CENTER VALLEY, Pa. — "Chris Bonner: Fire Wood fired" will be on display Aug. 19 to Oct. 12 in the Ronald K. De Long Gallery at Penn State Lehigh Valley.  

Bonner is a lecturer of ceramic arts at Penn State Abington and teaches part-time at Penn State Lehigh Valley.

“Using age-old forming and firing techniques I create contemporary objects with a timeless quality,” Bonner said. “Firing a traditional anagama kiln allows me to capture the event of wood firing on the surface of my vessels, archiving the event’s history. The physical acts involved in this process – rolling coils, splitting wood, stoking the kiln – fuels the story.”

A native of South Jersey, Bonner earned a bachelor’s degree in anthropology at Beloit College and a master’s degree in ceramics at Northern Arizona University. After 13 years as a mold maker at the Moravian Pottery & Tile Works in Doylestown, he spent 6 years on the team of international contemporary artist Jeff Koons at his first digital stone fabrication studio. In 1995, Bonner scouted an ideal location for building a traditional anagama wood-fire kiln in Bucks County. Nearly 25 years later, his kiln continues to produce prized results. He has collaborated on numerous firings with artists such as Don Reitz, Rudy Autio and Peter Voulkos.

An artist reception will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 5, in the gallery. The exhibit and reception are both free and open to the public.   

The Ronald K. De Long Gallery is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Fridays, and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays. The gallery is closed on Sundays. For more information and for additional evening hours, contact Ann Lalik, gallery director, at annlalik@psu.edu or 610-285-5261.