Anna Valenti is a ceramic artist born in upstate New York. Inspired by family traditions of weaving, gardening, and jerry-rigging, her work centers around gathering spaces and domestic objects that cultivate connection. She weaves and pinches clay vessels ranging in size from pots to chairs to large-scale screens.
A mix of materials play an important part in Anna’s research and work. From hemp to linen to cellulose, fibers are added to clay bodies to improve tensile strength for building as well as structural support for handling. In a soft state, clay and fiber memories parallel one another. Coils of fiber clay are hand-rolled and pinched, leaving impressions with each touch of the hand. Every weaving starts with a single line: over and under at intersecting angles, layers of multiple coils of fiber clay create woven clay vessels.
Anna has exhibited nationally at the Institute of Contemporary Art at MECA&D in Portland ME, Watershed Center for Ceramic Arts in Edgecomb ME, Bray North Gallery in Helena MT, The Clay Studio in Philadelphia PA, Tippetts & Eccles Gallery in Ogden UT, Soo Visual Arts Center in Minneapolia MN, and the Hyde Museum in Glens Falls NY. She is the recipient of the 2019 Professional Development Grant MECA&D, the 2020 NCECA Graduate Student Fellowship, the 2021 Colorado Arts Grant, and 2023 Professional Development Grant RMCAD. Anna is currently the Ceramics Coordinator and an Assistant Professor of Fine Art at Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design in Denver, Colorado.
Anna graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder with a Bachelor of Arts, with continued post-baccalaureate studies in Ceramics there. She received her MFA from the Maine College of Art and Design.
A mix of materials play an important part in Anna’s research and work. From hemp to linen to cellulose, fibers are added to clay bodies to improve tensile strength for building as well as structural support for handling. In a soft state, clay and fiber memories parallel one another. Coils of fiber clay are hand-rolled and pinched, leaving impressions with each touch of the hand. Every weaving starts with a single line: over and under at intersecting angles, layers of multiple coils of fiber clay create woven clay vessels.
Anna has exhibited nationally at the Institute of Contemporary Art at MECA&D in Portland ME, Watershed Center for Ceramic Arts in Edgecomb ME, Bray North Gallery in Helena MT, The Clay Studio in Philadelphia PA, Tippetts & Eccles Gallery in Ogden UT, Soo Visual Arts Center in Minneapolia MN, and the Hyde Museum in Glens Falls NY. She is the recipient of the 2019 Professional Development Grant MECA&D, the 2020 NCECA Graduate Student Fellowship, the 2021 Colorado Arts Grant, and 2023 Professional Development Grant RMCAD. Anna is currently the Ceramics Coordinator and an Assistant Professor of Fine Art at Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design in Denver, Colorado.
Anna graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder with a Bachelor of Arts, with continued post-baccalaureate studies in Ceramics there. She received her MFA from the Maine College of Art and Design.