Sonoma ceramicist Kala Stein honored

Kala Stein, ceramicist at the Sonoma Community Center, along with four other Sonoma County artists, is being recognized through the fourth annual “Discovered: Emerging Artists from Sonoma County” program, produced by Creative Sonoma and the Petaluma Arts Center. The five winners’ work will be shown in a juried show at the Center, opening on Jan. 21 from 5 to 7 p.m. Winners will also receive a $2,000 stipend.

“These five artists reflect the tremendous diversity of the county’s visual arts community in genre, style and philosophy,” said Creative Sonoma executive director Kristen Madsen. “Yet, they share several common themes. These works explore a culture that has less to do with the intrinsic value of things, and more to do with providing a felt experience.”

The winners included arists Jenny Harp of Santa Rosa, Dayana Leon of Santa Rosa, Catherine Sieck of Occidental and Jaynee Watson of Petaluma.

“The Discovered program is a great vehicle to shine a spotlight on some of the individual artists in our county whose work hasn’t yet received well deserved recognition,” said Supervisor Efren Carrillo, Chair of the Board of Supervisors. “Receiving this award will be an important credential for all of these artists as they move their career forward in Sonoma County or beyond.”

The winners were selected through a competitive process and 80 nominations led to 46 applications which were juried down to 12 finalists. Jurors made site visits to the studios of all finalists and selected the 5 winners.

“The immense diversity of subject matter, medium and insights for the many exceptional artists living and working in Sonoma County is simply astounding,” said Stein “From concern and respect for the natural world, to gender politics, technology and beauty, the quality is very exciting.”

The Petaluma Arts Center is located at 230 Lakeville Street in Petaluma.

Jurors for the awards include lead curator Kate Eilertsen of Sonoma, Michael Schwager from Sonoma State University, and local visual artist Jessica Martin.

The grant program is sponsored by the Artist Awards Endowment Fund at the Community Foundation Sonoma County, which was created by more than 50 donors from 2007 to 2011.

A division of the County of Sonoma’s Economic Develoment Board, Creative Sonoma supports and advances the creative community of Sonoma County. Creative Sonoma was established in 2014.