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RAPID CITY, SD (June 3, 2026) — What began as an undergraduate research experience for University of California, Santa Barbara graduate student Hope Christofferson has evolved into a unique art exhibition that invites artists to create sculptures from clay formed during the age of dinosaurs.
Christofferson, a graduate student at UCSB and former Rapid City resident, is helping lead “Echoes of Earth: From Sea to Stone,” a juried exhibition at South Dakota Mines that will give ceramic artists access to rare clay sourced from the Fuson Shale, a geological formation dating back more than 100 million years to the Cretaceous Period.
The project combines art, geology and paleontology, allowing artists to work with
material that originated when much of western South Dakota was covered by the Western Interior Seaway and inhabited by creatures such as Tyrannosaurus rex, Triceratops and Mosasaurus.
Christofferson first became involved with the project while participating in the National Science Foundation’s Black Hills Applied Ceramic Engineering (BACE) Research Experience for Undergraduates program at South Dakota Mines. Working alongside faculty mentors, she explored the artistic and scientific potential of locally sourced clay and glaze materials.
During her time at Mines, Christofferson created a series of sculptures using clay and glaze derived from the Black Hills region, including a detailed Tyrannosaurus rex skull.
“I thought using the same soil and glaze from the land where this creature once lived was such a great way to demonstrate the versatile nature of the clay as well as the incredible paleontological and geological history of South Dakota,” Christofferson said.
Now, Christofferson is collaborating with Katrina Donovan, professor of practice in materials and metallurgical engineering, and Matthew Whitehead, director of the APEX Gallery, to expand the concept into a larger exhibition that will bring together artists interested in interpreting prehistoric ecosystems through contemporary ceramic sculpture.
The clay used in the exhibition comes from a limited surface exposure of the Fuson Shale and has been carefully harvested and processed by Donovan. Participating artists will use the rare material to create original works inspired by the ancient landscapes and species that once occupied the region.
Artists interested in participating in “Echoes of Earth: From Sea to Stone” are invited to submit three images of previous ceramic work or a portfolio link for consideration.
For more information, contact Matthew Whitehead at Matthew.Whitehead@sdsmt.edu.
About South Dakota Mines
Founded in 1885, South Dakota Mines is one of the nation’s leading engineering, science and technology universities. South Dakota Mines offers bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees and a best-in-class education at an affordable price. The university enrolls 2,541 students with an average class size of 24. The South Dakota Mines placement rate for graduates is 97 percent, with an average starting salary of $77,067. For these reasons, South Dakota Mines is ranked among the best engineering schools in the country for return on investment. Find us online at http://www.sdsmt.edu and on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
