Jack Earl (born August 2, 1934, in Uniopolis, Ohio) is an American ceramic artist and former teacher, known for drawing inspiration from his home state of Ohio to create rural pieces âÂÂwith meticulous craftsmanship and astute details⦠to where you could smell the air, hear the silence and swat the flies.â Although his works hint at highly personal, intellectual, and narrative themes in an almost unsettling manner, Earl is âÂÂa self-described anti-intellectual who shuns the art world." He is known particularly for using his trademark format, the dos-a-dos (translated âÂÂback to backâÂÂ): âÂÂThis art form is like a book with two stories⦠the two seemingly incongruent images prompt the viewer to fill in the conceptual gap through poetic speculation.â His work often involves dogs or the character âÂÂBillâÂÂ, who is said to be a combination of EarlâÂÂs father-in-law, himself, and others. The titles to his pieces are typically lengthy, stream-of-consciousness narratives that suggest the folk or rural lifestyle. These are intended to add another dimension to the artwork. His work has received a notable response over his decades-long career, especially since he is regarded as âÂÂa master at reminding us that within the events we take for granted are moments of never-ending mystery and wonder.â Earl continues to live in Lakeview, Ohio with his wife, Fairlie.
While growing up in his hometown of Uniopolis, Ohio, Earl became inspired by his high school art teacher, Darvin Luginbuhl. He earned his BA at Bluffton College in Ohio in 1956, and then taught art in high schools until he earned his MA in art education at The Ohio State University in 1964. 1963 to 1972 became a time of inspiration and exploration for Earl, as he worked in art education and ceramics at the Toledo Museum of Art and Design. He was interested in making and studying historical porcelain figurines, and by the early 1970s EarlâÂÂs âÂÂwhimsicalâ pieces âÂÂhad transformed the European tradition into a thoroughly modern and American idiom". From 1972 to 1978, Earl was an associate professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, and in 1974 he and colleague Tom DaLousa were two of the first residents of the John Michael Kohler Arts CenterâÂÂs Arts/Industry residency program. By the end of the decade, Earl was creating shockingly real (and in some cases, surreal) works of art. After having one of his porcelain sculptures selected into ', a touring national exhibition from 1969 to 1971 organized by SC Johnson and Son, Inc. (Racine, WI), EarlâÂÂs work began to gain recognition. He soon was awarded a solo exhibition the Museum of Contemporary Crafts in New York City (now the Museum of Arts and Design), and his work was featured in the only craft magazine of the time, Craft Horizons (now American Craft). From 1978 onward, Earl has gone on to work full-time as a studio artist in his home of Lakeview, Ohio. In 1985 Lee Nordness published The Genesis and Triumphant Survival of an Underground Ohio Artist about EarlâÂÂs life and work, one of the first books written solely about a craft artist. Earl has continued to present his work in countless group and solo exhibitions, and is featured in many prominent permanent collections nationally.
"The usual comment I get on my work is that somebody likes it. I like to know that people like it. It is then telling me I haven't made a mistake. My work is directed toward selling on the art market. If people don't like it, then it doesn't sell. As far as I'm concerned, there is no reason to make anything that doesn't sell, because I don't have any need to express myself. I've got other things to do." âÂÂJack Earl
âÂÂâ¦What I do is a presentation of the way things are⦠you just present it and let people see it. â¦There has to be a sense of mystery in what you make.â âÂÂJack Earl to Jane Milosch, June 2007
âÂÂIâÂÂve done the only thing I could do, so thereâÂÂs no glory in that⦠ThereâÂÂs no thought in it, youâÂÂre just being led because itâÂÂs what you do⦠to know your limitations is very beneficial. It keeps you solid⦠it keeps me in contact with my life and things around me, which is my source. So itâÂÂs kind of circular⦠Art is a job.âÂÂ- Jack Earl to Jane Milosch, June 2007
EarlâÂÂs work is represented in the following museum collections:
Earl has exhibited his work at museums and galleries of note in the United States, Australia, Canada, and England, including the following: