Ron duBois on sun 14 may 00
Potters of the World Film Series
Films and Videotapes by Ron du Bois
Yoruba Potters: Mothers and Daughters
This is the first documentary ever made of the superb Yoruba craftswomen at
work. The video shows the entire process from working the clay to the
dramatic "open field" firing of more than 1,000 pots, including koko amu -
huge, perfectly symmetrical water vessels made without a potter's wheel.
The women and girls, ages 5 to 65, work at their profession from dawn to
dusk, year-round. Because of rapidly changing conditions in Nigeria- the
infatuation with modern technology and with plastics- these skills will
likely pass away, victims of western technology and of "progress." (30
minutes)
The Working Processes of the Potters of India: Massive Terra-Cotta Horse
Construction
Massive terra-cotta horses have been constructed as shrines in South India
for thousands of years. Standing nine to 25 feet high, they may be the
largest single hollow clay images to be built anywhere on earth. Built by
the heirs of an ancient tradition, the horses inseparably link clay and
religion. Yet, because they are built in remote village shrines, they are
virtually unknown. The entire process of construction and firing in situ
was filmed over a period of 15 consecutive days. (19 minutes)
The Working Processes of the Potters of India: Bindapur- A Colony of 700
Potters
This film documents a contemporary group of 700 potters living near New
Delhi, a small part of India's population of 1.7 million potters. Shot
daily over a period of six months, this is an in-depth study of the
pottery, techniques, processes, and belief in pottery as sacred ritual. (30
minutes)
The Working Processes of the Korean Folk Potter
A community of potters is filmed over a six-month period as they produce
traditional Onggi ware- beautifully simple, monumental-sized vessels for
the storage of pickled vegetables, a staple in the Korean diet. Because of
the technological and sociological changes in Korean life, this school of
pottery may decline may decline and even disappear. Therefore, this record
has much historical importance. (28 minutes)
Price Information:
Yoruba Potters: Mothers and Daughters =20
VHS videotape rental $40, purchase $350 =20
The Working Processes of the Potters of India:
Massive Terra-Cotta Horse Construction
16mm color film rental $40, purchase $400
VHS videotape rental $30, purchase $250 =20
The Working Processes of the Potters of India:
Bindapur- A Colony of 700 Potters
16mm color film rental $50, purchase $475
VHS videotape rental $37, purchase $350
The Working Processes of the Korean Folk Potter
16mm color film rental $47, purchase $475
VHS videotape rental $37, purchase $350
The Following applies to all films=20
and videotapes:
$15 handling plus postage
Rental applied to purchase if ordered
Within 60 days
Prices subject to change
Call or write:
Ron du Bois=20
612 S. Kings St.
Stillwater, Oklahoma 74074
Phone: 405-377-2524
Email: duboisr_osu@osu.net
Web Site: http://www.angelfire.com/ok2/dubois
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Statements about the programs:
Yoruba Potters:Mothers and Daughters:
"We have marveled at the extraordinary terra-cotta sculpture from the
ancient Nigerian cultures at Nok, Ife, and Owo, but for the most part, the
potter's art has been neglected. -Sylvia Williams, National Museum of
African Art, Smithsonian Institution
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"A video so true to life that one is left with a sense of having been there
and experienced this village first hand" - Joe Molinaro, Eastern Kentucky
State University
"In having the opportunity to bring their customs and working methods to
light, Ron du Bois has added a fascinating section to the rich fabric of
global ceramics" - Ed Bamiling, Ceramics Facilitator, Banff Center for
the Arts, Canada
"=85 congratulations on a wonderful film."-Sheila Pressley, Museum Educator,
M. H. de Young Museum, San Francisco, CA
The Working Processes of the Korean Folk Potter:
" The great success of this film is that the mastery and joy of these great
potters are allowed center stage and not lost in the telling of their
story. That makes this film the timeless work it is, and my hope is that it
will be seen for generations=85Bringing these potters into my life has been =
a
great gift=85." - Guy Wolf, Wolf Pottery
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"The film was beautifully photographed and the commentary by a professional
potter was something few films could equal. Terrific!" -Warren Mackenzie,
potter, teacher=20
"Extremely valuable historical document of the history of Eastern Ceramics.
Delightful! -Jim McKinnell, potter, teacher
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"I am impressed by the sensitivity with which Ron du Bois was able to
portray the life and spirit of the Korean potters. The film communicates
the values of the traditional potter, humbling us with its depiction of
their devotion and energy. It is a film I use in my workshops and one which
I feel everyone working in ceramics should have an opportunity to see."
-Toshiko Takaezu, ceramic artist, teacher, Princeton University
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"The film is superb. It sensitively documents the amazing and inspiring
methods of Korean potters." -Daniel Rhodes, author, potter, teacher=20
About Massive Terra-Cotta Horse Construction- and Bindapur: A Colony of 700
Potters:
"The film is a poignant and extremely informative presentation and is
beautifully and sensitively done. Your work has received high praise from
all quarters here=85" - Amy Poster, Associate Curator, Brooklyn Museum, NYC.
"I would like to thank you personally for making these invaluable
documentaries on the ceramic technology of India, as I am an archaeologist
and ethnographer=85they are of utmost importance for our better understandin=
g
and interpretation of archaeological and traditional cultures of the
subcontinent." - Jonathan Mark Kenoyer, Office of Folklife Programs,
Smithsonian Institution.
"Congratulations!! Your two films on India are the highlight of the
Festival=85 both these films are extremely valuable documentaries of art
processes as well as Indian culture." - Andra Ellis, Director,
International Clay Film Festival.=20
"I cannot overemphasize the great service you have provided by presenting a
developmental overview of great art forms=85 - Linden E. Chubin, Outreach
Coordinator, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco.
"I am thrilled to see that you have accomplished what we should have
done-document these with such love and respect for the ethnic groups... I
have to convey my personal thanks to you for this record and for keeping
alive for posterity the practice of a craft that may disappear from the
land of its origin in no distant future." - Prof. Sankho Chaudhuri,
Chairman, National Academy of Art, New Delhi, India.=20
About the Series:=20
"These documentaries are a great resource and a wonderful way to share
information of all sorts relative to history and contemporary practice in
the ceramic arts." -Tony Marsh, Professor of Art, California State
University, Long Beach, CA
"Women's Studio Workshop had a wonderful film/video series, thanks to the
wonderful series you have produced. The films were wonderful and the crowd
was engaged." -Danielle Leventhal, Clay Program Director, Women's Studio
Workshop, Rosendale, New York
Massive Terra-Cotta Horse Construction and The Working Processes of the
Korean Potters are in the film archives of the Metropolitan Museum of Art,
NYC. Yoruba Potters: Mothers and Daughters is in the film archives of the
National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution.=20
About The Film Maker:
Ron du Bois, emeritus professor of art, taught ceramics and studio art at
Oklahoma State University. He was a Fulbright lecturer to Korea, 1973-74,
where he taught ceramics at three Korean universities. His award-winning
documentary, The Working Processes of the Korean Folk Potter, was filmed at
that time. It is in the film archives of the Metropolitan Museum of Art,
NYC. =20
In 1979-80, du Bois was a long-term grantee under the Indo-American
Fellowship Program, traveling extensively to film the traditional working
processes of Indian potters. Among other projects, he filmed the entire
construction of perhaps the last massive terra-cotta horse to be built in
India. This documentary was completed under NEH auspices and shown in
conjunction with the Smithsonian Festival of India exhibition, 1985. It is
also in the film archives of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
In 1987, du Bois was awarded a 10-month Fulbright Senior Research Scholar
Grant, African Regional Research Program, to research and film document
Nigerian potters. His documentary, Yoruba Potters: Mothers and Daughters,
videotaped at that time, was an award winner at, "A Century of Ceramics on
Film & Video, presented as a feature of the Ceramic Millennium conference
in Amsterdam, summer, 1999. It is now part of the Film Archives,
Smithsonian National Museum of African Art, Washington, D.C.
All the ceramic documentaries of the Potters of the World Film Series were
selected to be shown at the film festival, "A Century of Ceramics on Film
and Video" as a feature of the Ceramic Millennium conference in Amsterdam,
summer, 1999. They are part of a festival of 39 programs in video format
now in process of being organized as a world traveling film festival. The
web site is: http://www.angelfire.com/ok2/dubois =20
Ron du Bois will introduce any of the programs from the "Potters of the
World Film/Video Series" and conduct a question/answer session. Cost:
expenses plus arranged honorarium.=20
Best Regards,
Ron duBois
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