Sandy Blain, former University of Tennessee professor of art and director of the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, from 1980-2001, has died of cancer at her home in Tempe, Arizona.
Blain specialized in creating functional pottery using a variety of techniques, often featuring elaborate surfaces built up using textures, patterns and reliefs inspired by found objects, finished with layers of sprayed glazes.
This combination of form and function produced beautiful works that comment on the relationship of craft and culture in an age of impersonal manufactured abundance. Her work has been exhibited in nearly 300 juried and invitational exhibitions, has won numerous awards, has been published in journals and books, is prized by private collectors, and resides in the permanent collections of dozens of institutions.
A memorial to celebrate the life of Sandy Blain is being planned for early spring of 2025 in Arizona. Full obituary here.
