Leta and Don Cormier
Biography
THE ART OF POTTERY
“Pottery is at once the simplest and the most difficult of all the arts. It is the simplest because it is the most elemental; it is the most difficult because it is the most abstract. Historically it is among the first of the arts.”
“Before man could write, before he had a literature or even a religion, he had this art (of pottery) and the vessels made then can still move us by their expressive form.”
~ Herbert Read
Leta & Don have been making pottery in the Ottawa area since 1975. They studied pottery in Nova Scotia, British Columbia and Ontario as well as on trips to Japan, England and France. Their work has been exhibited extensively and is in the collections of the Canada Council Art Bank, Canadian Museum of History, Winnipeg Art Gallery, City of Ottawa, Art Gallery of Burlington and numerous private collections. Leta has also been an active and highly respected teacher, juror and curator. She has taught foundation and advanced courses at St. Lawrence College, Brockville and the Ottawa School of Art and well as presenting workshops throughout Ontario. Over the years both Leta & Don have served on the boards of numerous local, provincial and national Craft and Arts organizations including OPA now Fusion, Ontario Crafts Council now Craft Ontario, Canadian Crafts Council, Canadian Craft Federation, Ottawa Arts Foundation (Arts Court) and Ottawa Art Gallery.
All the work exhibited here is stoneware, fired in a reduction atmosphere between 1280˚C and 1320˚ C. The forms and surfaces are drawn from Oriental and European pottery traditions, Cycladic art and natural landscapes.
Upcoming Exhibits
Teresa Wingar Dec 13, 2019 – Feb 12, 2020
Raymond Warren Feb 14, 2020 – Apr 15, 2020
Vanessa Villarreal Apr 17, 2020 – June 10, 2020
Bill Reddick June 12, 2020 – August 12, 2020
Mike Doxey August 14, 2020 – October 14, 2020
Michelle Mendlowitz October 16, 2020 – December 9, 2020
Jessica Sallay-Carrington December 11, 2020 – February 10, 2021
Exhibitions are selected by the director, Rosemary Swan. Please contact her directly at:
director@
To purchase pieces please contact the Gloucester Pottery School 613-424-2888