Bobby Scroggins

Bobby Scroggins was born and raised in Kansas City, Mo., where he began his artistic career. At a young age he developed an interest in the visual arts and began to develop special skills as a sculptor and painter. His serious involvement in these fields resulted in commissions and sales in numerous midwestern galleries. While in his teens he was the recipient of both regional and national awards. Scroggins studied sculpture and ceramics at The Kansas City Art Institute where he received a BFA in 1976. While a student there he was commissioned to create The Leon M. Jordan Monument in Kansas City. This was the first public monument to be erected to an African American leader in the state of Missouri. It was also the first public monument to be constructed by an African American artist in that state. He later received an MFA in the field of sculpture from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville in 1980 where he was a University and Ford Foundation Fellow. Since then he has received public commissions and his works have received awards such as first place purchase award in The Atlanta Life Insurance Company's National Art Competition. Scroggins' ceramic vessels and mixed media sculptures have been featured in exhibitions throughout the U.S. In 1990 he joined the art department at the University of Kentucky as head of Ceramics, and was promoted to full professor in 2015. From 1993-95 Scroggins served as Director-at-Large for The National Council on Education for The Ceramic Arts. He has served on the visual art faculty of the Kentucky Governor's School for the Arts for seven years; two of which were spent as chairman of the visual art division. In 2003 and 2004 he served as chairman of the ceramics and sculpture pilot programs at The Northwest Academy of the Arts in Donegal, Northern Ireland, and Derry, Northern Ireland. His mediaramic sculptures have been featured books such as the 4th edition of The Craft and Art of Clay, and Contemporary Ceramics by Susan Peterson, The later book is a recently published international survey of the most outstanding ceramic art from all over the world produced in the last few years. Recently three of his works were selected for inclusion in, "Shades of Clay", a traveling exhibition shown at museums throughout the U.S.