Artist: Tom Eastburn
As a fulltime clay artist, my challenge is to create pottery that is aesthetically pleasing, intellectually stimulating and comfortable to use. My signature work consists of large wall platters often paying homage to the wonderful Bison found just north of Hot Springs. I specialize in high-fired stoneware dinnerware pottery, as well as raku forms, sculpture, and clay mono prints. My email address is eastburn@gwtc.net. You can see more of my work at http://sdartists.net/members/teastburn/
Dave Huebner was born at Pinecastle Army Air Base in1945 in Orlando, Florida. At the age of 5, his grandfather gave him a pocket knife to make his own toys. His grandfather had been a Norwegian Sailor who built model ships as a young boy. Dave soon learned to make model ships from his grandfather. He made ships and his own toys until High School. At Maynard Evans High School in Orlando, Dave took up Drafting, Mechanical Drawing, Sheetmetal Drawing, & Architecture. Dave got a one-way ticket to South Dakota State College in 1963.His parents and grandparents had all come from SD. Dave started in the Engineering program. He also took a job in his uncle's sign shop in Brookings. After a year in Engineering, he switched his major to Art. Dave was managing the sign shop aftter a year there. He worked 60-80 hrs a week painting highway billboards and still took a full credit schedule at SDSU. Dave took about all the art courses offered at SDSU including Sculpture, Silversmithing, Painting, Theatre Scene Design, Film Production, & of course Ceramics. Ceramics was the only art course he got low grades in. While at SDSU Dave and other students rented vacant stores on several occasions for the weekend and held their own Art Shows & Sales. They called their group of 8 or so students the "Moonlight Conspiracy". The SDSU Faculty took a dim view of this activity, but the students continued anyway. There was no other way to display their work at that time. Many of the "Moonlight Conspiracy" ended up becoming accomplished artists in various fields. Most of us graduated in 1968 and moved on. Dave was given a Commission in the Army Corps of Engineers. He was sent to the Engineer school in Ft. Belvior, VA. While at Ft. Belvior, Dave hung out in the Army Craft Shop, when not on duty. After Topography School, Dave was sent to Hawaii to serve in the 29th Eng. Battalion, Base Topographic. He became a mapmaker for the Army. Again Dave ended up in the Scofield Barracks Army Craft Shop most evenings, making pottery or Screen Printing. As the artwork piled up around the house, Dave & his wife, Julie, signed up for a few weekend Art Shows. Dave also sold work in several galleries on the Island. After 3 years in Hawaii, the Army wanted Dave to move on to Sunny South East Asia. Because his Military obligation was fulfilled, Dave chose to resign his commission & return to SD. In Oct. of 1971, Dave & Julie returned to Brookings to continue his Graphic Art Business. They began as Graphic Design Signs in Brookings. They also built a gas fired kiln in their garage. In the spring of 1972, Dave was making some pottery, and needed a market. He helped set up the first Brookings Summer Folk Arts Festival in July 1972. The festival was held in Pioneer park one block west of his pottery & home. Dave did window lettering, billboards, posters & truck lettering from his home as well as pottery. Dave added more art shows across the region as the years went by. He sold his work in Omaha, Fargo, & Minneapolis. In 1977 Dave attended the first Ft. Sisseton Historic Festival. Dave became interested in mixing Art & History. Dave now participates in about 15 Historic Festivals selling historic pottery and 6-7 art shows each year. Dave has a website, www.Brookings.com/dsp, and supplies 30 or so retail shops & museums. He stays busy. He has turned about 300 tons of clay into pottery in the last 35 years of working in clay. Most of the clay came from Dakota Potters Supply. Dave retired from the sign business in 1997 and now works only in clay.
