Heather Mae Erickson
Heather Mae Erickson (born February 22, 1977) is an artist, a craftsperson, and a designer. Erickson earned her BFA at The University of the Arts, majoring in crafts specializing in ceramics with a concentration in art education. Continuing her studies at Cranbrook Academy of Art, she earned an MFA in ceramic art. Early life. Erickson was born at Wilmington General Hospital in Wilmington, Delaware. She is the middle child of Eric Blaine Erickson and Janet Diane Erickson (née Snyder). Her father is a Terminal Trainmaster/Haz Mat Sentinel at CSX Transportation in Walbridge, Ohio and her mother  is a homemaker. Erickson moved frequently in her early life, living with her family in New Castle, Delaware from 1977 to 1978, in Mantua, Ohio from 1978–1979, in Lindenwold, New Jersey from 1979–1980, in Runnemede, New Jersey from 1980–1981 (where she attended Bingham Elementary School), in Laurel Springs, New Jersey from 1981–1994 (where she attended Laurel Springs Elementary, Samuel S. Yellin Junior High in Stratford, and half of her first year at Sterling High School in Somerdale), and in Sylvania, Ohio from 1994–1996 (where she attended Sylvania Southview High School and was a member of the Cougarettes varsity precision dance  team). Education. Erickson moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania where she earned her BFA in Crafts with a concentration in Ceramics and Art Education K-12 Pre-Certification at The University of the Arts (1996–2000). At UArts she worked closely with artists/professors James D. Makins, Lizbeth Stewert, Alec Karros, Jeanne Jaffe, Sharon Church, Susie Brandt, Roy Superior and Rod McCormick. In December 2000, Erickson returned to Sylvania, Ohio and continued studio work in her parents' basement, became a member of the Toledo Potters' Guild where she glazed/fired her work, took part in exhibitions, ran the Seagate Gallery in Toledo, taught at  art centers, and substitute taught for Toledo Public Schools. In September 2002 Erickson began her MFA in Ceramics at Cranbrook Academy of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan under Resident Artist, Tony Hepburn. Career. Erickson spent the summer after graduation from Cranbrook as a resident artist at the Archie Bray Foundation in Helena, Montana. From 2004–2005, Erickson was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to conduct independent research at The University of Art and Design (now Aalto University) in Helsinki, Finland. Upon her return from Finland, Erickson continued her work as a resident artist at The Clay Studio in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for three  years. During this time, she also taught at The University of the Arts, Rowan University, Arcadia University, and various art centers in and around the city. Heather Mae Erickson currently resides in Sylva, North Carolina and is Assistant Professor and Head of Ceramics at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee. Recognition. Erickson's work has been shown internationally and is represented in collections around the world. She has earned numerous awards, including first place for the Horizon Award presented by the Museum of Art and Design in New York and honorable mentions at the Korea Biennale International 2007 & 2009 Exhibitions. The  Horizon Awards acknowledge the achievements of young and emerging artists and designers. "Erickson's work represents the excitement that is now infusing functional ceramics," said Tony Hepburn, head of Ceramics at Cranbrook. "It is simply the hybridizing of craft and design. Upbeat, innovative, employing new technologies and allowing this new world to help us rethink how we think about the objects we use." She was awarded an Independence Fellowship for a summer 2009 residency at The International Ceramic Research Center in Denmark. Erickson was the 2009–2012 Robert Chapman Turner Teaching Fellow in Ceramic Art at the New York State College  of Ceramics at Alfred University. From 2012–2013, she lived in Golden, Colorado where she taught part-time at Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design, Red Rocks Community College, Colorado Mountain College-Aspen Campus, and Arapahoe Community College. She moved to Boulder, Colorado from 2013–2014, where she served as visiting teaching artist/sabbatical replacement for artist/professor Jeanne Quinn at The University of Colorado in Boulder.