Simon van der Ven

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Dimpled Vase 0244

$425
Simon van der Ven
Dimpled Vase 0244
stoneware, 9x4.5"

Pierced Dimpled Vase 0124

$525
Simon van der Ven
Pierced Dimpled Vase 0124
stoneware, 6x5.5"

Crackle Vase 0005

$125
Simon van der Ven
Crackle Vase 0005
wood-fired stoneware, 8.25x3"

Home XIX

$1,800
Simon van der Ven
Home XIX
wood-fired stoneware and porcelain, 16x9x2.5"

Coral Vase 0201

$225
Simon van der Ven
Coral Vase 0201
wood-fired stoneware with inclusions, 8.25x3.5"

From the Wrack Line - Walk the Line

$1,600
Simon van der Ven
From the Wrack Line - Walk the Line
acrylic and found object impressions on board, 15x10"

From the Wrack Line - Range

$800
Simon van der Ven
From the Wrack Line - Range
acrylic and found object impressions on board, 7.5x7.5"

Tea Jar 9768

$575
Simon van der Ven
Tea Jar 9768
wood-fired stoneware with cherry burl lid, 7x3.75"

Round Vase 0221

$425
Simon van der Ven
Round Vase 0221
wood-fired stoneware with Montana slip, 8.75x10"

Bio

Having received an undergraduate degree in printmaking with a minor in sculpture, Simon van der Ven worked as a goldsmith and carpenter/builder before becoming an award winning high school art teacher. Seventeen years in the classroom were interrupted only by a year-long sabbatical in the south of France, where van der Ven worked in Les Buffile clay studio and studied painting and critical theory at the Marchutz School. Later, while still teaching, van der Ven earned an MFA, concentrating his studies on ceramics and drawing.

Simon has been an adjunct instructor at the University of Maine Augusta, University College Rockland, and Unity College. He’s facilitated workshops at Haystack Mountain School of Craft, and has been a resident artist at Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Colorado and Watershed Center for the Ceramic Arts in Maine.

Van der Ven’s work has won awards in several national juried competitions. It is held in both private and public collections including the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, the Canton Museum of Fine Arts, and Harrisburg Community College.

"I am drawn to organic forms and patterns, to natural phenomena that the human eye and spirit responds to as both fresh and timeless. Nest, egg, scale, branch, vein, river, bone and stone." In combination with organic forms and patterns, Simon utilizes the labor intensive technique of wood firing on some of his pieces to further emphasize his interest in the natural world and an organic look.

Today, van der Ven works as a full-time studio artist and part-time educator.