Arts Directory

About

Artist Bio

Mike Mopps has been a potter since he opened his first studio in Paris Mtn in the 1990’s. Mopps holds a BA degree in art from Lander University, as well as a MEd from Penn State with an emphasis on printmaking. He is a retired Greenville County Schools district art teacher of over twenty years and has led professional development and community workshops at venues across the state. He has been a teaching artist with SmartARTS and in the community since 2022. Mopps is now a full time professional artist and artist in residence. You can learn more about him and his art: https://www.moppsart.art/

Artist Statement

I work mainly in ceramics, but also produce works in printmaking and painting. I am growing my body of work to reflect the combination of ceramics and printmaking techniques that makes my work special. My themes are largely taken from observations of local flora and fauna, with influences from a wide variety of stories and symbols from ancient and modern history selected to illustrate the patterns and motivations that illuminate the human experience. I follow the modernist philosophy that art should be transparent to the transcendent. I make art to show the beauty, the humor, and the sublime to be found in life. I make art about the things I love, and I love the process of creating art: the tools, the preparation, the iterative creation.