The following blog post was written by fellow UHPer and Spring 2024 SURE Award recipient, Chris Koppi (Fine Arts, ’25). Read on about Chris’ research and how they plan to utilize the SURE Award funding to further expand upon their experience!

Since my first experience with clay as a child in the woods, I have always loved the feeling of clay in my hands. As I was exposed to ceramic arts as an adolescent, this love blossomed into a maintained practice and is the core focus of my major in Fine Arts. With the support of my professors at the Corcoran School of Art and Design, I have dedicated my first three years of my undergraduate degree to finding my voice and specialization in my artwork. As I delved into the mechanics of my art, I discovered a deep interest in the vast variety of methods undertaken to decorate ceramics, ranging from low-temperature raku firings that leave carbon impressions on your work, to long, hot wood firings that form glossy wood-ash surfaces on pieces. So far in my research, I have been working in our on-campus facilities to develop my own range of ceramic glazes that I can continue to alter and enhance within the next year of my research. I have learned a lot about the work that I can do within our facilities at GW, and I am extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to further extend my research with the SURE award. The award money will allow me to take workshops to learn new techniques from different artists and in different facilities, giving me the opportunity to expand my knowledge of decorative techniques and return to my senior year with a more complex understanding of the tools I have at my disposal. Between the work I am doing at GW and the work facilitated by the SURE award, I plan to create a range of personalized decorative techniques in my personal practice, which I will present for my undergraduate thesis show in 2025!

Interested in applying for your own SURE Award funding? Find out more about the application process here!