Earth, water and fire are putty in her hands

A Yuma artist whose muse speaks to her from the swirling mud she shapes into expressions of art has been nominated for one of Arizona's top honors for the arts.
 
Neely Tompkins, an artist with 37 years experience at the potters wheel, has been nominated for a Governor's Art Award. Tompkins is the only Yuman in a lineup of 65 nominees.
 
The Governor's Art Awards are given out annually by the Office of the Governor, Arizona Commission on the Arts and Arizona Citizens for the Arts.
 
This year's awards ceremony is slated for today (April 14) at the Arizona Biltmore Resort in Phoenix. This is the award program's 28th year.
 
"The goal of the awards is to highlight and celebrate the wonderful artists and arts organizations throughout the state of Arizona," said Brenda Sperduti, executive director of Arizona Citizens for the Arts. "These are people who have spent their lives promoting the arts in Arizona."
 
Tompkins was nominated for the honor by Rex Ijams, arts and culture manager at the Yuma Art Center, along with letters of support from another arts leader and several Yuma artists. Ijams' nomination letter focused on Tompkins' long relationship and service with the Yuma Arts Symposium.
 
Tompkins said that the honor has come as a complete shock to her.
 
"First I was really surprised. Then I was trying to figure out why I got nominated. I still don't know why I got nominated," she said, chuckling. "Thirty-seven years ago when I was fresh out of grad school and ready to set the art world on fire, if someone had told me I would be nominated for an award that honored me for me arts administration endeavors, 'well, who'da guessed.'"
 
Tompkins added that she can't alone take credit for the Yuma Arts Symposium, which she has served as executive director for the past 15 years.
 
"I must share this nomination with my husband, George, who becomes the 'art widower' from New Year's through March," she said, "and Pete Jagoda who kept the symposium up and running for the early years."
 
The Yuma Arts Symposium gives the national art community "three days that are easy and fun," featuring a variety of presentations from artists in numerous fields.
 
"The symposium is the only one I know of that is for artists by artists," Tompkins said. "We have an artist-driven event that has lasted for over 30 years."
 
Sperduti said nominations include artists and arts organizations, plus individuals, groups and businesses that support the arts.
 
Nominations are broken into five categories. Tompkins was nominated in the "Individuals" category, for which there are 13 nominations.
 
Awards are given for each category, plus two overall awards that are announced prior to the ceremony.
 
Tompkins and her husband own Tompkins Pottery in Yuma. But their art has been shown around the Southwest, including Scottsdale, Tucson, Sedona, Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Palm Desert, La Jolla and Los Angeles.
 
Tompkins grew up in Ohio and moved to Yuma in 1972. She, her husband and Peter Jagoda became Yuma's first artists-in-residence under a workshop funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Arizona Commission on the Arts and Arizona Western College.
 
Tompkins has been involved with several retail arts outlets, the first being the Lower Gila Valley Mud and Wax Works. She has served the Cultural Council of Yuma and has been a member of Yuma Fine Arts, which she served as assistant to the director when the organization was housed in the old depot. She also worked with Yuma Ballet Theater for several years, building sets and designing costumes.
 
In 2008, Tompkins was honored by the local arts community when she was presented with the Tribute of the Muses Award.

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Darin Fenger can be reached at dfenger@yumasun.com or 539-6860.