THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, November 20, 1994 TAG: 9411170213
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 20 EDITION: FINAL
LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines
Sandy Jett Ball makes clay portraits. A collection of her work is currently hanging at Cooperative Bank for Savings in Kill Devil Hills. The images, cut from a low-fire clay, represent both real and imaginative people.
Ball, 50, collects personalities for her clay children by observing human nature. It's more of a reflexive act than a conscious effort.
``I guess I learned it from my father,'' she said. ``He was an observer of people too, always analyzing why this was happening.''
While the artist is not attempting to achieve photo-realism in her figures, a very real personality radiates from each earthy slab. Sensitive facial expressions, lyrical gestures and an intuitive handling of accessories give the canvas-mounted people depth.
``They're ready to entertain people, comfort people, be a companion,'' Ball said.
The inspiration for the assemblages comes from many sources, including family, photographs, magazines and literary works she fancies. The main piece in the Cooperative show, ``Ballet Russe,'' introduces six meditative, turn-of-the-century ballet dancers waiting to perform ``The Rites of Spring.''
The flowing, antique white dresses stand out against a dark, painterly background. While the girls are youthful, their dangling, knee-length locks reflect a lengthy passage of time.
It took Ball a year to complete the work that was inspired by a newspaper photograph. Clothing had to be altered, ballet shoes cut down to size, and clay faces and hands cut, glazed and fired. The parts were then laid out on canvas. Each piece had to be moved to be glued. With gestures playing such an important role in Ball's work, the re-assembling process was tedious. ``I wondered, will I ever get it back again?'' said Ball.
More personal family portraits hang in Ball's Colington home. A clay image of her daughter Emily in a black prom dress hangs as a milestone in the balcony above their living room. Three of Ball's four boys are depicted in clay, enjoying watermelon. A portrait of her eldest son, complete with tuxedo and eyeglasses, is in the works.
Ball's list of talents reads like the back of a miracle tonic bottle: She sculpts, She draws, She paints, She writes, and ... She even teaches.
A graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University, with a BFA in Art Education, she teaches art to neighborhood children. Because Ball and her husband home-school three sons, she welcomes the company for her boys. Papier-mache masks, chicken-wire sculptures and drawings scattered throughout her home are just some of the by-products of her teachings.
Ball encourages her students to submit their work to Cricket Magazine, a children's art and literary publication. She was overjoyed when a 4-year-old student received recognition for one of his creations.
The Ball residence is a hotbed for creativity. Every room of their sound-front home is filled with Ball's artistic creations. Tile mosaics and abstract oil paintings cover the walls. A field of painted flowers enlivens an antique Bishop's chair. Tucked away in a bedroom are homemade rose beads, created from the petals of romance-anniversary gifts from Ball's husband Donny. Drawings of smiling guardian angels are continually being produced.
Copies of Ball's book, ``Wellington Bunny, or The True Story of How Wellington Rabbit Became the Easter Bunny,'' can quickly be generated from a computer that sits in a central room.
Wellington himself - a stuffed, fabric bunny designed and sewn by Ball - rests in a nearby chair with other characters from her story. Ball has sewn elaborate Halloween costumes and doll clothes, and she soon will be making her daughter's wedding dress.
Ball grew up surrounded by inspirational figures.
``Both my grandmothers were seamstresses. They never used patterns,'' she said.
And a cousin in Reedville, Va., where Ball's family roots date back to the 1600s, is a writer and painter. There, in a former country store - turned into a gallery by her cousin - Ball has an ongoing show of her artwork. ``It's an eclectic show. Just about anything will work,'' she said.
Eclectic is the perfect word to describe Ball. Her clay assemblages are varied, including two African brothers, an English literature professor, the ``French Trader,'' ``Red Riding Hood'' and Tennyson's ``Lady of Shallot.''
And her creativity is infectious. She encourages her husband's artistic endeavors. His colorful photographs of peaceful sunsets and nature scenes are also on display at Cooperative and beautify their home as well.
Both Sandy and Donny create greeting cards under their ``Sealed with a Kiss'' logo. If the Balls ever get tired of that one, they could easily trade it for ``Kissed by Creativity,'' for that well explains the world of Sandy and Donny Ball. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by MARY ELLEN RIDDLE
Sandy Jett Ball finds the inspiration for her clay portraits from
family, photographs and magazines.
by CNB