“Spring Vase” (2017), silk, linen, ceramic, and thread, 28 x 17 centimeters. All images © Zoë Hillyard, shared with permission
Birmingham, U.K.-based artist Zoë Hillyard revitalizes shattered vases and bowls by melding traditional craft techniques. She wraps a mishmash of vintage silks and fabrics around individual ceramic shards, binding the broken pieces with tightly stitched thread. Appearing glazed with antique florals and other ornate motifs, the patchwork forms contrast the original shape of the pottery with the newly mended exterior, a reconfigured finish that’s commonly disrupted by missing pieces and jagged edges.
Gathering the source materials from ceramicists’ reject piles or by receiving broken family heirlooms for commissions, Hillyard works with the initial shape and purpose in mind. She says:
Like archaeological treasures, they display imperfections in the form of holes and irregularity, and all the more interesting for them. Each piece is unique in terms of the combinations of materials used, the pattern of breakage, the impact of colour and print and aesthetic decisions made during reconstruction.
Hillyard’s body of work is replete with metaphorical and physical tension and contrast between the old and new. Although the pieces appear delicate and light like the fabrics that envelop their sides, they retain the heftiness and weight of clay and are warmer to the touch than a porcelain vessel, for example. “Most surprisingly, they often have a subtle flex, disconcerting when contrasted with traditional ‘solid’ forms of ceramic repair,” the artist shares. “I enjoy these ambiguities, with the work challenging expectations and conventional definitions.”
In addition to her practice, Hillyard teaches textile design at Birmingham City University. She currently has pieces at Contemporary Applied Arts in London and will show new works in June 2022 at The Pool House Gallery in Gloucestershire. Until then, explore more of her process and mended projects on Instagram. (via Women’s Art)
“Shard Vase” (2016), silk, ceramic, and thread, 35 x 25 centimeters
Detail of “Spring Vase” (2017), silk, linen, ceramic, and thread, 28 x 17 centimeters
“Gestalt Vase” (2019), silk, ceramic, and thread
“White Patch Vase” (2017), silk, ceramic, and thread, 35 x 21centimeters
“Birdseye Vase” (2016), silk, ceramic, and thread, 45 x 27 centimeters
“Katharina Klug Kimono Bowl” (2017), 14.5 x 27 centimeters
“Stormy Vase” (2017), silk, ceramic, and thread, 25 x 20 centimeters
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Source: Art - thisiscolossal.com
