“The human heart is constantly giving and receiving in equal measure and it suggests a way that people can connect to each other—to be in that state of simultaneous reciprocity.” —Amanda Linn, “Give and Receive”
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“The human heart is constantly giving and receiving in equal measure and it suggests a way that people can connect to each other—to be in that state of simultaneous reciprocity.” —Amanda Linn, “Give and Receive”
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This Viking take on a teapot was constructed by alumni Lacey Hanson: “OCAC is a magical place and to let it go would be like telling all of the children of the future they can never go to Disneyworld.”
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This Viking take on a teapot was constructed by alumni Lacey Hanson: “OCAC is a magical place and to let it go would be like telling all of the children of the future they can never go to Disneyworld.”
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“Like so many alumni, OCAC is a formative part of my being as an artist and a person. The relationships I built there are still relevant today; I cherish the community that flourishes there. I hope to see it thrive in the future.” —Anne Bujold
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“Like so many alumni, OCAC is a formative part of my being as an artist and a person. The relationships I built there are still relevant today; I cherish the community that flourishes there. I hope to see it thrive in the future.” —Anne Bujold
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“Long before I first started classes at OCAC, 14 years ago, the teapot has been a celebrated rite of passage in the metals department. Each year there was a festive tea party to celebrate each class’s success, as well.” —Catherine Chandler
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“Long before I first started classes at OCAC, 14 years ago, the teapot has been a celebrated rite of passage in the metals department. Each year there was a festive tea party to celebrate each class’s success, as well.” —Catherine Chandler
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A whimsical teapot crafted by former metals department head, Professor Christine Clark, who herself launched the metal teapot project in 1993.
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A whimsical teapot crafted by former metals department head, Professor Christine Clark, who herself launched the metal teapot project in 1993.
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OCAC alumni Danielle Gannet created this unusual teapot featuring a leggy handle: “This teapot was a nightmare to battle, but a serious goal of mine that’s been achieved.”
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OCAC alumni Danielle Gannet created this unusual teapot featuring a leggy handle: “This teapot was a nightmare to battle, but a serious goal of mine that’s been achieved.”
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Entitled “Attention!” by alumni Kathy Williams, this teapot serves as a tribute to her war-veteran father and features a flower carved out of lamb bone.
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Entitled “Attention!” by alumni Kathy Williams, this teapot serves as a tribute to her war-veteran father and features a flower carved out of lamb bone.
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“OCAC will live on in the community it built over more than a century of programs and the skills sent into the world through those lucky enough to study there.” —Kristin Shiga
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Alumni Laura Mapes designed and crafted these elegant pieces, which were a NICHE Award finalist in 2014.
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Alumni Laura Mapes designed and crafted these elegant pieces, which were a NICHE Award finalist in 2014.
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“I feel extremely fortunate to have a school like OCAC where our teachers are like mentors and our class, a community. We grow together, learn, make, achieve and are united by our passion for craft.” —Winona Hwang
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“I feel extremely fortunate to have a school like OCAC where our teachers are like mentors and our class, a community. We grow together, learn, make, achieve and are united by our passion for craft.” —Winona Hwang
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“OCAC will live on in the community it built over more than a century of programs and the skills sent into the world through those lucky enough to study there.” —Kristin Shiga
Amanda Linn wants Portlanders to remember the teapots… and the fiber art, and sculptures, and all the other painstakingly handmade works of art produced by students at Southwest Portland’s storied Oregon College of Art and Craft.
OCAC recently announced the termination of all degree-granting programs by May of this year due to rising costs and sustained deficits. According to the Board of Trustees: “At present, no final decision has been made about the immediate future of OCAC’s Community Programs.”
The school has a history dating back to 1907, but has been a degree-granting institution for the past 25 years. Linn, an OCAC postbaccalaureate student, was one of many locals who learned how to craft at the small, tight-knit school, specifically to craft a one-of-a-kind metal teapot—a rite of passage for its metals department. “The future of this incredible campus is uncertain,” says Linn, who spent 600 hours on her fabricated teapot. In order to draw attention to the school’s plight she started an Instagram hashtag (#ocacteapot) and invited OCAC alumni and faculty to showcase their high-level metals skills. The hashtag currently displays 28 teapots and counting.
Those teapots are not your average brewing vessels—one resembles a rocket, another shaped like a human heart, and yet another boasts a pair of women’s legs as a handle. Some are elegant, some are aggressive, but they are all undoubtedly, labors of love.
The school is currently exploring options to stay open, but has had little luck so far.
“Our general hope at this point is to highlight the quality of the work and the meaning of the institution to alumni and the community,” says Linn. “It is not too late for a legacy or institutional donor to step in and save this rich, important institution.”
