Art I'm Looking at: Asawa "Life Vessels" at The Anderson Collection, Palo Alto

After visiting the Cantor Arts Center yesterday, I went next door to see the adjacent Anderson Collection (both on the Stanford Campus, in Palo Alto). Among the various exhibits was a small one consisting of mask-like ceramic faces made by Ruth Asawa. Along with these, three large ceramic vessels were on display made by Asawa's son, Paul Lanier, an accomplished potter who studied with Bauhaus-trained Marguerite Wildenhaim (of Pond Farm fame). At Asawa's request, Lanier mixed her ashes after her death and cremation with clay and also with the ashes of her husband, who pre-deceased her, and threw and fired three pots using the clay–ash mixture. The finished vessels were given to their children. I think this is a wonderful idea--perhaps a better thing to do with ashes from a cremation than scattering them somewhere to be lost forever.