King and artist Bill Lassell, I have received a lasting legacy of passionate love and creative community activism. Their ideas and work can help sustain me in times of deep sorrow.
"I enjoy the absoluteness of the clay expression." Kari Christensen, Juror, 17th Annual Fletcher Challenge
