Peter Voulkos

A seminal figure in twentieth-century ceramics, Peter Voulkos inspired a generation of artists to liberate themselves from ceramic tradition by focusing on experimentation and personal expression. After receiving degrees from Montana State University in 1951 and the California College of Arts and Crafts in 1952, Peter Voulkos founded a ceramics program at the Otis Art Institute in Los Angeles in 1954. Influenced by the rough energy of Abstract Expressionism and the beat culture and jazz in Northern California in the 1950s, his experimental and improvisational work led to discussions about the increasingly blurred boundaries between craft and art. Peter Voulkos was a hugely influential ceramics artist and teacher.

Education: B.S. (Applied Art), Montana State University, Bozeman, 1951; M.F.A., California College of Arts & Crafts, Oakland, 1952