David MacDonald, an internationally renowned artist whose work is in the permanent collections of the Studio Museum in Harlem, Montclair Art Museum and the Everson Museum of Art, has offered us (and you) the gift of his work.  He is donating 100 handcrafted and signed bowls to be sold for the benefit of ArtRage Gallery.

Join us for a one-day-only in person sale at the gallery on Saturday, November 6th from 10am-1pm.  First come…gets first pick! All bowls are priced at $50.

Those not sold at this event, will be offered for sale on eBay.

About the Artist

“We had just finished an assignment, and my professor at the time, Joseph Gilliard, was unloading the kiln. I thought I’d walk through and take a look at how the firing went. A cup that I had made was on the table. He said, ‘You can use that cup in your dorm to drink coffee.’ I picked up the mug and cut my next class, made a cup of instant coffee, and drank it. That was when I decided that I wanted to spend as much time as I could, even my life, making things that were useful.”  — David MacDonald in 2008 interview (Syracuse.com)

MacDonald was born in 1945 in Hackensack, New Jersey, the third oldest of nine children. He graduated from Hackensack High School in 1963 and was awarded an athletic scholarship to Hampton Univeristy (Hampton, Virginia) where he majored in art education. While there he was greatly inspired by noted African American ceramic artist Joseph W. Gilliard. During his studies at Hampton his work became influenced by the political and social issues of the time (the Civil Rights Movement). After graduating, he was awarded a graduate fellowship at the University of Michigan where he studied with John Stephenson and noted African American ceramist Robert Stull. During this time, his work continued to focus on social and political commentary and expand technically. After receiving his Master of Fine Arts degree he joined the faculty of the School of Art and Design at Syracuse University in 1971 and now retired, is an SU professor emeritus of ceramics.

During the late 1970s and early 1980s, MacDonald’s work received most of its creative inspiration from his investigation of his African heritage. Looking at a variety of design sources in the vast creative tradition of the African continent, MacDonald draws much of his inspiration from the myriad examples of surface decoration that manifests itself in the many ethnic groups of sub-Saharan Africa, such as pottery decoration, textiles, body decoration and architectural decoration. MacDonald’s work spans the complete spectrum of ceramic forms of a utilitarian nature.