Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Read Al’s bio

A.Y. Bain, also known as Al Bain, was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada in 1939. Bain enjoyed his career as a professional artist and teacher for over forty years. After receiving a Canada Council Study Grant, he went to the University of Oregon in Eugene to study with Robert James and David Stannard. In 1971, he received his Master of Fine Arts with honors in Ceramics.

Among other things, Bain was a great teacher. Colleges and Universities included; Mount Hood Community College, Portland Community College, David Thompson University Centre in Nelson, British Columbia, Kootenay School of Art in Nelson, British Columbia, Anderson Ranch in Snowmass, Colorado, and Queen’s College, Ibadan, Western State, Nigeria, Africa. From 1991-1994, Bain chaired the Art Department at Portland Community College, Sylvania Campus. As a teacher, he was seldom interested in the end product but focused mainly on interacting with students and their experience of the ceramic process.

Bain‘s passion for zoology, biology, art, and the environment resonated through his artwork. He once said;

Clay always receives and reveals the truth. I am fascinated with the magic and surprises in the Ceramic Process. Most of my life I have lived in Western Canada. I hope to bring out in Clay forms my love for this environment. All Ceramic Materials are Earth. Hopefully you can sense this feeling in my Pottery and also celebrate where and how we live.

Many of the pieces in this show reflect themes of fir trees, waves, animals, and plants that are unique to the Northwest and mirror a tradition of Western Pottery. With the help and knowledge of his contemporaries, including Hank Murrow and John McGregor, Bain built his own studio, kiln, tools, glazes, and designs. In Nelson, British Columbia, he owned and operated a successful public showroom for his work. As a professional artist, he participated in numerous exhibits with the Blackfish Gallery and other galleries in Oregon, Colorado, and Western Canada. Works have been displayed as far way as Prague, Czech Republic.

Some of the art in this show was inspired by the extensive band of students and artists of Portland Community College. Other works were fired in the kilns at Sylvania Campus or with college students at annual pit-fires on the Oregon Coast. These pieces present an exhilarating retrospective of A.Y. Bain Pottery.

Resume

Education

• 1971: Master of Fine Arts with Honors in Ceramics, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon

• 1962: Bachelor of Education in Fine Art and Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Alberta, Canada

Teaching Experience

• 1984-2000: Professor of Ceramics, Portland Community College, Portland, Oregon

• 1991-1994: Chairman, Art Department of Portland Community College, Sylvania Campus

• 1980-1984: Ceramics Instructor, David Thompson University Centre, Nelson British Columbia, Canada

• 1974-1980: Ceramics Instructor, Kootenay School of Art, Division of Selkirk College, Nelson British Columbia, Canada

• 1971-1974: Art Teacher, Ceramics and Printmaking, Viscount Bennett High School, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

• 1972: Ceramics Instructor, Summer Session, Anderson Ranch, Aspen, Colorado

• 1971: Ceramics Instructor, Mount Hood Community College, Gresham, Oregon

• 1965-1968: Botany, Zoology, and Art Teacher, Queen’s College, Ibadan, Western State, Nigeria, Africa

• 1962-1965: Art Teacher, Crescent Heights High School, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Awards

• 1971: Canada Council Study Grant

Ceramic experience

• Private and institutional kiln design and construction: propane salt-fired kilns, wood salt-fired kilns, raku kilns, natural gas and propane fired fiber kilns, wood-firing kiln, and numerous pit-fire experiences.
• Private and institutional studio design experience.
• Over forty years of glaze, wheel, slab, and hand building experience.

Exhibitions

1995

• “Blackfish Goes to Eugene,” Jacobs Gallery, Hult Center, Eugene, Oregon
• “Blackfish Goes to Prague,” Galeri Brati Captec, Prague, Czech Republic
• “Group Show,” Okresni Museum, Jicin, Czech Republic
• “Blackfish Goes to Spokane,” Chase Gallery, Spokane Arts Commission, Spokane, Washington

1994

• “Introverted Extrovert,” Two Person Show, Blackfish Gallery, Portland, Oregon
• “Eighth Annual Juried Art Featuring the Figure,” Exhibition, Oregon Coast Arts Council, Newport, Oregon
• “Swimming Upstream,” Blackfish Gallery 15th Anniversary Group Show, Blackfish Gallery, Portland, Oregon
• “Portland Community College Faculty Show,” Northview Gallery, Sylvania Campus, Portland, Oregon

1993

• “Blackfish Invitational Show,” Linfield College, McMinnville, Oregon
• “Ladies and Gentlemen and Dancing Baskets,” Two person show, Blackfish Gallery, Portland, Oregon
• “Clay in Higher Education,” Invitational, Made in Clay Gallery, Portland, Oregon
• “Community College Invitational,” Linn Benton Community College, Albany, Oregon

1992

• “Group Show,” Blackfish Goes to the Beach, Artspace Gallery, Bay City, Oregon

1990

• “Two Person Show,” Blackfish Gallery, Portland, Oregon

1989

• “Other Dimensions,” Group Sculpture Show by Non-Sculptors, Blackfish Gallery, Portland, Oregon
• “Portland Community College Faculty Show”, Portland Community College, Portland, Oregon

1988

• “Two Person Show,” Clackamas Community College, Clackamas, Oregon
• “Summer Invitational,” Western Oregon State College, Monmouth, Oregon
• “University of Oregon MFA Ceramics Invitational,” Museum of Art, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon
• “Oregon Ceramic Sculpture Invitational,” Lane Community College, Eugene, Oregon

1987

• “Portland Community College Faculty Show”, Portland Community College, Portland, Oregon

1986

• “Of the Wind and Sea and the Rain and Clouds,” Castlegar, British Columbia, Canada

1984

• “Group Exhibition in Conjunction with National Ceramics Conference,” Calgary and Banff, Alberta Canada

1982

• “Faculty Exhibition Macgregor Gallery,” David Thompson University Centre, Nelson, British Columbia, Canada

1981

• “Ceramics 81,” Major Exhibitor in Group Show, Robson Square Gallery, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

1980

• “One Person Show,” Kootenay School of Art Gallery, Nelson British Columbia, Canada

1979

• “National Ceramics Exhibition,” Juried National Show, Glenbow Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

1977

• “National Ceramics Exhibition,” Juried National Show, Glenbow Institute, Calgary, Alberta, Canada

1975

• “One Person Show,” Kootenay School of Art Gallery, Nelson British Columbia, Canada

1974

• “Two Person Show,” Kootenay School of Art Gallery, Nelson British Columbia, Canada

1972

• “Three Man Show,” Anderson Ranch, Snowmass, Colorado

1971

• “Thesis Exhibition,” Museum of Art, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon
• “Three Man Show,” Maude Kerns Art Center, Eugene, Oregon