Jan. 7, 2015
MOUNDSVILLE, W.Va. — The Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex in Moundsville will introduce a new exhibition program featuring regional artists on Jan. 10, with the opening of an exhibit by Betsy Cox, a Glen Dale native. Cox is the owner of Echo Valley Pottery and finds inspiration for her work in her lifelong love of archaeology.
The complex will host an opening reception Saturday, Jan. 10, at 2 p.m. Later in the month, Cox will host a hands-on Pottery Day where the public is invited to try its hand at the craft. That event will be Saturday, Jan. 24, from 2 to 4 p.m. Both events are free and open to the public.
“Our new exhibit program will showcase the work of regional West Virginia artists and allow our visitors to learn more about the diversity of the local arts community,” said Jeremy Kohus, site manager for Grave Creek Mound. “Each artist will have the opportunity to display work for one month and provide an activity day when visitors can learn more about the artist’s medium.”
“My love of the earth and clay started as a child growing up in the country,” said Cox. “I was always in the mud, playing with mud and covered with mud as a child. Things have not changed much – I still do all of the above.” She said she uses clay to create pieces that are functional, decorative, sculptural and whimsical.
“My methods of firing vary depending on what I hope to achieve with each piece,” she said. “Each method marks the clay in different ways. I form these pieces on the wheel, sculpt, hand build and mold, and this is how I manipulate the mud.”
Cox’s work is featured at Tamarack: The Best of West Virginia, Artworks Around Town and in galleries and shops in the Pittsburgh, Pa., area. She is a member of Artworks, West Virginia Craftsman’s Guild, NCEACA and the American Ceramic Society. She is a charter member of the American Potters Council.
Kohus said that the featured local artist exhibits will change monthly and invites artists in the Northern Panhandle and Mountaineer regions of West Virginia to contact him for more information about participating. He can be reached at Grave Creek Mound at 304-843-4128 or Jeremy.A.Kohus@wv.gov.
Operated by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex features the largest conical burial mound in the New World and ranks as one of the largest earthen mortuary mounds anywhere in the world. The Delf Norona Museum, located at 801 Jefferson Avenue, is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. It is closed Sunday and Monday.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History is an agency within the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts with Kay Goodwin, Cabinet Secretary. The division, led by Commissioner Randall Reid-Smith, brings together the past, present and future through programs and services focusing on archives and history, arts, historic preservation and museums. For more information about the division’s programs, events and sites, visit www.wvculture.org. The Division is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
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