Navigating the Maternal
Mya Cluff
Ceramic Artist in Belgrade, Montana
Mya is a ceramic artist living in the small town of Belgrade, Montana. Originally an Oregonian, she uprooted her PNW roots in 2017 to move to Montana and immerse herself in the rich clay culture found in the Big Sky state. A mother of two children, Mya is intrigued with the psychological, political and interpersonal ramifications of the maternal experience, and uses her own experience as well as the experiences of her peers to inform her work. She also draws much inspiration from written accounts on Motherhood, feminist literature, and folklore. Mya has been included in many group exhibitions, and exhibited her first solo show in the summer of 2021 at the Emerson Center for the Arts and Culture in Bozeman, MT. She received her BFA from the Oregon College of Art and Craft in Portland, Oregon, during which she had her first child, and her work has focused on the maternal experience ever since her undergrad thesis body of work which highlighted the transition to motherhood.
EDUCATION
2014-2017
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BFA in Craft, Concentration: Ceramics, Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, OR spring 2017
EXHIBITIONS
[Solo denoted with *, Duo denoted with **, Invitational denoted with ∆, Featured Artist Denoted with^, Group are unmarked]
2024
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(Upcoming) Mixed Emotions [∆}, Concurrent NCECA Exhibition, Richmond VA
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(Upcoming) Esprit de Corps [∆], Concurrent NCECA Exhibition, Richmond VA
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(Upcoming) The Measure of Her Creation [∆], JKR Gallery, Provo UT
2023
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Faces and Figures, [**] with Don Hoskisson, Chehalem Art Center, Newberg, OR
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Montana Clay Tour, Giselle Hicks Studio, Helena MT
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(Upcoming) 2023 OCAC Alumni Biennial, X Gallery & Art Storage, Portland OR
2022
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Thinking With Animals, [∆] Canton Museum of Art, Canton, OH
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Where Do I End, and You Begin?, [*,∆] Spokane Falls Community College, Spokane, WA
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Pandemic Motherhood, [**] with Brooke Bowen, Bountiful Davis Art Center, Bountiful, UT
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Once of Mud, [∆} George Fox University, NW Wood Firing Conference (NWWFC) concurrent exhibition, Newberg, OR
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Montana Clay Tour, Chip Clawson Studio, Helena MT
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The Family Portrait (Juried by Kukuli Velarde), The Clay Art Center, Port Chester, NY
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9th Annual Holiday Show, Radius Gallery, Missoula, MT
2021
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MAM’s Big Night, 2021 Benefit Art Auction, Hosted by Missoula Art Museum, Missoula, MT https://missoulaartmuseum.org/annual-auction
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Where Do I End and You Begin?, [*] Emerson Center for the Arts and Culture, Bozeman, MT
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Maternochronics, Online exhibition, https://www.maternochronics.com/
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Reflections on a Mother in Heaven, [∆] Anthony's Fine Art & Antiques, Salt Lake City, UT
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8th Annual Holiday Show, Radius Gallery, Missoula, MT
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Acting Balance[d], [^] Spilt Milk Members Show, '21, online exhibition, www.spiltmilkgallery.com
2020
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Figures and Portraits - Juried Group Show, Emerson Center for the Arts and Culture, Bozeman, MT
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Isolation: Week Four, Stay Home Gallery, Instagram. Curated by Kaylan Buteyn and Pam Marlene Taylor
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Everything is Different Now, Stay Home Gallery and Residency, Paris TN
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Hear Us Roar!: An Exhibition Exploring the Experience of Being a Woman, Curated by Katie Bradford Osborn, Virtual Exhibition at RoaringArtistGallery.com
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Powerful Little Things, Curated by Katie Bradford Osborn, Virtual Market & Exhibition at RoaringArtistGallery.com
2019
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Dynamic: A Celebration of the Female Experience, (Featured Artist) AVA Community Art Center, Gillette, WY
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Unwedged (National Juried Exhibition by Tip Toland), Pottery Northwest, Seattle, WA
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re:birth, Hosted by Spilt Milk, St. Margarets House, Edinburgh, Scotland UK
2017
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Fulcrum, 321 NE Davis, Portland OR
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BFA Orals Exhibition Week Four, Hoffman Gallery, Portland, OR
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OCAC Ceramics Showcase, OCAC Ceramics Department, Portland OR
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Ashes and Flux, Parish Gallery, Chehalem Art Center, Newberg OR (Concurrent NCECA exhibition)
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Urban Artist Showcase, Parish Gallery, Chehalem Art Center, Newberg OR
2016
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Book and Print Department Exhibition, Brookwood Library, Hillsboro OR
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OCAC Juried Student Show, Hoffman Gallery, Portland OR
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Identity, City Club of Portland, Portland OR
2015
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OCAC Ceramics Showcase, Centrum Gallery, Portland, OR
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Cross Section: Work from OCAC Department Chairs and Their Students, Hoffman Gallery, Portland, OR
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I Almost Got Lost Getting Here, California Conference for the Advancement of Ceramic Art, Davis, CA
2014
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OCAC Ceramics Showcase, Centrum Gallery, Portland, OR
RESIDENCIES
2023
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Short Term Resident, Pentaculum, Arrowmont School of Art and Craft, Gatlinburg, TN
2019
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Short Term Resident, Red Lodge Clay Center, Red Lodge, MT
SCHOLARSHIPS/ GRANTS
2022
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Ascent Artist Grant, through Holter Museum of Art, Helena, MT
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Mother Artist Grant, through Vision of the Arts, UT
2016
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Commitment to Craft Scholarship, Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, OR
2014
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Presidential Scholarship, Oregon College of Art and Craft,Portland, OR
2013
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Leon Mulling Scholarship, Southern Oregon University, Ashland, OR
ORGANIZATIONS & MEMBERSHIPS
2019-2023 (currently involved)
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Spilt Milk Member
2015-2023 (currently involved)
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NCECA, National Council for the Education of Ceramic Arts
2015-2017
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Founding Board Member of Friends of East Creek, Non-Profit
2014-2017
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OCAC Ceramics Guild Member
2000-2017
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Firing Crew Member of East Creek Anagama, Willamina, OR
PROFESSIONAL & TEACHING EXPERIENCE
2023
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Ceramics Instructor (Hand building and Sculpture), Emerson Center for the Arts and Culture, Bozeman, MT
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Visiting and Demoing Artist, Linfield University, McMinnville OR
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Visiting Artist, George Fox University, Newberg OR
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Visiting Artist, PNCA, Portland OR
2022
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Studio Assistant for Beth Cavener, Studio 740
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One Day Workshop: Sculpting on an Armature, hosted by Spokane Falls Community College, Spokane WA
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Ceramic Instructor at the Bozeman Art Museum
2021
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Crit Group Crew Mentor, [1:4 mentees], Jan-April Program, Artist/Mother Network
2020
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Virtual One Day Workshop on Sculpting on Armature, Hosted by Kansas City Clay Guild
2017-2019
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Production Potter at Mountain Arts Pottery, Bozeman MT
BIBLIOGRAPHY
2023
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An Artist and a Mother, edited by Tara Carpenter Estrada, Heidi Moller Somsen and Kaylan Buteyn, published by Demeter Press (Chpt 26, pg 193)
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Exponent II, Spring 2023 Vol. 42 No. 4, (pg. 39), Published quarterly by Exponent II, Editor in chief Rachel Rueckert
2020
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Mothers Days, (pg. 117-119) published by An Artist Residency in Motherhood & Lenka Clayton
2019
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Maternal Journal #2 (pg. 53) published by AMS (Artist Mother Studio)
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Exhibition Review: re:birth by Spilt Milk, Alessandra Leruste, (https://decoratingdissidence.com/2019/11/03/review-spilt-milk/)
2016
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Featured on the Artist Parent Index
COLLECTIONS
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Whitworth University, Public Collection, Spokane, WA
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Kolva-Sullivan, Private Collection, Spokane, WA