Fred Wiesener
Photos submitted by EAT Gallery
Sculptures made by Fred Wiesener in EAT Gallery in downtown Maysville.
Photos submitted by EAT Gallery
Sculptures made by Fred Wiesener in EAT Gallery in downtown Maysville.
Photos submitted by EAT Gallery
The Ledger Independent is publishing a 50/50 series featuring 50 things over 50 weeks. During this series, our readers can expect to see different “Local Talents/Artisans” each week.
Some of the “Local Talents/Artisans” that may be featured will include, artists, authors, songwriters and more. The general definition of “artisan” refers to a worker in a skilled trade, according to the Oxford Dictionary.
Please enjoy Day 14 of the series.
Fred Wiesener is a professional artist and designer craftsman who works in clay and makes sculptural ceramics.
“I’ve been involved in art since I was 14 years old. I was taught how to paint signs and holiday greetings with pictorials using tempera paint on the insides of storefront windows in the town where I grew up in southern Arkansas,” Wiesener stated.
Born in Houston, Texas, he grew up in Camden, Ark., and he expressed that he “studied at the Memphis Academy of Arts, the Atlanta School of Art, earned a B.A. from Henderson State University and a M.F.A. in ceramics from Syracuse University in 1971.”
Wiesener further stated that in June 1971 he was chosen to show at the American Craft Council Wholesale Show.
It was there that he left with 15 galleries that contracted to buy his work.
“For 53 years I’ve been self-employed selling my work at the bigger art shows on the east coast from Boston to Miami Beach and whole selling to the galleries around the country as well as worldwide,” Wiesener expressed.
While in art school Wiesener stated that he began with painting before switching to clay.
“I love clay because its immediate, tactile and alive. Working with clay is one of the oldest professions in the world and when I’m making a piece I feel incredibly blessed to be able to continue what so many before me have done. Luckily I’ve been able to spend my whole life doing what I love to do,” Wiesener said.
He expressed that before he quits he still has a commission to complete and a “special clay and cast bronze piece to make.”
“You can see my work at EAT Gallery here in Maysville, the Kentucky Artisans Center in Berea Ky., Mountain Mist Gallery in Cashiers N.C., Cinema Gallery in Urbana Ill., or www.wiesenerstudios.com,” Wiesener stated.
