Artist Spotlight: Frank Carsey — The Work We See and the Work the Ocean Keeps

by Andrew Nuth

CVG Member Artist, Frank Carsey

by Frank Carsey

by Frank Carsey

by Frank Carsey

Frank Carsey has two bodies of work. One we get to see, and one that belongs to the ocean. In this CVG Artist Spotlight, Frank Carsey shares a glimpse into a creative life shaped by science, patience, and clay. I imagine fish and crabs finding shelter in beautiful vases and sculptures—pieces that didn’t meet Carsey’s standards.

It took a long time for art to take center stage in Carsey’s life.  In a story well known to many creative folks, art took a back seat for much of his life.  It’s obvious to any listener that Carsey is proud of his career studying the atmosphere above the arctic ocean using acoustical radar.  A career that took him to beautiful and remote locations, working with other brilliant and adventurous people.  

College in the 60’s gave him his first meaningful introduction to art.  Experimental Physics students, like himself, needed to take a drawing class.  He went into it understanding the importance of drawing and sketching as a means of scientific communication, but left with a true appreciation for art.  After more than 50 years the profound effect of that class, and his respect for the professor, is obvious.  Next came an art history class where “Horizontal Tree” by Piet Mondrian made such an impression on him that he still speaks of it today.  Shortly thereafter a pottery lesson had him wondering if he should be a potter or a scientist. “I can’t do both” he told me.  A scientific career took precedence, but Carsey built a life that has ultimately let him do both.  

Walking into his home studio is an education in his creative process.  Tools and work surfaces line one wall, with a clay slab roller taking center stage in the room.  Carsey avoids the omnipresent potters wheel, it doesn’t give him the control he wants.  Relaxed organic shapes abound, shapes not possible on a wheel.  Sculptural pieces catch one’s eye, pieces that tell their own stories.  

Much of his work is wood fired, which often give beautiful and unpredictable results.  Earth tones are featured, full of rich textures and patterns, remnants of smoke swirling around the kiln.  Occasional pops of color grab your attention, but colorful glazes are not a common feature in his studio.  Carsey lets his hands and the smoke in the kiln do the work.  

Carsey pulls out a unique piece somewhat hidden under his shelves. The size of a large plate, the piece serves as a memorial to a friend and colleague who chose to end his life using Oregon’s death with dignity option. The piece is less refined, more raw, than his other works.  It captures an emotional state that is hard to define… Love, appreciation, frustration, loss, and grief all come to mind.  The piece is beautiful and personal.  Carsey is humble, mentions the things he wishes were different about the piece.  I see it as one of his best, full of emotion, unencumbered.  

Most of his pieces have a story behind them, all have something unique about them.  As we wrap up our conversation he does some finishing work on a vessel intended as a wedding gift.  He works at a relaxed pace, moving the piece with confident gentleness.  He isn’t afraid of breaking his delicate work.  I imagine what patterns the smoke will make in the channels, ridges, and valleys of this vessel.  I can’t help but wonder what pieces he cradled this way and are now hidden beneath the water outside his back door.