BY ALAN CAPPER To realize how broad the arts community is in Long Island City, the BrickHouse Ceramic Center has come a long way since its inception by Ellen Day in 2007. A ceramic artist herself, she has impeccable credentials to build this enterprise. She was the director of the ceramic department at the YMCA/NYC Craft Student League. When the league closed, Day purchased its equipment, and after searching for space for 18 months, she opened Brick House in a 4,000-square-foot facility in Long Island City. “I was very fortunate in finding this space,” she said. “It gave me the opportunity to add a new dimension to the arts community in Long Island City.” She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in ceramics from SUNY and a Master of Fine Arts degree in ceramics from CUNY. Day is well known as a creative person and a successful businesswoman who is deeply involved in the arts in Long Island City. The work of the BrickHouse Center has been exhibited both nationally and internationally and she organized and led two groups to China for three-week pottery tours. “It gave our members and our Chinese hosts the opportunity to see the international appeal of ceramics in all their forms from large to small.” She is a member of Long Island City Artists and participates in Long Island City Arts Open. In 2012, Day organized NYC ClayFest, which is an annual, citywide ceramic open studios event where over 30 different studios have invited participants to visit the artists, explore their studios and buy a wide range of handcrafted ceramic work. “I wanted BrickHouse to be a sanctuary where adults can relax and create art,” she said. “The studio is fully equipped with everything from rollers to kilns.” BrickHouse rents space to 40 artists and teaches classes to approximately 75 students per term. What is created ranges from simple pottery, like plates and pots, through to very large sculptural pieces, which take some time and much patience to produce. Why do people choose to spend their time with ceramics? “Ceramics are a very tactile form of arts creativity,” Day said. “In many ways, it’s more intimate than painting where you create with a brush and some distance. With ceramics, you are deeply involved with your hands and the materials themselves and you are effectively acting as one.” It is certainly true that students from all walks of life enjoy their experience as BrickHouse teaches them to produce ceramic artwork. Learning to make handmade items can become a real passion. The school of ceramics provides an opportunity to learn and create at the same time. As BrickHouse has expanded, it has acquired more instructors who posses MFA degrees in ceramics, exhibit nationally and have their work published in magazines and textbooks. BrickHouse has its own shop where some of the students’ work is sold. “Of course I want our students to learn and increase their creativity, but the most important thing for me to see is that they are enjoying themselves and are finding a certain tranquility in what they do.” BrickHouse has ensured that classes are available during the day or evening to help college students and those employed during the day to have access to the classes. “It was a consummation devoutly to be wished when I found the space in Long Island City. As all LIC residents know, it is a wonderful, growing area in its own right, and its proximity to Manhattan allows for students to come from the city itself with no difficulty. “I believe ceramics are a really important art form as I said with its tactile involvement,” Day said. “To create something that is ornamental or practical with your own hands is one of the great pleasures that ceramics provide.” ■ALAN CAPPER House of Arts A look into LIC’s BrickHouse Ceramic Center Photos by Troy Benson
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