Bio
Paul Andrew Wandless (1967- )
American
Artist, Author, Educator
Paul Andrew Wandless was born in Miami, Florida and grew up in Smyrna, Delaware. He earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Ceramics and Sculpture from the University of Delaware, a Master of Arts in Ceramics from Minnesota State University-Mankato and a Master of Fine Arts in Ceramics and Printmaking from Arizona State University. Along with the studio arts, he also worked with art historians while earning his MA and MFA to study different styles of writing in the arts. Wandless returned to the greater Philadelphia area after finishing graduate school, where he taught and had his studio for 10 years.
Wandless currently lives and has his studio in Chicago, IL. His sculptures and prints feature ceramic processes, printmaking methods and a wide variety of sculptural techniques and mediums. Clay, printmaking, mold making, leather working, metalsmithing, wood carving, stone carving and painting are all mediums used in combination or individually for creation of his works. His clay work, prints and sculptures have been widely exhibited since 1995, including a solo exhibitions at the Ohr-O’keefe Museum of Art. His art works are published in 18 books and collected privately and publicly.
As a writer, Wandless authored Image Transfer On Clay, 500 Prints On Clay, Image & Design Transfer Techniques and co-authored Alternative Kilns & Firing Techniques and is a contributing author in 10 clay technique books. He's written 31 published articles for several publications including Pottery Making Illustrated, Ceramics: Art and Perception and the International Review of African American Art. A DVD was also created of Wandless by the American Ceramic Society titled, Fundamentals of Screen Printing On Clay with Paul Andrew Wandless.
Wandless has served on several Boards in different capacities since 2001. He currently serves on the Programming Advisory Committee for Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts. He served on the Board of Trustees for Penland School of Art, the Board of Directors for the International Ceramic Artists Network (ICAN) as Vice President, the Board of Directors for the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) as a Director-at-Large, the Board of Directors for The Clay Studio of Philadelphia and the steering committee for the Philadelphia Sculptors. He was also an NCECA Presidential Appointee for the Demonstrating Artist Video Program as the first Video Editor/DVD Creator.
Wandless has given 103 workshops regarding his art, techniques and research around the U.S. and Canada. He lectures frequently and sits on panels addressing a wide range of art related topics from technique and process to aesthetics and art theory. He has received recognition for his work and activities in the form of awards from Minnesota State University, Mankato as a recipient of the Distinguished Young Alumni Award and from the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) as an Outstanding Achievement Award recipient.
Artist Statement
I’m a storyteller and my artwork is a vehicle through which my voice can be seen. As an artist, craftsman and writer, I engage and inform the viewer both visually and intellectually in both medium and process. My personal theories and concerns manifest as musings, stories or philosophical statements, which then take form as visual narratives through my work—often as figurative art or pictorial scenes.
My clay prints and prints on paper—the most direct interpretations of my narratives—tell stories and share insights. My mythologized philosophy, symbology and stories show up in pictorial format, which allows for the use of compositional geometry to imbed multiple layers of coded information. I make room for the viewer to decipher and interpret the narratives contained in the compositional arrangements of symbols and imagery in the prints. My sculptural works are metaphorical interpretations or personas of musings and concerns, which have come into being through clay. Like putting a face to an emotion or an idea.
My sculptural works bring my musings, allegories or philosophical ideas into the real world as three-dimensional forms to physically interact with the viewer. Subject matter in a two-dimensional format can be powerful in how it can emotionally move you. But subject matter existing three-dimensionally commands its own space and has a different kind of power. Sculpture has the presence to emotionally and physically move you. The physical engagement of moving around a sculpture to investigate its surface and form creates a unique mode of engagement. The viewer and the sculpture have an active space between them that needs to be negotiated, navigated and shared.
As a Black Artist, Craftsman and Writer, I strive to engage and inform the viewer both visually and intellectually from my point of view that's filtered through my own personal experiences. I want to leave something to think about through the dialogue or storytelling occurring between the viewer and me, through my work. Then hopefully, due to this shared experience, the person will feel a commonality or recognition of the narrative I’m communicating through my art.