Anthony Natsoulas Explained

Anthony Natsoulas
Birth Date:1959
Nationality:American
Field:Sculpture, Ceramics
Training:University of California at Davis, Davis, CA
Awards:1998 “New Works”

Anthony 'Tony' Natsoulas (born 1959 in Ann Arbor, Michigan) is an American sculptor and contemporary artist. Numerous galleries and museums such as the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Monterey Museum of Art,, Sonoma Valley Museum of Art, and the San Jose Museum of Art have exhibited Tony Natsoulas' work in the past; there are several large-scale pieces in public spaces.

Biographical and career information

Anthony Natsoulas grew up in Davis. In high school, he attended classes taught by Robert Arneson and visited the studio of Clayton Bailey. Natsoulas attended California State University, Sacramento, where he studied with Robert Brady and Ruth Rippon. He returned to UC Davis in 1979 and received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1982. After a year of study at the Maryland Institute, College of Art, he returned to UC Davis for his MFA and began exhibiting his life-size figurative ceramic sculptures at the Rena Bransten Gallery in San Francisco.[1]

Work

Natsoulas' works generally depict people, often engaged in whimsical activities. The physical features of the subjects are often exaggerated to give them a sense of humor or playfulness.[2]

"His figures range from commissioned works to ceramic portraits of celebrities, sometimes depicted in period costume. Details and themes are influenced by images from popular culture, absurdist television shows, people, toys, cartoons, plays, and nostalgic movies. Natsoulas began making larger-than-life, exaggerated ceramic busts in 1997. He uses a similar sculptural technique to Arneson: his sculptures lack depth from front to back. His figures are caricatures, often with enlarged heads. His approach to the work is influenced by Robert Arneson, his former teacher at the University of California, Davis."[3]

Natsoulas also makes large objects for public spaces. A life-size painted bronze titled Balancing Act Too (1993) has stood in Sacramento's Plaza Cervantes since 2015.[4] The double sculpture The Joggers (1986) stands in front of Davis' historic City Hall, formerly home to the Fire Department and later the Davis Police Department. Another sculpture stands in the University of Davis library.[5]

Natsoulas: I remember what Bob Arneson said to us as students, “Always push your work, never be satisfied, it's art, Experiment!”[6]

Solo exhibitions (selection)

Trivia

Ceramic bust "Christian Warlich" by Anthony Natsoulas.From November 2019 to May 2020, the Museum für Hamburgische Geschichte presented a special exhibition titled Tattoo Legends. Christian Warlich on St. Pauli, which was curated by Ole Wittmann; technical support and scientific assistant Manfred Kohrs.[7] Natsoulas made a ceramic bust of Warlich, especially for this exhibition, which was presented in the exhibition. The glaze for the work was made by tattoo and ceramic artist Britton McFetridge.

Awards

Selected bibliography

Notes and References

  1. https://svma.org/exhibition/out-of-our-minds/ Out of Our Minds: Clayton Bailey & Tony Natsoulas.
  2. Philip Linhares: Tony Natsoulas: Inspiration and Independence Nov. 2021 Ceramics Monthly.
  3. https://www.themarksproject.org/marks/natsoulas Herrera, Carolyn E. "The Marks Project." Last modified April 13, 2023.
  4. https://sacramentocityexpress.com/2015/11/09/city-unveils-park-improvements-and-public-art-at-plaza-cervantes/ City unveils park improvements and public art at Plaza Cervantes
  5. Clémentine Sicard: Artist alum returns to campus for book launch alumni.ucdavis.edu
  6. Journal:Ceramics: Art and PerceptionIssue:121 May 2023,ISSN 1035-1841.
  7. Web site: 2019-07-29. Stiftung Historische Museen Hamburg. 2018-04-11. Tattoo-Legenden. Christian Warlich auf St. Pauli. MHG (german).
  8. Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission: American Ceramics 1998. Band 13, S. 53
  9. https://www.aaa.si.edu/collections/interviews/oral-history-interview-tony-natsoulas-12133 Natsoulas, Tony, 1959-Ceramicist

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