On Sunday I visited Ceramic Art London 2013, the contemporary ceramics fair organised by the Craft Potters Association, and spent a few extremely happy hours looking at the work of some of the very best British and international ceramic artists. Here’s my round up of the show, including some old favourites and a good sprinkling of new discoveries too.
Above and below: Derek Wilson works in celadon glazed porcelain and stoneware to produce both sculptural objects and functional ware. He says “My objects, in their colour, shape and materiality, reference the ideas of restraint, containment and minimalism”. The mugs below, and also the cups that he makes, have beautifully simple and refined handles which were a real joy to feel and hold.
I featured the work of Lara Scobie last November (read more here), so it was an immense pleasure to meet her in person, and have a chat. Her current work is exploring and developing the theme of her ‘Tilted Bowls’, pictured above, which “articulate the symbiotic relationship between pattern and form”. I treated myself to one of her small pots, which is currently sitting in pride of place on my dressing table, being used and enjoyed every day.
More ultra-fine, translucent porcelain vessels that I found particularly arresting were by Dutch ceramist Willy van Bussel who has spent many years perfecting the art of crystalline ceramics and refining his very distinctive style. The bowls and cylinders are thrown and turned as thinly as possible and decorated with coloured slips. Simple, bold, contemporary decoration is applied to the partly glazed or unglazed traditional forms; the stark, graphic motifs and strong, assertive colours contrast strikingly with the delicacy of the transluscent porcelain – see images below. I was hooked, I have to confess, and found myself returning to look at them several times.
More bold colour and decoration, but in a very different style, from another firm favourite of mine, Jane Cox. Her richly coloured, dramatically patterned tableware is guaranteed to warm and cheer you, even on the coldest, greyest day; pictured below are jugs and serving platter.
A change of mood now, as the work of Munich-based Christiane Wilhelm, seen in the beautiful images below, invites quiet, contemplative examination. She says:
Careful observation and detecting exciting forms is paramount in my work. My thrown vessels are based on classical forms. They derive their strength from the tension between clear, rigorous lines and playful, informal handling of form and colour. These forms require vast experience in design, for frequently only nuances are responsible for lending the correct proportions and tension to a vessel.
The diagonally incised exterior surfaces,characteristic of all these vessels, give dynamism and tension to otherwise tranquil, centered forms. At the same time a meditative act becomes visible in which the surfaces are incised with a scalpel in infinite repetitions of the same movement.
Sasha Wardell is another ceramic artist whose work I’ve long admired, so again it was a real treat to meet her in person, and she kindly took the time to explain the delicate processes she uses to achieve her designs; you can read about, and see pictures of, these delicate slicing and incising techniques on her website.
Above: ‘Space’ bowls, which use the slicing technique to expose the layers of colour.
Below: bowls from the ‘Shoal’ range – their delicate pattern is created with the incising technique. We’ve also chosen Sasha’s new ‘Shoal’ pendant light as our Pick of the Week (see sidebar on the Home Page). With the bone china shade illuminated it’s the perfect way to see how wonderfully she’s captured the graceful patterns of a shoal of tiny fish as they dart and swirl.
Jin Eui Kim is a ceramic artist, originally from South Korea, working at the Fireworks Clay Studio in Cardiff. His current work experiments with non-functional sculpture works in which horizontal and vertical cylinder forms are decorated with shaded bands that vary in tone and width. The result? “Tonal effects and spatial illusions, creating works that are both visually and intellectually challenging”. I can confirm that if you look at these pieces even for a short time, the lines start moving and circling around most disconcertingly.
If you’d like to see and learn more about contemporary ceramics, the Craft Potters Association (CPA) owns and operates the Contemporary Ceramics Centre, located in central London at 63 Great Russell Street, opposite The British Museum. The gallery has a constantly changing selection of members work on display and for sale, and also has a dedicated gallery with solo exhibitions by leading national and international makers as well as themed and showcase exhibitions, including the work of emerging new makers.
The CPA also publishes Ceramic Review: The International Magazine of Ceramic Art and Craft. Ceramic Review is published bimonthly and is recognised as one of the world’s leading journals on contemporary ceramics. To purchase your subscription on-line visit www.ceramicreview.com.
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