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    Tiny Faces Animate Minimal Mugs and Planters by Ceramicist Rami Kim

    
    Art
    #ceramics
    #faces
    #tableware
    #vesselsJanuary 7, 2022Grace EbertAll images © Rami KimEnjoy the company of Rami Kim’s minimally sculpted personalities emerging from her footed planters, mugs, and other ceramic pieces. The artist and animator (previously), who gravitates toward bright monochromatic finishes and simple patterns, creates a wide array of vessels featuring perfectly round eyes, tiny mouths, and noses that add a dose of whimsy and play to her functional objects.See more of Kim’s works, check for stockists near you, and shop available pieces on her site, and keep an eye on her Instagram for announcements about sales and opportunities to visit her Los Angeles studio. You also might enjoy Fan Yanting’s moody characters.
    #ceramics
    #faces
    #tableware
    #vesselsDo stories and artists like this matter to you? Become a Colossal Member and support independent arts publishing. Join a community of like-minded readers who are passionate about contemporary art, help support our interview series, gain access to partner discounts, and much more. Join now! Share this story  More

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    Hundreds of Hand-Sculpted Flowers and Leaves Envelop Porcelain Vessels by Artist Hitomi Hosono

    
    Art

    #flowers
    #leaves
    #porcelain
    #sculpture
    #vessels

    November 2, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    “A Tall Tsutsuji Tower” (2021), molded, carved, and hand-built porcelain, 34 x 27 centimeters. All images courtesy of Adrian Sassoon, shared with permission
    Japanese artist Hitomi Hosono (previously) translates the billowing leaves of an underwater plant or the clusters of Hawthorn tree flowers into intricate sculptural assemblages devoid of their natural colors. The monochromatic bowls and vases appear to sprout incredibly detailed botanicals that Hosono layers in tight wraps and dense bunches, and while stylized in presentation, each form is derived from hours of research and observation of real specimens.
    Currently living in London, Hosono draws on memories of her home in Gifa Prefecture to inform much of her work, and she allows the medium itself to dictate her practice. While some of the botanical forms are inspired by specific encounters with the environment like walks through the city’s parks, others are spontaneous and spurred by a hunk of material already evocative of a leaf or petal. “When handling the porcelain clay itself, then my old memories of nature in Japan come flooding back through my hands—abstract and uncertain when it was in my mind. Kneading, brushing, patting, carving, there are many processes before the shape emerges from the porcelain clay and begins to take the form of my tactile memory,” she explains.
    In a note to Colossal, Hosono says she’s been interested lately in combining small florals with larger foliage, a contrast evident in “A Tall Peony and Leaves Vase” and “A Tall Tsutsuji Tower.” She describes the process for the latter:
    This flower is so much a part of my childhood memories; we had Tutsuji in our home garden, at school, along the street, nearby parks, almost everywhere in Japan. Making the delicate tip of the Tsutsuji petal is challenging. I use a very small fine brush to curl the end of each petal. This must be done slowly and gently as the ends become incredibly fragile. Then I assemble the petals by hand to make each flower and place these one-by-one.
    No matter the size, every element is hand-sculpted and arranged with similar pieces into a floret or layered onto the larger vessel, which typically takes a year or more to complete.
    Hosono is currently represented by Adrian Sassoon, where you can explore more of her most recent works, and follow her on Instagram to stay up-to-date with her practice.

    Detail of “A Tall Tsutsuji Tower” (2021), molded, carved, and hand-built porcelain, 34 x 27 centimeters
    “A Hawthorn Tower” (2020), molded, carved, and hand-built porcelain, 24.5 x 22 centimeters
    “A Very Large Hawthorn Leaves Bowl” (2021), molded, carved, and hand-built porcelain, 34 x 39 centimeters
    Detail of “A Tall Peony and Leaves Vase” (2021), molded, carved, and hand-built porcelain, 31.5 x 21 centimeters
    “A Tall Peony and Leaves Vase” (2021), molded, carved, and hand-built porcelain , 31.5 x 21 centimeters
    Detail of “A Tall Tsutsuji Tower” (2021), molded, carved, and hand-built porcelain, 34 x 27 centimeters

    “A Hawthorn Tower” (2020), molded, carved, and hand-built porcelain, 24.5 x 22 centimeters

    #flowers
    #leaves
    #porcelain
    #sculpture
    #vessels

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    Colorful Glazes Coat Exquisite Vessels Sculpted with Smooth Sloping Porcelain

    
    Art
    Craft

    #ceramics
    #porcelain
    #vessels

    May 24, 2021
    Grace Ebert

    All images © Sophie Cook, shared with permission. Photo by Josephine Cottrell for Maud and Mabel
    Sophie Cook sculpts delicate porcelain into teardrops, bottles, and pods with swollen bases and long bowed necks. Often evoking the colors of the Suffolk landscape surrounding her studio, the elegant vessels have smooth exteriors coated in matte and glossy glazes that range from coral to graphite and sage. The pieces vary in height and width and are designed to be displayed in groups as “a three-dimensional still life,” she says in a statement.
    Cook’s practice is meticulous and regimented—watch the short video below to see her at the wheel—and frequently results in loss, which she describes:
    Every piece is a challenge to make as porcelain is such a fluid medium on the wheel. I throw four pieces a day, which are left to dry for two days and are then carved to refine the shape. Once sprayed they dry for a week. It is an incredibly delicate process. Rarely, if ever, do all four pieces survive the carving and firing processes.
    Browse available vessels in Cook’s shop, and follow her work on Instagram.

    Photo by Layton Thompson for Ceramic Review
    Photo by Josephine Cottrell for Maud and Mabel
    Photo by Josephine Cottrell for Maud and Mabel

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    #ceramics
    #porcelain
    #vessels

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

    
    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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