Lisa River (b. Lisa Schenkelberg, Cleveland, Ohio, 1979) studied art and psychology at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York where she graduated in 2002 with honors and a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art. After graduation, she remained in Saratoga Springs for a yearlong independent study at the Skidmore College ceramics studio before moving to the San Francisco Bay Area at the end of 2003. Over the next decade, she continued to hone her craft at various studios throughout the Bay Area. During this time, she also received her Master’s Degree in Integral Counseling Psychology and went through the rigorous training and internship requirements to become licensed as a Marriage and Family Therapist. After completing this process, she began to redirect more of her energy into her art practice. In 2015, she began sharing her work with the public. In 2020, after 17 years in the Bay Area, she moved back to Cleveland, Ohio with her partner. Currently, she dedicates her time to both her art practice and her work as a holistic counselor. She sees her whole life as a creative process and her art is informed by her various interests in Earth-based spirituality, animism, ancestral studies, symbolism, psychology, ecology, systems theory, social justice, intersectional movements of liberation, the evolution of consciousness and the restoration of living in harmony within nature.

Current

  • March 2024 - Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana Regional - Group Exhibit - Manifest Gallery - Cincinnati, OH

Group Exhibits

  • 2023 - 17th Annual HWD Sculpture Exhibition - Rosewood Gallery - Kettering, OH - Juried by Geno Luketic

  • 2023 - Future Form - Manifest Gallery - Cincinnati, OH

  • 2023 - Breaking Ground: Art About the Earth - Annmarie Sculpture Garden & Arts Center - Solomon, MD - Juried by Anna Davis, PhD

  • 2023 - Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana Regional - Manifest Gallery - Cincinnati, OH

  • 2022 - Portal - Manifest Gallery - Cincinnati, OH

  • 2021 - Off Center - Blue Line Arts - Roseville, CA - Juried by Magdolene Dykstra

  • 2021 - Form and Function - Applied Contemporary Craft Gallery - Oakland, CA - Juried by Christa Assad

  • 2021 - National Clay Competition - Epperson Gallery of Ceramic Arts - Crockett, CA - Juried by Scott Shields

  • 2020 - What Lies Beneath - Epperson Gallery of Ceramic Arts - Crockett, CA - Juried by Lisa Clague

  • 2020 - Made in California - The City of Brea Art Gallery - Orange County, CA

  • 2020 - Conscious Transitions - In conjunction with NCECA 2020 - Uptown Gallery - Richmond, VA - Curated by Lisa Battle and Nina Kawar

  • 2019 - Pattern and Abstraction - Fe Gallery - Sacramento, CA

  • 2019 - Made in California - The City of Brea Art Gallery - Orange County, CA

  • 2017 - Visions in Clay - The LH Horton Gallery - Stockton, CA - Juried by John Toki

  • 2016 - To Sum Degree - The HUD Gallery - Ventura, CA

  • 2016 - Dynamic - Studio Channel Islands Blackboard Gallery - Camarillo, CA

Publications

  • January, 2022 - Featured Artist - Create! Magazine 5-Year Anniversary Issue - Issue 28

  • April, 2020 - Featured Artist - The Journal of Australian Ceramics - Volume 59, No 1

  • August, 2019 - Featured Artist - Create! Magazine - Issue 16

Awards and Grants

  • 2023 - 2nd Place Juror’s Award - 17th Annual HWD Sculpture Exhibition - Rosewood Gallery - Kettering, OH

  • 2023 - People’s Choice Award - 17th Annual HWD Sculpture Exhibition - Rosewood Gallery - Kettering, OH

  • 2021 - People’s Choice Award - Off Center - Blue Line Arts - Roseville, CA

  • 2019 - Best in Show - Pattern and Abstraction - Fe Gallery - Sacramento, CA

  • 2019 - Advancement to Round II in application process - In the top 20% of 4,000+ applicants - Creative Capital Grant

Residencies, Events and Art Fairs

  • 2023 - Embodied Nature: A Clay Workshop Connecting with the Earth and Self - Sulphur Springs Picnic Area - Cleveland Metroparks - Bentleyville, OH

  • 2022 - Virtual Artist Talk - Portal - Manifest Gallery - Cincinnati, OH

  • 2021 - Artist Talk - Off Center - Blue Line Arts - Roseville, CA

  • 2021 - Artist Residency - Buffalo Creek Art Center - Gardnerville, CA

  • 2015 - Connecting with Nature through Clay - Workshop - North Sonoma Mountain Regional Park - Santa Rosa, CA

  • 2015 - Art in Nature Festival - Site-specific installation - Redwood Regional Park - Oakland Hills, CA

  • 2015 - Pop-up Show - Maker’s Workspace - Berkeley, CA

Stockists

  • 2016 - AbramsClaghorn Gallery - Albany, CA

  • 2015 - Yonder Shop - Pacifica, CA