Art Therapist's Exhibition Features Clay as Spiritual Pieces
Milliken Art Gallery will host a large selection of ceramics by Kat McIver in the “Gates of Mercy” exhibition. Currently living in Asheville, NC, McIver is a working ceramic artist at the Odyssey Ceramic Center for the Arts. She describes her “art as a radical response and prayer to life. Each piece develops as a deep, evolutionary process, expressing my personal spiritual journey and the emotional vicissitudes of beingness.” The exhibition will be available to view through Oct. 25. Gallery hours: Monday—Friday 9:00 am—5:00 pm, Sunday 2:00—5:00 pm. The gallery is closed during school holidays.
On Thursday, Oct. 4 at 6:00 pm, a Gallery Talk with the Artist Kat McIver will include discussions of her career and art process. The Gallery Talk will be followed by the opening reception at 6:30 pm. The exhibit and reception are free and open to the public.
Kat McIver will present “Clay as a Spiritual Practice Workshop” on Friday, Oct. 5, from 8:30 am – 12:00 pm in the Milliken Fine Arts Building (Room 101). In this workshop, participants will explore briefly the theoretical domains of Art Therapy, Expressive Arts, and Spiritual Guidance, looking at the subtle differences and similarities in them. There will be a “hands on” portion, where participants can practice the use of “clay as a spiritual practice”, which is both McIver’s personal practice and how she works with individuals and groups. Space is limited so reservations are required, and a $20 materials fee will be charged for the public. Contact geri.hurlburt@converse.edu for more details and to make reservations.
McIver has shown her work in galleries in Christchurch New Zealand, Oakland, Santa Cruz, Palo Alto, and Sausalito, California and in Tryon, Charlotte and Asheville, North Carolina. Her background includes a Masters in Spirituality from the Institute of Culture and Creation Spirituality, at Holy Names College, in Oakland CA, and a Ph.D. in Transpersonal Psychology from the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology in Palo Alto CA, with an emphasis on creativity and spiritual guidance.
Kat McIver says, “I continue to explore my own personal spiritual journey through ceramics and mixed media. I am primarily self-taught, and find the experience of playing with clay continues to be a passion. For me, the evolutionary, symbolic process of working with clay is magical. I moved to Asheville in January 2007 to pursue my art more fully and to continue offering classes and private sessions in Clay as a Spiritual Practice.”
For more information about this exhibition, contact Kathryn Boucher, Milliken Art Gallery Director for Converse College, at kathryn.boucher@converse.edu