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    Loose Fibers Billow Out of Warped Ceramic Sculptures by Artist Nicole McLaughlin

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    Art
    Craft

    #ceramics
    #fiber art
    #identity
    #mixed media
    #sculpture

    January 14, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    All images © Nicole McLaughlin, shared with permission
    “As a product of an American father and a Mexican mother, I am influenced by the conflicting expectations I have received as a woman within my two cultures,” says artist Nicole McLaughlin. From her studio in Marion, Massachusetts, McLaughlin combines historically domestic crafts—ceramics and fiber art—into striking sculptures that explore identity and heritage, particularly in relation to gendered expectations, traditions, and the changes that occur as generations pass.
    In her mixed-media works, the artist contrasts the soft, pliable fibers with the fragility of the plates painted with blue-and-white motifs. Dyed in subtle gradients and earth tones, the loose threads are woven through the sloping ceramic edges and knotted in the center. McLaughlin explains how it’s important that the utility of both elements is removed once combined:
    (The vessels) serve as vehicles for fiber.  As the fiber flows from, weaves into, or frames the ceramic, it distorts the functionality but becomes a meaningful component as plate and cloth merge. The vessels contain an expression of femininity and an essence of personal and cultural history.
    These dichotomies in the materials also reflect the artist’s experience eschewing “the feminine ideals of my Mexican identity,” she says. “I am a force, and I think I tend to push the boundaries of what might be within the female expectation in Mexican culture.”
    Currently, McLaughlin is serving as a teaching fellow at Tabor Academy. She sells some smaller ceramic pieces in her shop, and you can follow her work on Instagram, where she also shares glimpses into her process.

    #ceramics
    #fiber art
    #identity
    #mixed media
    #sculpture

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      Countless Ceramic Loops Comprise Cecil Kemperink’s Movable Chain Sculptures

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      Art
      Craft

      #ceramics
      #chains
      #sculpture

      December 30, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      All images © Cecil Kemperink, shared with permission
      Spread flat or folded in shapeless piles, Cecil Kemperink’s bulky chain sculptures contrast the solid ceramic material with the flexibility of their shapes. The movable works are comprised of hundreds of loops that link together in sheets of earth tones and subtle gradients. Whether heaped on the floor or draped across Kemperink’s body, the hefty chain mail is at once supple and fragile.
      The artist (previously), who is based on the island of Texel in the Netherlands, draws her understanding of motion from the surrounding water and environment. “I love the rhythm of nature, the tides, the (change) of the length of the days, the seasons, the changes continuous,” she shares.  “I try to translate the rhythm, the time, the colors, the continuous movements in different ways into my work.”
      Follow Kemperink’s latest works, which will include ten pieces for an installation, two larger works, and a wall sculpture in the coming weeks, on Instagram.

      #ceramics
      #chains
      #sculpture

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      A Socially Anxious Character Disguises Itself As Owls, Pigeons, and Other Birds in Textured Sculptures by Clavin Ma

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      Art

      #birds
      #ceramics
      #owls
      #sculpture

      November 4, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      “Comfort Zone,” ceramic with glaze, 12.5 x 7 x 7 inches. All images © Calvin Ma, courtesy of Foster/White Gallery, shared with permission
      In his ongoing series titled Blend In: Making Home, artist Calvin Ma (previously) conveys an incessant need to belong through a quirky character camouflaging itself as different birds. From owls to pigeons to Mandarin ducks, the precisely hued costumes envelop the figure in a mass of feathers and scaled footwear. The artist textures the ceramic sculptures by hand, etching countless lines into every plume.
      Each species represents an emotion or experience tied to social anxiety, which Ma bolsters with corresponding environments, like a birch cage or flower-lined nest. “Being shy, timid, and a bit socially awkward is something that will always be a part of me. The goal is to come to terms with it and grow from it,” the artist says of his own experience.
      If you’re in Seattle, head to Foster/White Gallery where Ma’s anthropomorphic pieces are on view through November 21. To see the works-in-progress, check out the artist’s Instagram.

      “In The Wind,” ceramic with glaze, 13 x 11 x 8 inches
      “Break Free,” ceramic with glaze, 13 x 9 x 9 inches
      Left: “Making Home,” ceramic with glaze, 17 x 12 x 9 inches. Right: “Out of the Woods,” ceramic with glaze, 11 x 6 x 6 inches
      “First Step,” ceramic with glaze, 14 x 7 x 6 inches
      “Hover,” ceramic with glaze, 14 x 10 x 8 inches
      Left: “Nesting,” ceramic with glaze, 10 x 7 x 6 inches. Right: “Time And Again,” ceramic with glaze, 12 x 11 x 8 inches
      “Fleeting,” ceramic with glaze, 16 x 29 x 8 inches

      #birds
      #ceramics
      #owls
      #sculpture

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      Multi-Story Murals Showcase Domesticity through Elegant Ceramic Tableware

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      Art

      #ceramics
      #murals
      #pottery
      #public art
      #street art
      #tableware

      October 23, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      Oviedo, Spain. All images © Manolo Mesa, shared with permission
      Spanish street artist Manolo Mesa merges public and private spheres through large-scale murals that highlight simple domestic objects. The multiple-story artworks depict traditional dining scenes, from an elegant porcelain tea set to a lone jug with swirling flourishes to another vessel resting on a saucer.
      To complete a recent tableau in Oviedo, Spain, for Parees Fest, Mesa explored the history of an abandoned pottery factory in San Claudio. Event organizers gathered tableware from local residents, a collection that informed the shapes and exterior motifs of his work. “I was able to see all the evolution of this earthenware in the houses of Oviedo. I found postwar pieces, which were inherited and preserved with great affection by collectors. We saw (the) tableware of a lifetime from the middle of the century,” he writes on Instagram. Showcasing a delicate collection of vessels, the resulting mural explores an otherwise hidden facet of local history.
      Find Mesa on Instagram to view some works-in-progress and follow his ceramic-centric projects.

      #ceramics
      #murals
      #pottery
      #public art
      #street art
      #tableware

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      Using Shattered Ceramics, Artist Bouke de Vries Revitalizes Found Porcelain in New Sculptures

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      Art

      #ceramics
      #porcelain
      #sculpture

      October 7, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      All images © Bouke de Vries, shared with permission
      Bouke de Vries (previously) refers to some of his porcelain sculptures as “three-dimensional still lifes.” The artist, who was born in the Netherlands and now lives in London, creates sprawling assemblages that resemble a classic bowl of fruit or table setting frequently found in Dutch art. “I compose these pieces as, after the painter has finished with them, the ceramics get broken and decayed, and I breathe new life into them. The butterfly in still life is a symbol for the resurrection in (the) way I see what I do through my work,” he tells Colossal. In de Vries’s works, though, the seemingly mundane scenes are fractured with bursting ceramics, encroaching insects, and decaying fruit.
      The artist began working with porcelain as a restorer for 15 years before embarking on his own practice, which begins with a search for broken pottery and glass shards. He never breaks an undamaged piece but rather revitalizes those that are damaged already by creating new figures that celebrate the beauty of their previous forms. With a penchant for Kintsugi, he often utilizes gold lacquer to highlight the repaired cracks.
      Alongside sculptural still lifes, the figure of Guan Yin, the Buddhist goddess of compassion, mercy, and kindness, recurs in de Vries’s work. Often surrounded by cracked shards and recomposed garments, she conveys an ability for understanding and repair.
      In recent weeks, de Vries has been working on commissions and new pieces, in addition to a large-scale project that spans the entrance of one of Sotheby’s Bond Street galleries, which you can see on Instagram. To find out more about the artist’s vision behind that piece, watch this interview. (via Cross Connect Magazine)

      #ceramics
      #porcelain
      #sculpture

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      Insatiable Mouths and Fingers Rouse a Delicate Tea Set by Artist Ronit Baranga

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      Art
      Food

      #anatomy
      #cake
      #ceramics
      #pie
      #sculpture
      #surreal

      September 14, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      All images © Ronit Baranga, shared with permission
      Israeli artist Ronit Baranga (previously) embodies voracious appetites by merging anatomical parts, desserts, and serving ware in an evocative ceramic series titled All Things Sweet and Painful. Dextrous fingers balance a plate and manage to swipe a bit of frosting from a cupcake. Whether implanted in a fruity pie or a teacup, gaping mouths clamor for a taste of the pastries and stick their tongues out for a taste.
      In a statement, Baranga explains that the surreal series is focused on luxurious foods. “The mixed emotions of need and the insatiable hunger for more – more sugar, more attention, more love. There is a constant push against the boundaries of rational consumption, craving the sugar rush, forever tempted to go overboard,” she says.
      Baranga has a number of ongoing and upcoming exhibitions scheduled, including at Munich’s størpunkt through October 31 and the Eretz Israel Museum in Tel-Aviv through 2021. The sumptuous artworks shown here will be on view at Beinart Gallery in Melbourne starting mid-October, and you can browse more of Baranga’s sculptures on Instagram.

      [embedded content]

      #anatomy
      #cake
      #ceramics
      #pie
      #sculpture
      #surreal

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      Layered Botanics Comprise Artist Vanessa Hogge’s Delicate Porcelain Assemblages

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      Art

      #ceramics
      #flowers
      #plants
      #porcelain
      #sculpture

      September 1, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      All images © Vanessa Hogge, courtesy of Ester Segarra/Vessel Gallery, shared with permission
      Vanessa Hogge translates her lifelong fascination with flowers into monochromatic assemblages of hydrangeas, roses, and myriad blossoms. The London-based artist (previously) has been working on EFFLORESCENCE, which is comprised of three ceramics, since October 2019. Each of the delicate porcelain pieces is adorned with innumerable hand-sculpted florets and leaves that blossom from a central base.
      Rather than studying horticulture textbooks and the intricacies of plant life, Hogge works entirely from her memory and imagination and frequents gardens and other places where organic elements thrive for observation. “I’ve traveled to research in the Okavango Swamps in Botswana, the flower-filled valleys of the Northern Cape in South Africa, and this January (just before lockdown), to Southern India to be surrounded by the exotic vegetation there—just beautiful,” she tells Colossal.
      Hogge’s inspirations, though, are vast. She imbues elements of the funky textiles created in the 1970s, miniature depictions of Indian gardens, and Frida Kahlo’s iconic flowers. “As an artist, the variety of their forms and structures is immense and endless. People comment and wonder when I will move on and if I will tire of flowers, but how can I? This fascination is also steeped in my family matriarchs—strong women gardeners and the great outdoors,” she says.
      The artist offers a brief look into her studio and process in this short video and on Instagram. You also might enjoy Hitomi Hosono’s intricate vessels.

      #ceramics
      #flowers
      #plants
      #porcelain
      #sculpture

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      Delft-Style Weaponry by Artist Helena Hauss Contrasts Fragility with Strength and Destruction

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      Art

      #ceramics
      #porcelain
      #sculpture
      #weapons

      August 15, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      All images © Helena Hauss, shared with permission
      Paris-based artist Helena Hauss juxtaposes the domestic feminity synonymous with delft-style porcelain and the brute force of barbed weaponry. Her sculptural series, titled Hell Hath no Fury, is composed of an axe, grenade, spiked bat, and morning star, each of which is ornamented with floral motifs.
      Hauss shares with Colossal that she hopes to disrupt notions that women are the “weaker sex” and opts instead for a message of empowerment. “Too often portrayed as fragile and delicate, this project is an expression of the contrasting subtleties that come with femininity, as well as an attempt at vindication from a feeling of constant vulnerability that’s been forced upon us,” she says. “Contrary to what you might think, we’re not made of glass, porcelain, or crystal. We’re not gonna break, we’re wearing full metal jackets, and we’re ready to fight back.”
      To view more of the Hauss’s subversive sculptural works, head to Instagram and Behance.

      #ceramics
      #porcelain
      #sculpture
      #weapons

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      Multi-Layered Ceramics by Artist Heesoo Lee Express the Movements of Land and Sea

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      Art
      Craft

      #ceramics
      #landscapes
      #leaves
      #nature
      #oceans
      #trees
      #vessels
      #water
      #waves

      July 9, 2020
      Grace Ebert

      All images © Heesoo Lee, shared with permission
      Heesoo Lee has spent years carefully layering blades of grass, pine trees, and cherry blossoms to construct botanic entanglements that crawl across ceramic mugs and bowls. Inspired by seasonal woodlands and aspen forests, the Montana-based artist recreates bright pockets of landscapes that capture small motions, like falling fronds or rustling branches. “There is movement in trees, but it is slow and subtle, a leaf in wind, the slow growth of new leaves in spring,” she says.
      While Lee has continued this tradition with many of her recent pieces, she’s expanded her source material to the ocean. For seven years, the artist lived in Maui, where she often surveyed the water. “I could sit on a beach all day and watch the waves, observe them, and feel calmed by them but also respectful of their energy and force,” she says. The memory has inspired a textured piece that swells upward to form a cavernous bowl. “Even in a small object, the waves are powerful and convey so much. For me, the waves connote freedom, the freedom to express myself and take risks,” the artist writes.
      Diverging from land posed new challenges in Lee’s process. For landscapes, the artist repeats elements in layers to create a fully formed piece, but the same technique didn’t translate to water. “The first time I tried to make waves I failed. I failed over and over and over after that. There were cracks, pieces broke off,” she says. “I realized the feeling of making a wave is so much different from making a landscape.” Instead, Lee retrained her hands to follow the movement of the water, using slip casting, carving, and a series of manual techniques to capture its energy and force. Her color palette changed from amalgamations that evoked seasons to a precise set of blues.
      Despite her forays into aquatic forms, Lee maintains an affinity for grassy fields and windswept boughs, which she explains:
      My seasonal work, landscapes that focus on all four seasons, are still a mainstay of my practice. The memories that fuel the images are so powerful for me, and it gives me great pleasure to share my interpretation of those memories with people… I have heard from people that drinking from a cup I made helped them channel their own memories of the outdoors and the seasons, even during a time when they are stuck inside.
      To purchase one of the artist’s organic works, follow her on Instagram, where she often shares shop updates, in addition to early looks into her process.

      #ceramics
      #landscapes
      #leaves
      #nature
      #oceans
      #trees
      #vessels
      #water
      #waves

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