Matt Geddes retired from teaching art classes at BYU-Idaho nine years ago and is currently serving a mission with his wife in France, but being out of the country has not stopped him from displaying his art in a new exhibit at the Spori Art Gallery in Rexburg.
Although Geddes originally taught ceramics and sculpture at Ricks College when he began in 1983, he later transitioned to mostly covering sculpture. Many of the pieces of the exhibit were made over the past two years while Geddes rediscovered his passion for ceramics.
“It wasn't until just about two or two and a half years ago that in retirement I decided, ‘You know, I want to sit in on another ceramics class, get back into the studio,’” Geddes said. “So, all of the pottery things, all the ceramic pieces have been done within just reigniting that love that I had and that teaching that I did for so many years, after really being away from it for almost 20 years.”
Geddes loves working in clay, which is what this exhibit features.
“I don't know of any medium on earth that is more versatile,” Geddes said. “From things that are very refined, very crude, very utilitarian, very non-representational, you can do anything with clay. And clay is virtually everywhere on the surface of the earth.”
Geddes’s exhibit is called “Still Playing in Mud.” His previous exhibit was titled “Playing in Mud.” The inspiration for these titles comes from Geddes’s life experiences.
“I think what I used to love to do when I was just a young kid was playing mud,” Geddes said, “and I realized, ‘You know what? I think what I did for a living was what I did when I was a little kid. I just played in mud.’”
The free exhibit, “Still Playing in Mud” will be displayed at the Spori Art Gallery until Feb. 20.