Margaret Boozer
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Contact Margaret
RED DIRT STUDIO
4051 34th Street
Mt. Rainier, MD 20712
202/607-9472
margaret@
margaretboozer.com
directions
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photo by Greg Powers
b. 1966 Anniston, AL
Margaret Boozer lives and works in Prince Georges County, MD, in the Washington, DC metro area. She received a BFA in sculpture from Auburn University and an MFA in ceramics from New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University. Boozer developed an interest in digging native clays that has led to collaborations with soil scientists and work that explores intersections of art and science. Her work is included in the collection of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, The US Department of State, The Wilson Building Public Art collection and in many private collections. Boozer taught for ten years at the Corcoran College of Art and Design before founding Red Dirt Studio in Mt. Rainier, MD where she directs an artist/ creative professional incubator. Recent projects include writing a chapter for U. S. Geologic Survey’s Soil and Culture, a commission for the US Embassy in Djibouti, and most recently, a large scale mapping/ earth work for MGM National Harbor in Maryland using local clay dug from the site. Recent exhibitions include Swept Away: Dust, Ashes and Dirt at the Museum of Arts and Design in New York and Margaret Boozer: Harbor Studies, at Michael Warren Contemporary in Denver , CO (through Dec. 2017). She was awarded a Maryland State Arts Council Individual Artist Award in 2011, and in 2012 received the Arts Excellence Award from the Prince Georges Arts and Humanities Council. She is currently working on a collaborative project with NYC Urban Soils Institute.
education
1992 |
MFA, Ceramics, New York State College of Ceramics at Alfred University |
1989 |
BFA, Sculpture, Auburn University, Summa Cum Laude |
selected solo exhibitions
2017 |
Margaret Boozer: Harbor Studies, Michael Warren Contemporary, Denver, CO |
2009 |
Margaret Boozer: Dirt Drawings, American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center, Washington, DC |
2008 |
Margaret Boozer: Accumulation, Project 4 Gallery, Washington, DC
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2006 |
Margaret Boozer: Reinvented Landscape, Alysia Duckler Gallery, Portland, OR |
2004 |
Margaret Boozer: Land/Marks, Strand on Volta Gallery, Washington, DC |
2001 |
Black and White, Red Dirt Gallery, Washington, DC |
2000 |
Dig: New Ceramics by Margaret Boozer, Duncan & Miller Gallery, WDC |
1999 |
Pot Luck: Ceramics and Sculpture by Margaret Boozer, Red Dirt Gallery, WDC |
1999 |
Some More or Less Mathematical Musings on Making Pots, Theatre Project, Baltimore, MD |
selected two- and three-person exhibitions
2015
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Portraits of the Earth: Margaret Boozer and Juan Granados, San Angelo Museum of Art, TX
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2010
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Margaret Boozer and Ani Kasten, Bulthaup Corporation, Georgetown, Washington, DC |
2007
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Distintegration: site specific works by Margaret Boozer, Michele Kong and Cory Wagner, curated by Twylene Moyer of Sculpture Magazine, Arlington Arts Center, Arlington, VA
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2005 |
Geologic Personality: Margaret Boozer and Catherine White, Resurgam Gallery, Baltimore, MD |
2004 |
Gorlitzz and Boozer: Sculpture in Glass Beads and Clay, AFI Silver Theatre, Silver Spring, MD |
2003 |
GROUND WORK: Recent Work by Margaret Boozer, Carole Greenwood and Erin Root, Strand on Volta Gallery, Washington, DC |
2002 |
Earth Drawings and Water Colors: A Collaborative Exhibit by Julia Ricketts and Margaret Boozer, Baas Gallery, Seattle, WA |
2000 |
Threshold States: Ceramics by Margaret Boozer, Prints and Drawings by Julia Ricketts, Red Dirt Gallery, WDC |

selected group exhibitions
2017 |
Beltway Public Works Lending Library, Washington Project for the Arts, Washington, DC
Topsoil, curated by Bill VanGilder, Baltimore Clayworks, Baltimore, MD
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New Arrivals, artwork acquired by the university’s Contemporary Art Purchasing Program (CAPP)Stamp Gallery at the University of Maryland
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One Year Later, Pyramid Atlantic, Hyattsville, MD
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14th Annual Transformer Auction, Washington, DC
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2016 |
13th Annual Transformer Auction, Washington, DC
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2015 |
12th Annual Transformer Auction, Washington, DC
Baltimore Clayworks, 35th Anniversary Show, Baltimore, MD, invited artist
WPA Auction, Washington, DC
Earthwork, Carla Massoni Gallery, Chestertown, MD
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2014 |
11th Annual Transformer Auction, Washington, DC
WPA Auction, Washington, DC
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2013 |
International Glass & Clay 2013, curated by Artomatic, Edison Place Gallery, Washington, DC
10th Annual Transformer Auction, Washington, DC
WPA Auction, Washington, DC |
2012
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Swept Away: Dust, Ashes and Dirt in Contemporary Art and Design, Museum of Arts and Design, NY, NY |
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Field Work, curated by Susan Main, VisArts, Rockville, MD
Small Favors, The Clay Studio, Philaldelphia, PA
Review < > Renew, curated by Judy Greenberg and Jack Rasmussen, VisArts, Rockville, MD
9th Annual Transformer Auction, Washington, DC
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2011 |
Site Aperture: Margaret Boozer, Mia Feuer, Talia Green and Mariah Johnson. Curated by Danielle O’Steen, Flashpoint Gallery, Washington, DC
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2009 |
3rd World Ceramic Biennale, Korea 2003, Icheon World Ceramic Center, Korea (invitational)
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The Souvenir Shop, Art Star Gallery, Philadelphia, PA |
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Art Night, Hickok Cole Architects, Washington, DC
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Project 4 group exhibition, Gensler Architects, Washington, DC
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2008 |
Art Night , Hickok Cole Architects , WDC
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Terra Incognita: Unknown Land,
Curated by Rebecca Harvey, Baltimore Clayworks, Baltimore, MD |
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Earth: In it, On it, Of it. Loyola College, Baltimore, MD
2, Project 4, Washington, DC |
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Myth of Permanence, Standard Ceramic, Pittsburgh, PA , organized by Catherine White and Margaret Boozer, in conjunction with NCECA |
2007 |
NCECA Clay National, Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft, Louisville, KY |
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Natural Inclinations, invitational, McLean Project for the Arts, McLean, VA |
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Primed, Washington Project for the Arts/Corcoran, 2007 Art Auction Gala Primed, Washington Project for the Arts/Corcoran, 2007 Art Auction Gala |
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Auburn and Beyond: 12 Alumni Artists Return, Jule Collins Smith Museum, Auburn, AL |
2006 |
Mid-Atlantic Pulse: Works from the Hillyer Committee at Hillyer Art Space in Washington, DC |
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Dimensions, Zenith Gallery, WDC
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Sculpture Unbound, Edison Place Gallery, WDC |
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Clay: Sculptural and Functional Work, Cross Mackenzie Ceramic Arts, WDC |
2005 |
Seven, Warehouse Gallery, Washington, DC, curated by Lenny Campello |
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“I Really Want to See…”, Gallery Four, Baltimore, MD, curated by Joan Webber |
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Alternative Porcelain, Chaney Gallery, Maryland Hall, Annapolis, MD |
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Particles and Passion, Academy Art Museum, Easton, MD |
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Metro Clay, Rockville Arts Place, Gaithersburg, MD |
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Coming Home: A Journey in Clay, Stancill Quarry, Perryville, MD |
2004 |
Sculpture in Four Dimensions, Museum of the Americas, WDC |
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Summer Group Exhibition, Signal 66, WDC |
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Anonymous, Gallery at Flashpoint, Washington, DC |
2003 |
2nd World Ceramic Biennale, Korea 2003, Icheon World Ceramic Center, Korea |
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2003 Scripps Annual Ceramic Invitational, Scripps, the Women’s College, Claremont, CA |
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Wall Works, Baltimore Clayworks, Baltimore, MD |
2002 |
Women’s National Art Invitational Exhibition, Rudolph E. Lee Gallery, Clemson University, SC |
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From Earth to Fire - 21st Century Tiles, The College of St. Catherine, St. Paul, MN |
2001 |
USA Clay, Renwick Gallery,Smithsonian Institution, WDC |
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Silicate: Recent Issues in Ceramic Sculpture, Baltimore Clayworks, Baltimore, MD |
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Artistic Imaginings in Clay, Art Museum of the Americas, WDC |
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Artists’ Tiles: Beyond Tradition, Invitational, Pence Gallery, Davis, CA |
awards
2012 |
Arts Excellence Award, given by Prince George’s Arts and Humanities Council at the Arts gala awards |
collections/ commissions
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- Museum of the City of New York
- Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution, WDC
- US Department of State, US Embassy of Djibouti and US Embassy of Bandar
- Wilson Building Public Art Collection, Washington, DC
- Metropole Condominium lobby, 1515 15th Street, NW, Washington, DC
- Liberty Properties, lobby commission, 1129 20th Street, NW, Washington, DC
- Grapeseed Restaurant,4865 Cordell Avenue, Bethesda, MD
- lobby commission for Colvin Run Elementary School, Vienna, VA
- numerous private collections
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professional activity
2008-present |
Artist Advisory Group, to the Gateway CDC, Brentwood, MD |
2006-08 |
Board Member, James Renwick Alliance, Smithsonian Institution, WDC |
2006-10 |
Advisory Board Member, Hillyer Art Space, WDC |
2006 |
Co-curator, Space of Change, DC Arts Center, WDC (with Claire Huschle) |
2005 |
Co-curator, Existing to Remain, DC Arts Center, WDC (with Claire Huschle) |
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Co-curator, Coming Home: A Journey in Clay, Stancills, Inc., Perryville, MD (with Catherine White and Emlyn Stancill) |
2004 |
Panelist, Dream of Earth, Mexican Cultural Institute, WDC in conjunction withSculpture in Four Dimensions, Museum of the Americas, WDC |
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Juror, new artist selection, Torpedo Factory, Alexandria, VA |
2003-06 |
Board Member, Washington Sculptors Group |
teaching experience
2002-present |
Red Dirt Studio Seminar, Founder and Director, Mt. Rainier, MD |
2005-08 |
Associate Professor, Ceramics, VCU Off-Site Program |
2003-04 |
Associate Professor, Ceramics, Gallaudet University, WDC |
2002-04 |
Guest artist/ lecturer, Washington Glass School, WDC |
1993- 2002 |
Instructor, Ceramics, Corcoran College of Art and Design, WDC |
1998- 2002 |
Instructor, Department of Foundations, Corcoran College of Art and Design |

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