But can it make a cuppa ?

I have been trying to fathom for ages what makes ceramicists succumb to quirky fits of madcap creativity and bold innovation when they become  immersed in the creation of a teapot.

Ever since Sheng Nun sipped his first cuppa and extolled its virtues, the Chinese have held the beverage in high esteem and produced very refined teapots as a sign of respect.. The Japanese turned tea drinking into a religion, but I think that was more to escape their strict Zen masters and their beatings. A Geisha girl was nowhere near as threatening. The Indians emulated the British Rule and took up tea consumption, but abandoned the teapot in favour of throwing everything into an aluminium pot, tea leaves, milk and every spice under the sun, to whip up a chai brew.

The Americans held a mild disdain for the habit, preferring the sharper caffeine hit of coffee. So to them a teapot wasn’t really that useful, and any functional practicality went out the studio window in favour of adventurous designs. Maybe that’s why you rarely see quirky, zany coffee pots. They revere the brew too much. The Italians love their coffee, they need the caffeine to sustain their rapid hand gestures. The Aussies were predominately tea drinkers till coffee crept into use due to the social preference for the latte. The English still love their tea, but are also known to create odd looking teapots, but maybe that’s more because of their eccentric leanings. As far as New Zealand goes in the beverage stakes, I have no idea what their preference might be, but I’m featuring some wonderful contemporary teapots by New Zealander Rick Rudd.  Even though I have already done an instalment on teapots , I have seen a lot more curious and fascinating designs this year so I’m including some here.

Contemporary teapot – Rick Rudd

Turquoise Teapot – Rick Rudd   NZ

Black ceramic teapot – Rick Rudd

Contemporary styled teapot – Rick Rudd

      A teapot with sleek modernist lines

Rick Rudd

Rick Rudd teapot

Rick Rudd’s site here

Black gourd teapot

Matt Wilt teapot and cups

Fong Choo green teapot

Hydroplaning Robotic Beatle Teapot

Teapot – Barbara Chadwick

Batton Clayworks

Teapot by Crackked Clay

Handmade teapot from “stressed” slabs of stoneware clay and porcelain. It was fired in May 2009 in a wood fired anagama kiln in Minnesota!

Dariusz-Klimczak-(Poland)

Digital artwork

Dotty Teapot-Mark Daley

Fong Choo teapot

Teapot –    Leopold Foulem

Nancy Gardiner

Irina Zaytceva art teapot

James Diem

James Lawton

Kris Nelson wood  fired teapot

Dog Romance -Kurt Weiser

Teapot     Kurt Weiser-USA

( a lidless teapot )

Winter Sun   –  Nefta Tompkins

Ode to Night Circus  - Wanda designs

Rena Hamilton

 Passion Red Hearts – Functional Tea Pot by Patrica Paquin of Artists Loft

Louie Louie – Rimas Vis Girda

Rocket 4 teapot –  Tim Story

Rosie Wynkoop coffee pot

Teapot – Sam Chung

Chinese Jade teapot – 18th Century

( the Met NY )

Wood fired teapot – Cary Joseph

Sandy Terry

Turquoise Teapot – Mary Obodzi

Yuan Dynasty teapot

Ribbon Teapot - pietsch pottery

Chinese TEapot – Qing dynasty (1644–1911), Kangxi period (1662–1722)

Franz Porcelain - Van Gough Almond Flower teapot

Seth Rainville – teapot

Franz Porcelain Giraffe teapot

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I came across a post on a collection of pottery from the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, where they had a very minimal description in the presentation. It all looked very Zen like to me and most of the pots were from unknown artists, ( mainly because they were pieces from antiquity ).  As an act of zenspiraion I decided to add 7 Zen koans with the images.

Chün ware lidded jar – 11th – 15th century 

Zulu Beer Pot

Terracotta vessel – Tikar, Cameroon, West Africa

No Work, No Food

Hyakujo, the Chinese Zen master, used to labor with his pupils even at the age of eighty, trimming the gardens, cleaning the grounds, and pruning the trees. The pupils felt sorry to see the old teacher working so hard, but they knew he would not listen to their advice to stop, so they hid away his tools. That day the master did not eat. The next day he did not eat, nor the next. “He may be angry because we have hidden his tools,” the pupils surmised. “We had better put them back.” The day they did, the teacher worked and ate the same as before. In the evening he instructed them: “No work, no food.”

Huang-t’ao kiln stoneware vessel - Tang Dynasty

Vessel- Acoma Pueblo, North America, United States, Southwest region, New Mexico

Unglazed terracotta jar-  Africa, Burkina Faso

Returning to the Ordinary World

A monk asked Kegon, “How does an enligthtened one return to the ordinary world?” Kegon replied, “A broken mirror never reflects again; fallen flowers never go back to the old branches.”

Ancient Puebloan vessel (Anasazi-1oth-12th century)

Caddoan Jar   – 12th-13th century

The Gates of Paradise

A soldier named Nobushige came to Hakuin, and asked: “Is there really a paradise and a hell?” “Who are you?” inquired Hakuin. “I am a samurai,” the warrior replied. “You, a soldier!” exclaimed Hakuin. “What kind of ruler would have you as his guard? Your face looks like that of a beggar.” Nobushige became so angry that he began to draw his sword, but Hakuin continued: “So you have a sword! Your weapon is probably much too dull to cut off my head.” As Nobushige drew his sword Hakuin remarked: “Here open the gates of hell!” At these words the samurai, perceiving the master’s discipline, sheathed his sword and bowed. “Here open the gates of paradise,” said Hakuin.

Ceramic vessel from Chi chou kilns at Yung-ho

 Chinese-Vase-!8th-century

Crackled Celedon Chinese Vase –   618-799 AD

Accurate Proportion

Sen no Rikyu, a tea-master, wished to hang a flower basket on a column. he asked a carpenter to help him, directing the man to place it a little higher or lower, to the right or left, until he had found exactly the right spot. “That’s the place,” said Sen no Rikyu finally. But so accurate was the tea-master’s sense of proportion that it was not until the carpenter reached the identical spot again that its location was approved.

Lei (Ritual Wine Vessel)

Lifan amphora

Lobi ( Africa ) storage jar with lid

Mokusen’s Hand

Mokusen Hiki was living in a temple in the province of Tamba. One of his adherents complained of the stinginess of his wife. Mokusen visited the adherent’s wife and showed her his clenched fist before her face. “What do you mean by that?” asked the surprised woman. “Suppose my fist were always like that. What would you call it?” he asked. “Deformed,” replied the woman. Then he opened his hand flat in her face and asked: “Suppose it were always like that. What then?” “Another kind of deformity,” said the wife. “If you understand that much,” finished Mokusen, “you are a good wife.” Then he left. After his visit, this wife helped her husband to distribute as well as to save.

Mei Ping bottle used for storing wine, vinegar, soy sauce and other liquids during the Sung (960-1279) and Yuan (1280-1368) dynasty.

Water vessel – National Palace Museum in Taipei

Tzu Chou bottle –   960 – 1600 AD

Soldiers of Humanity

Once a division of the Japanese army was engaged in a sham battle, and some of the officers found it necessary to make their headquarters in Gasan’s temple. Gasan told his cook: “Let the officers have only the same simple fare we eat.” This made the army men angry, as they were used to very deferential treatment. One came to Gasan and said: “Who do you think we are? We are soldiers, sacrificing our lives for our country. Why don’t you treat us accordingly?” Gasan answered sternly: “Who do you think we are? We are soldiers of humanity, aiming to save all sentient beings.”

Quingpai Ewer with Cover

Socorro Jar

Storage Jar

Tall, slender, mei-ping shape vase displaying a well-cut floral design.

A modern koan

Kobun Chino was a renowned master of kyūdō, Zen archery. He was once invited to give a demonstration of his skills at Esalen, the famed retreat centre near Big Sur. Kobun placed his feet in the traditional, grounded ashibumistance, straighted his spine, drew the bow, and let loose his arrow — which not only missed the target completely, but soared over the fence behind it, plummeting into the Pacific below. The spectators were aghast  until they looked up at Kobun, who gleefully shouted, “Bullseye!”

This jar is ornamented in the scraffito manner with an olive-brown overslip carved through to a white slip

Tripod Bowl with Parrot Feet

Jia Jing bottle – Met, NY

Tzu Chou jug

African GlobularVase – Democratic Republic of Congo

Porcelain bowl – Qing – Emperor Qianlong –  National Palace Museum in Taipei

3 pieces not from the Minneapolis Institiute of Arts

Vase – Linthorpe Pottery Factory

Zsolnay vase with bulbous shape

(  Treadway Galleries )

Elizabeth Strasser

Koan background  :

Koan  is a Japanese word derived from the Chinese Gongan, which defined a practice dating back to the Tang Dynasty where dialogues between Chan Masters and their disciples were recorded.  Later during the Song Dynasty ( 960-1279 ) the Gongan use was extended into ” observing the phrase “,  where it became an object of contemplation and meditation. My first exposure to the concept of the koan was in a book I read ages ago called Zen Flesh Zen Bones. Breaking down the koan intellectually and looking for  hidden insights didn’t really deliver any alteration of consciousness or magical moment of instant enlightenment. These simple koan stories just seemed to be  an interesting insight into the disciplines and philosophy of Zen. However at a later time I just flipped open a page and read a poem written by a  Zen master and immediately felt a deep inner peace. I suppose the difference this time was I wasn’t really looking for any revelations.

Jakuchu Ito – Mandarin Ducks

Sources cited –  Minneapolis Institute of Art

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The flamboyance of Hedi Schoop and Sascha Brastoff :

During WW2 and immediately after, foreign imports into the  USA had been cut off, resulting in the flourishing of domestic art pottery firms. This was further supported by the postwar building boom, especially in states like California. The demand for decorative and functional pottery wares was high, especially from the new homes being furnished. The shared sacrifices of the war were gone and the ceramic products reflected the new optimism with free flowing styles, fun, kitsch and heart warming designs. A lot of the decorative figurines expressed motion, from walking to dancing and other movements, capturing the mood shift.. TV’s were also selling in huge numbers so sales of ceramic TV lamps also flourished. Two influential ceramic artists from this time are featured below.

 Vintage Hedi Schoop harlequin dancers

Hedi Schoop

 
One of the designers at the forefront of this era of Mid Century ceramic design was Hedi Koop. Having fled Europe in 1933 with her composer husband ( Friedrich Hollander ),  she resettled in California and in 1940 opened up a pottery studio in Hollywood, focusing on the popular figurines along with planters, ashtrays, lamps, bowls and vases. She had studied sculpture, architecture, painting, and fashion design at several European art institutions including Kunstgewerbeschule in Vienna and Reimann Institute in Berlin. Her innovative California pottery designs were style defining  at this time and widely imitated. If a Schoop figure proved popular with consumers, an entire line of accompanying décor objects were created.  At the height of her success,  “Hedi Schoop Art Creations” produced over 30,000 giftware items per year, and employed over fifty workers. She designed and modelled almost every piece in her line. Her figurines are the most sought after as a collectible.

Vintage ceramic bowl/planter by Hedi Schoop has sparkling gold trim over rose pink, and has incredible detailed texture. Shaped in a winding S-curve, the piece looks different from any angle when displayed in the round. Dates to circa 1950s, I think, based on the generous application of gold and the color.

( Elle Jay – Etsy  )

Phantasy Dancer – Hedi Schoop

Vintage Hedi Schoop Poodle ashtray

 Scalloped ruffle vase – Hedi Shcoop California Vintage

Mid-century hedi schoop figurine

Schoop-ceramic-figurines

Figurines, dancer with mandolin player  - Hedi Schoop

Hedi Schoop vase

A pair of poodles – Hedi Schoop

( hepcat restorations )1

Hedi Schoop modernist cat

TV Lamp

Two Hedi Schoop Dancer Figurines.In the middle is a ceramic deer TV lamp by Krim    1

Hedi Schoop

Comedy Tragedy TV lamp

Hedi Schoop lady figurine

Salmon Pink Swirl Vase  - Hedi Schoop

Skyscrapers TV Lamp

( hepcat restorations )

Hedi Schoop dancing figurine planter

 Hedi Schoop did work with her sister Trudi  in European dance and cabaret before she left Germany for America  in 1933.

Cat face wall plaque/plate

Hedi Schoop 1960s Pottery Chip, Bread Platter and Dip Sauce Bowls

Hedi Schoop Shell Planter/vase

  Iridescent Glaze Geisha Girl Vase

Sascha Brastoff

Sascha Brastoff was also a successful  Los Angeles ceramic designer at this time, who had a flair for promotion, mixing freely with Hollywood stars and celebrities. His bold, colourful  and flamboyant creations fitted perfectly into this postwar era of  adventurous ceramic design. Sascha began creating ceramics in New York  in the early 40′s.  After a stint in the Air Force followed by working as a costume designer with Fox Studios in Hollywood, he set up a ceramics plant in West Los Angeles called Sascha Brastoff Product’s Incorporated with the backing of Winthorpe B. Rockefeller. In the mid 1960″s other art pottery makers such as Stangl and Royal Haeger were licensed to use Sascha’s name trademark. These items usually have a thick black cursive SB signature near the maker’s mark. His unique pieces, many displaying a modernist flair, have become a favourite with collectors.

Large Bowl – Sascha Bastoff

( Haegernerd – Flikr )

Gold enamel fruit bowl

A large Haeger vase with a Sascha Brastoff design

( Haegernerd – flickr )

Sascha Brastoff ceramic collection

Sascha Brastoff enamel ashtray, lighter and cigarette holder set

Rooftops – tall lidded pitcher

Pagoda’s decorative plate

Sascha Brastoff abstract series vase

Sascha Brastoff  - red black ashtray

Vintage modernist wall plate

Blackgold surf ballet- ceramic coffee pot

Mid-century abstract fish mosaic platter – Sascha Barstoff

Aztec bird shaped bowl – Sascha Brastoff

Mid-Century salt and pepper shakers – Cleminson Pottery of California

A decorative wall plaque/plate by Marc Bellaire who was a protege of Sascha Brastoff, who eventually became a  competitor.

A fabulous head vase from this era designed by Kathi Urbach

Sources cited :

http://www.myantiquemall.com/

http://www.collectorsweekly.com    Who Killed American Kitsch? by Ben Marks

http://midcenturyliving.blogspot.com.au

Vintage California postwar pop pottery is a post from: Ceramics & Pottery Arts & Resources

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In 2011, the Archie Bray Foundation held a live auction called From The Centre To The Edge to celebrate 60 years of innovation and creativity in the ceramic arts at their wonderful facility. Based at Helena in Montana, the foundation offers residencies and specialized workshops to ceramic artists from around the world. Over the years it has become a premier testing ground for ceramic artists working together to share ideas and techniques. Some prominent ceramicists have studied and lectured at this colony for potters. I think the pieces that were on  offer at this auction are a testimony to the quality of ceramic arts and artists that have been influenced by Archie Bray.

Tureen, 2011
earthenware, slip, glaze, china paint,gold luster

  Gail Kendall

The Immortal Peach, 2006
stoneware, wood fired

  Eva Kwong

Dinner Plates, 2011
porcelain, glaze

  Sarah Jaeger

Datz Hot, 2010
porcelain

Kevin Snipes

Platter, 2011
stoneware

 Warren Mackenzie

Anasazi S13, 2010

 Peter Voulkos

Platter #1019, 2010
stoneware, gas-fired reduction

Christopher Gustin

Four-Square, 1987
stoneware, maria crystalline glaze

David  Shaner

Happy 60th Archie Bray, 2010
porcelain, decals, luster

Chris Antemann

Cherry Blossom Plates, 2011
porcelain, gold luster, silver luster

Ayumi Horie

Covered Jar, 2010
porcelain, salt glazed

Matthew Metz

Untitled (Candle Holder), 2010
porcelain, cone 10, salt fired

Sunkoo Yuh

Jar, 2011
salt soda fired stoneware

Josh Deweese

East West, 2010
porcelain, cobalt inlay, glaze

Steven Young-lee

Tri Udder Ewer with Mermaid Handle, 2003
stoneware, chrome slip

Ken Ferguson

Gathering Green, 2011
red earthenware, porcelain slip, Orr’s green glaze fired in oxidation to cone 02, nichrome wire, red “lucky” seed from the Amazon, wax thread or reed

Sandy Simon

Untitled, 2009
glazed ceramic

Jun Kaneko

Sentinel, 2007
glazed earthenware

John Utgaard

Large Bowl with Black & White Trailed Pattern, 2010
stoneware, wood fired, kaolin flashing slip

Randy Johnson

Pouring Ewer Woman with Crocus, 2004
porcelain

Patti Warshina

Skywell Falls, 2009
ceramic, stoneware tile, earthenware glaze

Wayne Higby

Small Footed Cannister, 2008
porcelain

Victor Babu

Portraits, 2007
terra cotta, terra sigillata

Gail Busch

Bottle, 2011
stoneware, wood fired, shino glaze

Robert Archambeau

October 8th 2009, 2009
porcelain

Ed Eberle

Three Closed Forms, 1995
gas fired, porcelain cone 10

Oshiko Takaezu

Covered Jar, 2010
porcelain, polychrome glaze, wood fire

Linda Sikora

Stoneware Plate, 2009
stoneware, multiple slips, glazes, reduction fired

John Glick

Bomb, 2007
clay, cone 3

Robert Brady-sm

Jar, 2008
anagama fired stoneware, 7 day fire with oak, hickory, pine

Don Reitz

Vase in window – Archie Bray Foundation

photo – Tharwell

The keeper – Archie Bray Foundation

photo-Tharwell

More info on the auction here

From The Centre To The Edge – pottery par excellence is a post from: Ceramics & Pottery Arts & Resources

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 Images of various potters :

I’ve admired the works of the following ceramicists, so it was refreshing to research this post and get to see what they actually looked like. I think images of artists have more impact when you see them in their studio environment.

 Stig Lindberg – Gustavberg, Sweden

Stig Lindberg was one of the leading designers of household items that were accessible to almost everyone in Sweden.  His career lasted from about 1937 to 1980 during a “golden age” for Swedish industrial arts.

 Toshiko Takaezu

 Yoshida in studio (Ogaya, Japan)

Svend Hammershoei  1873-1948

  Doyle Lane making pottery

 Adelaide Alsop  Robineau

Adelaide Alsop Robineau at work. (1865-1929).  A 20th Century Studio Art Movement pioneer, she helped some potters make the transition from factory throwers towards establishing their own studio.

Adelaide Alsop Robineau – NY 1914

Sascha-Brastoff -1947

 Kelly Connole

Artus and Anne Van Briggle -

Van Briggle pottery was founded by Artus and Anne Van Briggle in 1900 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Van Briggle began producing art pottery in 1901.

Isamu Noguchi, Italy 1965-1970 -by Dimitri Hadzi

  Isamu Noguchi was a prominent Japanese American artist and landscape architect whose artistic career spanned six decades, from the 1920′s onward.

Akio Takamori

Norie Allen

Picasso

Avanos pottery – Turkey

 Barbara Hepworth

  Bernard Leach

Leach was the so-called father of studio pottery. This was a new idea at the turn of the century when artist-craftsmen mostly worked in factories. A studio potter was one who worked in his own shop on one of a kind pieces. Leach, a Brit who grew up in China, was studying pottery in Japan when he met the renown Japanese ceramicist, Shoji Hamada, an intellectual who was a painter and a potter but who was also a graduate of Kyoto Ceramic Institute, a kind of ceramic engineering school.

 Beth Cavener Stichter

Marc Chargall

 David McDonald

 Edmond Lachenal with sons Raoul and Jean Jacques

 Japanese ceramics craftsman – Photo – Tamotsu Enami

 Heidwig Mokebaringa – Australia

 Jenny-Mendes-(and-dog)

 Louise Bourgeois –  French-American artist and sculptor, best known for her contributions to both modern and contemporary art.

Charles Fergus Binns throwing on the potter’s wheel. Known as the father of American studio ceramics, Binns contributed vital information about clay bodies and glaze recipes to the lay person, laying the foundation for the studio ceramics movement in the U.S. that began in the early 1900′s.

( http://ceramicsmuseum.alfred.edu )

 Jesus Alvarez, Tonala pottery

 Jim Parmentier

John Reeve

( 1929 – 2012 )

 Joseph Sand

Joy Imai - in studio at Menlo Park

 “I like using my hands and working the wheel. Most of the times I’m wearing some of what I’m making. I even like working with fire, although I’m not always comfortable with it because I’m firing at white heat.”

 Jun Kaneko

 Kageyama Pottery, Kyoto

Danish potter Lotte Glob  - Scotland

  Magdalene Odundo

  Taxile Doat  ( 1851-1939 ) was one of the major figures of French ceramics at the turn of the twentieth century.

Between 1877 and 1905, he worked at the Manufacture nationale de Sèvres in France and was among the artists who introduced the Art Nouveau style. He also opened his own workshop/studio and developed new techniques including the technique of grand feu enamel on sandstone . For some of his work away from Sevres he favored the Japanese aesthetic of organic shapes and running glazes. Then, in 1909, he taught at the University of Saint Louis, Missouri and contributed to the expansion of artistic porcelain in the United States.

Taxile Doat – SEVRES Cabinet vase in a flambe glaze

Art Academy of the People’s University, – Missouri 1910

( celebrating its first high-firing kiln )

The people are, from left to right, Frederick Hurten Rhead, Samuel Robineau, Edward Gardner Lewis, Adelaide Alsop Robineau, Mabel Gertrude Lewis, Eugene Labarriere, George Julian Zolnay, Emile Diffloth and Taxile Doat.

Chris Antemann

Eva Zeisel  at the age of 105

 Michael Wein working in Shigaraki,Japan

 Peter Voulkos

Shoko Teruyama

Josep Llorens Artigas  (Barcelona)

1892 – 1980

Stoneware ovoid vessel - Llorens Artigas

Peter Beard

William E Artis

Paul Landowski sculpture

Photo – Albert Harlingue

Rabindranath Tagore

Photo – Albert Harlingue

Auguste Rodin in his studio-  1904

It’s a potters world. is a post from: Ceramics & Pottery Arts & Resources

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Ute Grossman was born in Dresden ,Germany in 1960. Having originally studied Chemical Engineering, she gravitated towards the arts with studies in painting and graphics at the  Academy of Fine Arts, Dresden in 1998/1999. She became a member of the  Association of Artists as a freelance ceramicist in 2003 and has since developed a considerable portfolio of ceramic vessels and sculptural objects. Her early work also involved doing mosaic sculptures in public places. All her ceramic art still displays mosaic aspects, but are now also mixed with raku, which has become a more prominent feature over the last three years.

Recently she has also introduced porcelain clay with finely structured graphic surfaces. Nearly all her vessels are asymmetrical with playful proportions and when combined with the vivacious mixture of colour palettes and textural lines, serve to create striking pieces of ceramic art. Ute claims her work now has either humorous portraits which describe interpersonal relationships or obvious abstracted portraits which explain higher social contexts.

Within the last three years, I concentrated mostly on the Raku-technique.. These are either humorous portraits which describe interpersonal relationships or obvious abstracted portraits which explain higher social context.

Faded Beauty 

raku vase, 2006

In the bushes 

raku bottle, 2006

I love old 

Raku vessel, 2009

Woman Gutsel spending spree

White stoneware clay, Porzellanengobe, glazes, electric kiln 1120 ° C

 2009

Woman -  2011

Utes Unke

 White stoneware clay, Porzellanengobe, electric fire 1120 ° C,

 Ute Grossmann installation- Keramion 2012

 Ute 2

Unfolded

2009

Towels

Timely Spring

Illusions -2005

Kernig III

2007

  Langer Winter – 2006

 Large Tourmaline

2008

 Pennant

Ute Grossman Raku Vase

2006

Nature scenery

white stoneware clay, glazes, raku 1020 ° C

Reversible Afraid

2008

Sedate

Small town (after Feininger)

Luftfassade

white stoneware clay, engobe,
electric kiln 1080 ° C

2008

Sweet Glass

Ute Grossman

Bauhaus sequence with impurity

Raku, white stoneware clay, glazes, 1020 ° C

2009

Baroque – 2011

Autumnal

Ute Grossman vase

Ute Grossman Raku Vase

Russian eggs, anticlockwise

Raku, white stoneware clay, glazes, 1020 ° C

2012

Biopop

2007

Frau luna

2010

SButnik

2010

From the Knitting Magazine: The good and the bad fairy

2006

Woman Up –  2008

 Ute Grossman website here

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The site Veniceclayartists was originally formed with a collection of ceramic artists from Venice, California. I acquired the expired domain name thinking it was connected to the Italian Venice, as I had a fascination with Mid-Century Italian pottery and Murano Glassware. Either way both Venice’s can boast  rich and active artistic communities. I intend to do a feature on the Californian Venice, but today the focus is on the Italian one.

Early history of  Venice pottery

Archaelogical excavations have unearthed precious artefacts that date the first appearance of pottery in the Venice lagoon vicinity to the 6th century. Venice was one of the first pottery centres in Italy, the oldest decorated plates found date back to the first half of the 1200′s. The original Venice potteries were concentrated in the area of San Polo and ancient kilns have been found in this location.The first Venetian dishes used two different traditions : Byzantine graffito and Islamic majolica ware.

In 1301 there were already many Venetian potters and they formed a corporation called ” Capitolare dell Arte ” of the ” Scutelari de piera ” This later become known as the Bochaleri and was also traditionally known as the Vasai del Leone ” ( the potters of St. Mark’s Lion ) In the 13th and 14th Centuries, Venetian pottery displayed distinctive geometric plant motifs, either hand painted or scratched using grafitto techniques. At the end of the 1300′s new forms and designs appeared in Venice, such as palmettes, lozenges, birds and animals. Towards the mid 1500′s a more refined style emerged using human figures ( mostly on vases for engagement and wedding gifts ). Also plates decorated with the names and descriptions of local dishes were in vogue. Landscapes and Roman ruins became popular themes in the 16th century for plate decoration.

The potters that migrated to Venice form Marche and Faenza in the 1400′s brought about a revival of the majolica enamel glazes. Many workshops run by artists flourished producing wall plates and other majolica wares depicting historical figures and scenes.  The introduction of majolica wares into the Venetian area brought about remarkable changes in the organization of this industry. Majolica (named after the island of Majorca, from where its technique of production was imported to Italy in the thirteenth century) was a much better material for dinner services and offered greater possibilities for decoration than mezza maiolica.

A severe recession n the 1700′s eventually crippled production. In 1773 there were over 30 active potteries, but this was reduced to a few at the end of the century and the Bochaleri Corporation was abandoned. Some of the pottery manufactures that flourished into the 1800′s were Antonibon, Cozzi, and Fiorina Fabris.

Doge Enrico Dandolo crowns Baldwin I (Baudoin), Emperor of Byzantium (1204-1205)

Museo Correr, Venice, Italy

San Polo butterfly plate

Murano Ceramic Vase

Kutahya Plate Flowers – San Lazzaro, Venice

3 pieces from Dolcetti – ( twicemodern.wordpress.com )

Giacomo Dolcetti was born in Venice in 1893 and he established his ceramics studio there in 1921 which he called “The Potter’s House”.

Cozzi Pottery pitcher  - Venice 1775

Ceramic Figurine – Jo Ponti

Venice  

photo – Carla Coulson

Cantagalli winged lion – Italan pottery, Venice

Crisaliforme by Cristiano Bianchin,  Murano

Lilac Africanist Murano Glass sculpture – 60′s

Glass Beaker – Venice,late 15th century

( V & A Musuem )

17th Century Venezia vessel for herb storage

The Minuet or Carnivale Scene 1754 – 55

Giandomenico Tiepolo

( Musee Du Lourve )

St. Marks facade

Venice, Italy

Veduta del Palazzo Ducale

Canaletto

Venetian Lion

Carlos Marchiori

Italian Pottery – Painted Bowl, San Polo  Venice

Venetian Pitcher

Venetian Goblet – 1500

( V & A Museum )

San Polo dish

San polo harlequin figurine

Murano Glass

Murano glass owls

Calcedonio glass jug

1500-1525

Murano glass vase

2012

Venice & Murano Glass & Mosaic 1872

( V & A Museum )

Salviati Murano Orione Vases by Rhegis Doe

Salviati vase – Venice 1868

Salviati Vase – Venice 1868

( V & A Museum )

Salviati Murano Rigati Glass jug

Carnevale Di Venezia

The famous Carnevale Di Venezia has a traditon that dates back over a thousand years to 1094 where carnivale festivities as public entertainment in the days leading up to Lent were decreed by the Government of the Doge Vitale Falier. The carnivale lasted for over a month up to Ash Wedensday and the Venetians celebrated wearing masks and colourful costumes. The beginning of the carnivale starts with special traditional celebrations such as the warrior dance of the ” Morescoa” and the “Svolo del Turco ” ( flight of the Turk ), which is a dangerous stunt.

Venezia Carnevale

Venice carnivale

Svolo del Turco

“The Flight of the Angel” from the tower of St Mark’s Campanile Bianca Brandolini D’Adda

( www.ilreporter.com )

Carnavale mask

Venice Italy carnivale

( alessandro 1948 - flickr )

Sources cited : http://www.venicethefuture.com

Venetian Art is a post from: Ceramics & Pottery Arts & Resources

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Annual Keramisto Pottery Fair

Keramisto is an annual pottery fair held over two days in the Netherlands at Milsbeek North, in beautiful surroundings next to a lake. Ceramicists from all over Europe are selected to present their pieces with 100 artists being chosen in 2012. The event is organised by the Noord Limburgs Pottenbakkers Collectief  (NLPC) and is held around mid March and attracts over 10,000 visitors. Among the numerous activities and festivities which includes music, a dedicated area is set up for some of the ceramicists to demonstrate their latest techniques and skills. There is also a judging panel that selects a ceramic artist for the Pot d’Or, which is recognition of the most outstanding ceramics display. Below is a collection of the artists that were represented from different countries in 2012. ( over 2 posts )

‡

Belgium

Frans Gregoor

Bibi Kriek

Christel Gourmet

Keramisto Ceramiic Fair

‡

France

Patrick Rollet

Southern French wood toothpicks collective – L’Alandrier

Southern french wood toothpicks collective – L’Alandrier

Philippe Buraud.

Stephanie Raymond

Alain Dejardin

Sylvie Piaud.

Sylvie Piaud

Sylvie Piaud

Wolf Catherine

Wolf Catherine

Natacha Brosset

Southern french wood toothpicks collective – L’Alandrier

Marie Debax

Ardine Spitters

Ardine Spitters

Lucie Becuwe

Lucie Becuwe

Lucie Becuwe

Martine Zelko Durrenberger

Martine Zelko Durrenberger

‡

Germany

Thomas Leganyi

Ahn Stephanie

Annette Wandrer

Antje Schwittmann

Christine Duncombe Thuering

Christine Duncombe Thuering

Christel Moehring

Christel Moehring

Elke Eder-eich

Enno Jaekel

Fritz Rossmann

Fritz Rossmann

Horst Goebbels

Horst Goebbels

Horst Goebbels

Ines Christoph Hasenberg

Ines Christoph Hasenberg

Ines Christoph Hasenberg

Inke Uwe

Petra Bittl – 2011

Ute Grossman – 2009

Johannes Makolies

 Martin Mindermann

Monika Debus

Sabine Kratzer

Sabine Martin

Sabine Moshammer

Blogvanletty

An old pottery wheel from 1880

The second post of Keramisto features Great Britain, Netherlands, Spain, Denmark, Poland, Czech Republic and Slovenia entries.

 Keramisto link HERE

European Ceramics Event – Keramisto is a post from: Ceramics & Pottery Arts & Resources

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Annual Keramisto Pottery Fair

In 1979, a group of professional ceramists formed the Noord Limburgs Pottenbakkers Collectief (NLPC), in a region in the Netherlands with a centuries-old ceramics tradition, thus laying the foundation stone for the Keramisto Pottery Fair.  In 1988 the first international pottery market in the Netherlands took place as an open air gallery “by potters for potters”, with 60 workshops and studios taking part.
Keramisto was situated near Gennep outside the municipal region of Milsbeek, in a local recreational area called Mookersplats on the banks of a small lake.

 Netherlands :

Birgit Vogels

Birgit Vogels

Carla Vrijer

 Doerte Ahrenkiel

Doerte Ahrenkiel

Geert Jacobs

Heike Rabe

Heike Rabe

Heike Rabe

Hein Janssen

Carla Vrijer

bytriskel.canalblog.com

Netty Janssens

Let de  Kok

Res Heyning

Keramisto Pottery Market

 Great Britain :

Daniel Boyle

David Wright

Eddie Margaret Curtis

Jeremy Nichols

Jeremy Nichols

John Wheeldon

John Wheeldon

Tony Laverick

Rachel Wood

Rachel Wood

3 ceramic figurines - Annie Peaker

Keramisto stall 2007

 Spain :

Joan Serra

Jose Davila

Jose Davila

Jose Davila

ldia Serra

ldia Serra

ldia Serra

 Czech Republic :

Yasuyonishida Vladimir Groh

 Poland :

bozena wislicka,  jan marcin witkowski

bozena wislicka,  jan marcin witkowski

 Lithuania :

Vilija Blciuniene, Osvalda

Lina Bekeriene

Crystal Glaze keramisto 2009

 ( Veronique Kaiser – Flickr )

 Keramisto 2009

 ( Veronique Kaiser – Flickr )

 ( Veronique Kaiser – Flickr )

keramisto sculptures 2007

 Keramisto link here

European Ceramics Event – Keramisto – Prt 2 is a post from: Ceramics & Pottery Arts & Resources

The Original Post is Located Here: European Ceramics Event – Keramisto – Prt 2

African Traditional Pottery

African  Water vessel. A ceramic jar which is  worn by women on their backs to fetch water from wells and springs and then to store it in their homes.

Ouadhias culture. Great Kabylia, Algeria

Azande Vessel –   Africa, Angola

Nupe Vessel – Africa,Nigeria

Water jug from the Jerma tribe – Niger

Two Samburu girls dressed in her traditional beaded necklaces and headress at a dance. Ol Malo, Laikipia, Kenya

Nigerian pottery vessel

Yellow Hornbill

Kruger National Park

Chameleon Lizard

African Contemporary Pottery

 Kpando Pottery

( Design Africa )

 Kpando Pottery

( Design Africa )

 Kpando Pottery

Sango-Ceramics

( design-africa )

Eric Lafforgue -  Erbore Girl

 Imiso Ceramics :  

Imiso is driven by the vision of becoming an exclusive design house that reflects the richness of African cultures and traditions. The company was established in 2005 and is currently owned by Zizipho Poswa and Andile Dyalvane who collectively bring over 15 years  of experience in creative design and manufacturing. Their first studio and gallery space is currently located at The Old Biscuit Mill, which is situated at the Woodstock precinct of Cape Town. Imiso employs a team of highly skilled artists who contribute to their production of highly distinctive ceramics designs.

 Zizipho Poswa and Andile Dyalvane

 Africasso Collection 

Picasso was inspired by Africa and Andile was inspired by Picasso and he has created a collection of ceramic bowls that reflect an abstract sympathy with this style. His pieces dispaly a myriad of visual African stories.

 Imiso Ceramics   Africasso- Earthenware slip casted Vuyo vase

   Africasso Stoneware coiled vase ; self portrait

  Africasso-Stoneware coiled vase; Majola

Africasso tall vase

Africasso Stoneware vessel

Africasso showstopper vase

Hand Pinched Collection

Like a pianist that sorts to unleash magical creativity through her fingers, Zizipho Poswa has created a beautiful, eclectic mix of delicate hand pinched ceramic bowls and platter sets.

Imiso Ceramics   Hand Pinched-walford white clay-oblong bowl

  Hand Pinched-walford1 white clay hand pinched bowl

    Hand Pinched-walford white hand pinched 3pc set - Zizipho Poswa

   Hand Pinched-walford white clay hand pinched bowl

Earthenware slip cast vase

 Stoneware coiled vase; Red & gold scarified pattern; matrix bottom half-Udu-Vase

 Stoneware coiled vase; scarified bulb shape

The Scarified Collection is inspired by the ancient African tradition of body scarification. Scarification is an ancient practice used to protect individuals  against various spiritual and physical manifestations. Designed by Andile Dyalvane, the scarified pottery pieces are intended to carry a spiritual message that will resonate with the ambience of the interiors they are destined for.

Large scarified vessel

Bright and Pinchy by Zizipho Poswa

Imiso Ceramics—Africasso-platter

Views From The Studio Collection by Andile Dyalvane

Imiso Ceramics slip casting

Imiso Ceramics  Stoneware coiled vase

Imiso Ceramics site here

 More African Traditional Pottery

Nigerian pottery water jar – William Itter collection

Nigerian Pottery Vessel – William Itter Collection

Louise Gelderblom vessel

( South Africa )

Karl  HAGENAUER (1898 – 1956)

“Africa in the jar”

( Million & Associes )

A Mudsgum earth home

Pokot girl with giant necklace – Kenya

( Eric Lafforgue – flickr )

Nigerian vessel

African Pottery Arts – traditional, contemporary is a post from: Ceramics & Pottery Arts & Resources

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The advent of  Halogen ceiling downlights, dimmers, flatscreen TV’s, ultra minimalism, recessionism and plain dullism seems to have reduced the prevalence of lighting employing ceramic bases. It’s a pity because the presence of the overhead light shade usually enhanced and highlighted the textures and features of the lamp base to great effect. Maybe the outlandish, kitschy 50′s and 60′s ceramic lamps have had their moment, although demand by collectors is unwavering. However modernist, abstract designs never seem to date and the retro channels are still delivering wonderful pieces.

I have included a few TV lamps thanks to the wonderful collection at TVLamps.net. These evolved from the earlier radio lamps and peaked in popularity around the 50′s and 60′s. I have included my TV lamp at the bottom of the post, which also fell victim to the installation of a flatscreen TV. I acquired this lustrous Mid-century drip glaze lamp from my local Thrift Shop.

Pair of Green Ceramic Lamps

Carved white ceramic lamp 1960′s

( Talisman – London  )

Pair of Black and White Pinstripe Murano Glass Lamps set on Lucite Bases – 1970s

( Talisman – London  )

Art Deco Lamp

( Classiques En Furniture )

Mid-century ceramic table lamp

Single Turquoise Ribbed Ceramic Lamp

Barsony Ceramics lamp

( Black-Afro – - Flickr )

Large Bitossi green lamp

Carl Halier for Royal Copenhagen
and Triangle Studio

Ceramic Cat TV Lamp Sun Window

( TvLamps.net)

Earthenware lamp base with painted underglaze decoration – Gambone,Italy

( Freeforms USA )

F.A.I.P  figurine TV Lamp

Haeger woman deer lamp

Keystone Lamp –  Jim and Shirl Parmentier

Kron “Dancing Couple” TV lamp

( TvLamps.net)

Large figural Art Nouveau Lamp

Lee Ann Red Lamp

Lise Vintage Lighting

Maddux of California Retro Cockatoo TV Lamp

( TvLamps.net)

Marcello Fantoni Italian Ceramic lamp

1950′s Danish Modern ceramic lamp

Mid Century Table Lamp

( BrooklynStVintage )

Miramar Abstract Kitty lamp

( TVLamps.net )

Moorcroft Lamp   Anna Lily

Raymor Ceramic Lamp

Retro Pottery Lamp

Bernard Rooke  ( UK ) – Stoneware lamp

( Freeforms USA )

Ceramic Table Lamp Woven Pattern - Jim and Shirl Parmentier

Royal Haeger ? Fish Lamp

( Tinkers Moon- Flickr )

Toulon ceramic vase

( vaughan designs)

Vim O Lite lamp

Vintage Turquoise Ballerina Lamp

(  Lise Vintage Lighting )

Wilshire House Italian Ceramic

Monumental ‘Fat Lava’ Swedish Ceramic Glazed Lamp

 Italian Retro Pottery Lamp 1950′s

The internal globe emits light from all the windows.

( beetle2001cybergreen - Flickr )

Mid-Century Modern Yellow Lamp

( Lise Vintage Shop – Etsy )

Italian Blue and White Striped Ceramic Lamp 1960s

( Talisman – London )

Large Pair of Textured Ceramic Table Lamps

( Talisman – London )

Tripod Japanese ceramic lamp

( Black-Afro – - Flickr )

MARGAUX Art Deco Table Lamp

( Adelaide Restoration Centre )

Black Yellow Barsony lamp and figurine

( Black-Afro – - Flickr )

Large lamp in blue ceramic, opalescent luster glaze

( Lise Vintage Shop – Etsy )

West German drip glaze lamp

—

–

Light My Lamp is a post from: Ceramics & Pottery Arts & Resources

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Modern Ceramics – Re-inventing the wheel :

l’Artisan Electronique from Unfold Design Studio

The pottery wheel is one of the oldest artisan techniques for making utilitarian objects. Belgian company Unfold, in collaboration with Tim Krapen and the RepRap community, developed  L ’Artisan   Electronique, which  is a virtual pottery wheel that can be creatively manipulated on the touchscreen of a  tablet. This also acts as the interface for running a  3d scanner, adapted to pipe clay through nozzles to build the pottery form. The innovative process imitates the traditional technique used by ceramicists, in which the form is built up by stacking coils of clay. The result is a curious meeting of an ancient craft with modern technology and digital design software.

 Simple glazed printed porcelain scaled forms - Unfold Design Studios

The L’Artisan Electronique installation was commissioned by the Z33 Art Centre for the exhibition ” Design by Performance “ According to Jnathon Keppat Unfold, , the clay qualities desirable in more traditional pottery techniques hold true for printing with clay too. The general rule of thumb with clay is that the whiter it is the less plastic and malleable it is. What is known as ‘short’ clay. The darker the clay, the more sticky it is and often the more plastic and able to bend before breaking. The converse is, the whiter the clay the higher the temperature it can be fired to before distorting. So porcelain is higher fired and stronger than say red earthenware red clay. There is always a payoff and that is why most clay bodies are a blend of a number of materials.

unfold.be

More technical details here → http://unfoldfab.blogspot.com.au/

 ‘Volcanoes’ – ave size 9 x 9 cm (Experiments in modelling with ‘sculpt mode’ in the 3d program Blender)

Virtual Pottery from Yoon Chung Han on Vimeo.

Virtual Pottery is an immersive audiovisual installation that uses hand gestures to create 3D pottery objects and compose real-time sound piece. Using the simple and anagogic metaphor, Virtual Pottery attempts to transform body gesture into a digital music domain in a compelling way. The body is transformed into this multi-sensory space as a way of sculpting sound pottery. It delivers the same manner when we do in real pottery creation; sculpting clay, polishing the shape, adding glaze materials, and finally going through the firing process. By using simple hand gestures, the user can experience a virtual creation and sculpt their own pottery pieces, while compose  real-time music. The meditative feeling, combined with experimental music, pushes the user to explore the relation between virtual sculpting and spatial sound composition.

Created in TransLab, Media Arts and Technology, University of California, Santa Barbara

Advisor : Prof. Marcos Novak
Technical Collaborator : Byeong-jun Han

Project Utanalog, Ceramic Utah Teapot

The Utah teapot is a 3D model created in 1975 by Martin Newell which has become a standard reference object in the computer graphics community. It is a simple, round, partially concave mathematical model of an ordinary teapot. The objective of Utanalog by Unfold is to return the iconographic teapot to its roots as a piece of functional dish-ware while showing its status as an icon of the digital world.

Recent ceramic innovations :

 Modern Italian Fireplace Design by Montegrappa

Horus Coffee Table

Stephane Thivend

The Reveal Display Cabinet

 Modern chair modules

Decorative ceramic wallsl from Naxos

 The ceramic “Soundcollector” by Dutch designer Rommert Calje is suspended on wires and captures and amplifies sounds.

( an inverse ” cone of silence ” )

Modern ceramic tiles from Impronta

Impronta Porfido and Vibrazioni ceramic relief tile designs

Italia Nuova Wall Tiles

Ceramica Cielo, based out of Fabrica di Roma, Italy, espouses daring style, and this is clearly visible from their Jungle Collection. Exotic elegance is displayed with these reptile patterns. Definately appropriate for the Year Of The Snake.

Ceramica Cielo

 Porcelain Dress, by Li Xiaofeng

 Porcelain Dress, by Li Xiaofeng

BRIEFCeramicASE –  Alexandros Stasinopoulos

The challenge in this project, was to mix the concept of traditional ceramics, a primitive material with long history in many cultures, with the unique properties high tech ceramics posses, like their extreme hardness, scratch- and abrasion-resistance, skin friendliness and their unique sensuous tactility.

BRIEFCeramicASE –  Alexandros Stasinopoulos

 Luxury ceramic dog house by Marco Morosini. Italian designer dog bed for the pampered and spoiled dogs.

 Ceramic dog house

future figurines – Kim Simonsson

  Matthias Kaeding’s ceramic Neolithic Knives

Time to re-discover our ancient culinary skills. This is just a concept knife, but I’d say a handle wouldn’t go astray.

Urban Gnome collection from London designers Vitamin

 The Collection comprises a Money Box, Bottle Opener, Salt & Pepper shakers, and a Kitchen Timer.

A grey hand crafted modern ceramic planters from NATURE

KERAMION Foundation – Center for Modern and Historic Ceramics in Frechen, Germany

Portable Ceramic Bread Iron by Kim Been

 Guarantee perfectly crisp toast by toasting your bread manually.

Strips of seaweed have left their mark on the photosensitive surfaces of this vase by Anglo-Dutch design duo Glithero

Glithero developed ‘Silverware’, a photographic technique that captures direct impressions of seaweed specimens on porcelain. The resulting images resemble abstract art from the 1950′s on surfaces that echo Wedgewood’s black and white Portland vase.

Castagna ceramic dog house by Bosa

Muggar

A piece of Delftware pottery, developed  in 3D for a virtual shop and displayed in a virtual room.

An impressive abstract facade – Wintergarden Shopping Complex in Brisbane, Australia

” Our work on Wintergarden has enriched the studio’s knowledge in the fields of screen geometry, cutting, folding and panelising to the point where the most complex elements of design and construction are converted from creative potential and idealism to practical achievability. ” –  Studio 505

photo – John Gollings

Futuristic and virtual pottery is a post from: Ceramics & Pottery Arts & Resources

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Aleluia Planter – 1950′s  © HPS

Looking at the spectacle of the Madi  Gras Carnival, it’s easy to see the Spanish influence and the comparisons that can be drawn with Spanish art and pottery, with its rich warm colours, vibrancy and motion. Spanish pottery evolved from a culturally diverse heritage, having been influenced by many nations and peoples throughout its history. Spanish culture has its origins in the Iberian, Celtiberian, Latin, Visigothic, Roman Catholic, and Islamic cultures.

The traditional Spanish pottery styles centred around hand painted wall dishes and large pitchers and jugs. Despite the eclectic gestation from Majolica, Islamic, Hispano Moresque, Mozarabic and other European influences, such as the Baroque and  Neoclassical, Spanish /Portuguese pottery became highly distinctive and appealing. This was further evident in the modernist phase in the 50‘s and 60‘s where the abstract styles that filtered through from France, Italy and Germany were adapted and blended into the local styles. Shape and movement were pushed even further without sacrificing any aesthetic balance. Picasso and Dali’s Modernist, Cubist, Surrealist  works from Paris and beyond were also influential.  The pottery featured here is predominately modernist because I feel this reflects the pure abandon of their creativity the most.

Hermanos Perez

Vase with three wings – Aleluia,  Aveiro

( modernaumaoutranemtanto.blogspot )

50′s AleluiaVase

( MdS Auctions )

50′s-Raul da Bernarda vase

Alcobaca, Portugal © CMP

50′s  Raul da Bernarda vase

( http://mfls.blogs.sapo.pt )

Ceramic candlestick – Pedros Ltd  © CMP

Coimbra-S.P – vase

Cruet—Raul da Bernarda © JMPF

Dish — Raul da Bernarda © CMP

 Raul da Bernarda © CMP

Hand decorated Spanish Ceramic dish

( imagineartisan.com )

50′s Raul da Bernarda small dish © CMP

 50′s Raul da Bernarda vase © CMP

Pitcher – Aleluia, Aveiro – 1955

( modernaumaoutranemtanto.blogspot )

 Pitcher 50s – Aleluia, Aveiro

( modernaumaoutranemtanto.blogspot )

16th century plate

Museo de Cerámica de Barcelona

Art Deco lidded vessel   – Caixa Escalonada-Villeroy & Boch-Wallerfangen

( modernaumaoutranemtanto.blogspot )

Maria deLourdes-Castro – 1950′s  © HPS

Miro inspired set of Vases – Hermanos Perez

( imagineartisan.com )

Picasso – Fernande  1909

Pedros Ltd Vase - © CMP

Picasso bull pitcher

Pablo Picasso

Sangria Pitcher

Spanish artist Merello

“I plead for humility in painting. Painting does not need so much fanfare or intellectual pretension. It must come from a person’s clean soul, from the clear and pure eye of the painter, even if only a simple apple is being painted. It is for this reason that I admire Morandi so much.” © José Manuel Merello

Wall-clock Miró-inspired mosaic of glazed, marbled, and crackled shapes and icons in relief on a rustic vase.

Hermanos Perez

Art Deco Vase with Flowers - Lusitania – Coimbra

1930

( modernaumaoutranemtanto.blogspot )

Three Mid-Century vases – Aleluia Cerâmicas

Raimundo Folch

The Crockery Vendor _  Francisco de Goya

Museo del Prado  Madrid

Wall tile mural – Aleluia Cerâmicas

Viúva Lamego‘s production is characterized by a vast range of traditional glazed tiles, always hand-painted, which reproduce designs from the sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

Sources cited -

http://ceramicamodernistaemportugal.blogspot.com.au   ( © CMP )

merello.com

http://modernaumaoutranemtanto.blogspot.com.au

Modernist pottery- Portuguese and Spanish is a post from: Ceramics & Pottery Arts & Resources

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 The development of botanical and animal pottery art :  

 
I never cease to be captivated by the intrinsic beauty of nature. Its form, texture and graceful lines have been well represented in pottery art from the beginning. In pre dynastic Kemetic art (Egypt before the Pharaohs ), Solar-Afro-headed priestesses were often depicted in Nile riverboats . These images occur on numerous ochre-painted ceramic pots, and also appear in rock art and in a tomb murals. The pot below  shows a pair of women in a boat with plants for shade and to their left is a priestess figure performing an invocation.

Egyptian  pre-dynastic Kemetic pottery

In Babylon, ancient Egypt and ancient Greece ceramic tile painting was widely utitilised for decorating. It was used on deck walls, ceilings, floors, murals and even on outside walls and featured both botanical and animal designs. During the New Palace period (ca. 1600 BC to 1450 BCE) of the early Minoan culture, technological advances in materials, firing at higher temperatures and faster pottery wheels, saw an evolution both in form and design. Pottery decoration with spirals and lines became less common as the central theme but remained in lesser areas such as around handles and necks. Plants and marine life now took centre stage. The Floral style most commonly depicted were slender branches with leaves and papyrus flowers.

Minoan Gold Ring - unearthed in a burial chamber of a Minoan princess

16th – 13th centuries BC

The Marine style, perhaps, produced the most distinctive of all Minoan pottery with detailed, naturalistic depictions of octopuses, argonauts, starfish, triton shells, sponges, coral, rocks and seaweed. The early Minoan culture had an influence on Greek art.

From 1450 BCE a new style developed, perhaps influenced by increasing contact with the Mycenaean culture from the Greek mainland and this was predominantly found in Knossos. Typical examples were the three-handled amphora, squat alabastron vessels, goblets and unusual pieces including ritual vessels with figure of eight handles and a libation jugs covered in spiky projections. These were decorated with much more schematic representations than the previous styles. Papyrus, lilies and octopuses become  more stylised and abstract. Whilst religious motifs continue to be seen, birds appeared for the first time on pottery, as did helmets and shields.

Minoan dolphin vase

 Although Greek pottery provided us with a wide range of shapes from cups to plates to massive amphorae, many of the forms remained relatively constant over centuries. This is primarily because Greek potters were producing wares for practical use – holding wine, water, oil and perfumes – and once the optimum practical shape had evolved, it was copied and maintained. However, despite this restriction in form, the Greek potters and painters could express their versatility in the decoration of the vase.

From the 8th century BCE, Geometric pottery decoration began to include stylized human figures, birds and animals with nearly all the surface of the vase covered in bold lines and shapes painted in brown and black.

At the end of the 5th century the Greek painters  Parrhasios and Zeuxis, introduced new painting techniques. The former is said to have used outline in new ways which achieved greater realism, and the latter used shading. This inspired new figurative styles with the pottery art.

Early European floral decoration

The Chinese K’ang-Hsi porcelain, which featured both Indian and Korean styled flowers was generally copied during the early development of the botanical decoration of European pottery. The majolica from Spain, which featured a lot of floral decoration also had a substantial input. The advancement of botanical studies, a love of realistic paintings, along with the introduction of new colours supported the creation of more local styles. The liking for bunches of flowers and the production of botanical prints led to further development of naturalistic decorations. As the use of wild-flowers on Marseilles china became popular, this also influenced the rest of Europe in the decoration of their Majolica and porcelain china.

Neo classical, Rococo, Renaissance, Chinoiserie, Baroque, Japonisme, Art Nouveau, Art Deco and most other styles of pottery all had representations of botanical and nature figures in varying degrees. Below is a mixed selection featuring nature inspired imagery.

Cathy Reichel Clark Ceramics

Deb Stableey Pottery

Finely Painted Japanese Plate -18th century

( Elegance Auctioneers )

France Bulbous Vase signed L. Berty from Vallauris Provence 20th century

Birds on a turquoise vase – Sarreguemines French Majolica

Taggerty Pottery

Italian Majolica - red earthenware vase covered with a mottled pale blue glaze.

(  Ben Ronalds’ Collection – Queensland Museum )

Lavender and white Art Nouveau vase – Hans Rudolf Hentschel – 1896

K’ang-hsi Period Cloisonne bottle form vase

Large Austrian Amphora ceramic vase

Large French or German Majolica bowl

Moorcroft vase, Deco Drive design, issued 2007, designer Phillip Gibson

( Treadway )

Qing Cloisonne enamel crysanthenum flowers

 Carved gourd vessel – Marilyn Sunderland

Carved gourd vessel – Marilyn Sunderland

Vase with poppy flowers -stained glass mosaic

( Penelope )

 Val Saint-Lambert vase

( Victor Arwas Gallery )

Vintage large vase ” Treespath ”  Rudolph Lorber

Weller Pottery,  USA

Charles Catteau deer vase

Charles Catteau vase

Art Deco Vase – Charles Catteau

English Majolica Baroque vase _ late 19th century

( Ruby Lane )

Art Nouveau vase

Monarch by Sharon Meyer Postance

French Art Nouveau ceramic vase

 Lucien Levy-Dhurmer for Clément Massier

 Crysanthenum flower Amphora vase designed by Paul Dachsel

Amphora vase designed by Paul Dachsel

 Antique French asparagus vine leaf plate MAJOLICA BARBOTINE circa 1880

Antique Hand Painted French Planter- Rouen Cornucopia

Ben Carter – Dogwood Pitcher

Bust Figurine - Cordey-1940

Daum Vase

 H. Bequet Quaregnon hand painted Ewer  - Belgium

Amphora Art Nouveau vase

( Treadway – Toomey )

 Neo classical porcelain oil lamp

( Cowans )

Turquoise White Cat Plate with Leaves (1968) – Beatrice Wood

( The Beatrice Wood  Permanent Collection )

Doulton Vase

French Pierrefonds vase – crystalline glaze

( Treadway Toomey )

Rene-Buthaud vase – large bulbous shape with stylized deer and foilage

Amphora vase, designed by Eduard Stellmacher

Nature inspired pottery decorating is a post from: Ceramics & Pottery Arts & Resources

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Judy Weeden

Bird at my window

Judy Weeden describes her approach to pottery :

” More than 37 years ago, I left an academic career in biology to immerse my hands and head in the making of pots, first in Fairbanks, Alaska and now on Saltspring Island, B.C. My first teachers and mentors were steeped in the Bauhaus tradition, but most of my understanding of clay as an artist’s medium has come from the mistakes, failures, hopes and successes the willful clay throws our way. Early in my potting career my work was wheel-thrown functional ware. Presently I am incorporating a broad range of forming methods such as slab assembly, slump and hump molding, throwing and altering, slip-casting, whatever it takes to achieve the forms I want. My pieces are still based on a vessel format and for the most part are meant for household use. Surface decoration with geometric and figurative patterns is achieved by slip-carving or impressing the malleable clay. Some forms require only a simple glaze. ”

Heron 2

” No two pots are ever alike. My primary goal is to create work that synthesizes beauty and harmony both in a functional and a decorative context. The pots have become a canvas for expressing my own relationship with the powerful natural world around me and my experiences in it. This canvas includes not only the life I see outside my studio window, but my own inner landscape with its needs for linearity and order, compassion for beauty and light, and a dedication to creating my share of these in the world. I hope my work speaks for itself with independence and fearless honesty. ”

Technique

” My major decorative strategy is slip-carving or slip inlay at the leather hard stage. The work is then bisque fired to harden it for the remaining steps in the process.

Following the bisque, pieces are covered with terra sigillata made from red firing clay or a felspathic glaze.

Recently, I have begun using underglazes in painting nature motifs on the pots. I like to restrict these colourful paintings to “windows” on the surface of the pots which requires making the pot with that in mind. Underglazing happens in the bisqued surface. ”

All stoneware pieces are fired to cone 10 in a propane kiln.

Asymmetrical lidded vessel

My Window – Judy Weeden

Owl Urn – Judy Weeden

Judy Weeden studio

Running the gauntlet-  slab vase

Salt Spring Island Potter Judy Weeden

Teapot family broody hen

The Human Form – slab vase

Merimage teapot

Casserole – slab built

Crane 2

Evolution – covered jar

Judy Weeden website

Coming Exhibition

Formed Earth, Earth Formed
Works by Judy Weeden and Ronald Crawford
Feb.28 – April 12, 2013
Amelia Douglas Gallery, Fourth  floor north, Douglas College
700 Royal Ave, New Westminster

Shane Norrie

Shane Norrie is a resident of Ingersoll, Ontario and has been pursuing a career as a ceramic artists and painter for over a decade. In 2003 he left behind a career in advertising in Toronto to become a full-time artist. As a ceramicist he has experimented with a range of styles, including Raku and produces distinctive organic, earthy tones and textures. His forms and surfaces successfully combine both traditional and contemporary aspects. “Although I experiment with many different types of clay, glazes, and firing methods, my interest is in surface effects and textures.  I enjoy glazes that are transformed by the kilns and firing processes.  I love to be surprised when I unload the kiln.  I think my curiosity keeps my work fresh and interesting.”

To add to his many credits, the Ingersoll District Collegiate Institute created a scholarship in the artist’s name.  The Shane Norrie Art Scholarship honours a graduating student who has chosen to pursue creative post-secondary studies in a visual art-related program. ”Art was extremely important to me throughout high school, and I was honoured with a scholarship when I graduated. I thought it was appropriate to offer someone the same encouragement that I received”.

As a painter he favours traditional landscapes in both watercolours and acrylic.

Wheel thrown lichen bowl – Shane Norrie

Acorn Bottle – Shane Norrie

Shane Norrie landscape painting

Shane Norrie – shadow crackle vessel

Multi fired wall plate

Shane Norrie landscape painting

Shane Norrie sculpture

Wheel thrown and carved wall piece

Bronze acorn bottles

Shane Norrie

SHANE NORRIE – Paterson bottles

 Long necked acorn bottles – Shane Norrie

Lidded Vessel

Below are some examples of Shane’s recent ceramics which are thinly-thrown, textured pieces,  reminiscent of the ocean and its surroundings. Foamy tide pools, seashells and dry river beds are the inspiration for this new body of work.

Green Lidded Vessel

Pierced Lichen Bowl

Lichen Bowl Medium

Pierced Lichen Bowl with Red

Shane Norrie website

Steve Irvine

” Pottery has always been more to me than just a way to earn a living. Clay is an instrument of understanding — a way to look for meaning, truth and harmony in my life. Working in the arts also gives me the opportunity to bring a small degree of joy and beauty into other people’s lives, which helps me to find my place in the world.

I am mostly self taught, but I also spent three years as a ceramics major at Sheridan College School of Crafts and Design, in Mississauga, Ontario. In 1974, my wife Joan and I moved into an old country church on the Bruce Peninsula and I set up my pottery studio. I sell mostly on a wholesale basis to shops and galleries in Southern Ontario and I’m also a member of the Owen Sound Artists’ Co-op, which is a retail arts outlet run co-operatively by about 40 artists in the region. ”

Small bottle with copper blue glaze

 Wheel thrown tea bowl of stoneware clay

Raku fired tea bowl

Gold leaf stud jar

Steve Irvine large hand built vase -copper blue glaze lightly spayed on the surface

Wheel thrown vase with a temmoku glaze as a base, plus brush strokes over top in iron, rutile and titanium.

Porcelain vase -  copper barium type blue glaze, with gold leaf at the neck

Gold leaf and black glaze pattern jar

A Steve Irvine teapot – fired to Cone10 reduction, copper barium glaze.

Steve Irvine handbuilt stoneware wood-fired jar ( high temperature  )

Pinhole fully functional ceramic camera.

Steve Irvine

2005 Teapot – Black iron glaze, with a green trailed glaze pattern over the top.

Steve Irvine website

T & S  Harlander Canadian art pottery

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Vallauris ceramics invariably have a distinctive look, whether it be the the iridescent Art Nouveau wares from Massier, the vivacious, colourful, highly textured glazes or the expressive mid-century, modernist hand painted pieces that typically characterise the region’s pottery.  The adventurous glazes of Vallauris were applied to both conventional forms and the more radical sculptural designs.

 Gilbert Valentin – matt black glaze  with red enamel pticher

( Rago )

Located in a region in south-eastern France, Vallauris is nestled among low coastal hills and with its rich supply of clay, has been a pottery-making centre since Roman times. Originally the suppliers catered for the local market with culinary and garden wares and some exports. Following the arrival of the railways in 1873, production and distribution opened up and the region soon had around 50 producers.

The Massier family, a dynasty of potters dating back to before the French Revolution played a key role in the expansion of pottery innovation in Vallauris. Clément Massier began working with his father Jaques in 1856. After his father hired Gaetano Gandolfi, an Italian master-potter, Clement began training with him and pioneered several techniques and metallic glazes including their signature iridescent luster glazed pottery. Subsequently, production turned from utilitarian pottery to more individual artistic creations. He was also joined by his brother Delphin and cousin Jérôme, who soon formed the core of the producers at Massier. Jean Gerbino worked in the early twentieth century at Massier and was installed as a craftsman from 1930. Cedric Massier is the latest and sole practitioner of the family art in Vallauris.

Other traditional pottery production companies in Vallauris were Guige, Saltalamacchia, Gaunet Brothers and Foucard-Jourdan who produced domestic pots in ‘terres vernissés’, using traditional designs and techniques.

Jerome Massier iridescent glazed vase

( Liveauctioneers )

Clement Massier Art Nouveau vase

Delphin Massier Vallauris Majolica Pitcher ( 19.5 inches )

Post war pottery revival. 

In 1938 Suzanne and Georges Ramie founded the pottery workshop Madura in Vallauris. They produced traditional pure forms of the Provence highlighted with enamels. From the late 40s, an influx of potters from different parts of the country gravitated to Vallauris, drawn by the attractive conditions of a small, old, picturesque, pottery town in the South of France: availability of material, qualified work force, workshops, quality of life, and a cheaper cost of living.

Picasso arrived at the Madoura studio in 1946 to experiment with painted, sculptural ceramics. Also that year Roger Capron moved to Vallauris, where he founded a ceramics workshop known as ‘l`Atelier Callis’. Along with Picasso he contributed to the renaissance of ceramics in Vallauris. Other famous artists such as Marc Chagall, Edouard Pignon, Anton Prinner, Victor Brauner, also were introduced to ceramics at Vallauris. The location, once  known as the ” city of 100 potters entered  another”golden age” where it flourished again in the 50′s, 60′s and 70′s. The rich artistic fabric was further supported by ceramic artists such as Jean Derval, Roger Collet,Georges Jouve, Charles Voltz, Jacques Blin, Gilbert Portanier , Robert Picault, Marius Bessone, André Baud, Jacques Innocenti, Alexander Kostanda , Albert Thiry and Gilbert Valentin .

Hand painted clown face plate – Vallauris

 Picasso Charger – Madoura

…

Vallauris had become a centre for the production of decorative ceramics and the influence of Picasso and Jean Cocteau had manifested itself in hand-thrown pots, decorated with freely painted figurative motifs.

In 1952, Roger Capron purchased an abandoned pottery in Vallauris and opened a small ceramics factory, with 15 workers. By 1957 he had established a considerable international reputation. In 1980 his factory employed 120 people and during that same decade he reverted to making one-off pieces which were shown internationally.

The potters in Vallauris catered, in the main, for a popular tourist market and only, to a much lesser extent, for a more discriminating public of art-minded collectors. However artistically ambitious works at affordable prices were produced both in artist potters studios as well as in workshops and factories. Vallauris currentlly has a Kitsch Museum which displays thousands of ceramic items that reflect the creative output from the 50′s to the 70′s where audacious art was made for the tourist market by anonymous ceramicists expressing their flamboyance.. Poodles, cicadas,  domestic or exotic animals and other quirky creations populated  a colourful universe. These were usually released under the ” Made In Vallauris ” label.

Large Vallauris Mosaic Vase – Jean Gerbrino

(  xupes art and antiques )

Jean Cocteau  ( 1889-1963 )    Trois faces aux triangles  

Impressionist Modern Art Auction

( Christie’ s )

Jean De Lespinasse

French Vintage Vallauris Handpainted 3D Cicada Art Pottery Vase

Vallauris ceramic jug

Jean Gerbino  Vallauris vase

Slip cast earthenware free form vase, decorated with ‘Écume de mer’ glaze ( sea foam ).

Vallauris 1960

Poreclain Vase – Vallauris

Charles Voltz  Vallauris vase

Andre Baud vase

Vallauris. France

Jean Derval  - 1925

Vallauris French antique, loop handled, drip glaze vase.

Mark Chagall – King David hand painted plate

( jane kaha )

Vase with bird motifs signed Vallauris

Marius Bessone vase – Vallauris

(  tout vendre.fr )

Vallauris ceramic lidded vessel

Vallauris vase designed by Auguste Lucchesi

Vase decorated with parrots

Six oyster dish – Vallauris

Roger Capron  vase

Rue Centrale Vallauris

Jacques Blin

Polychrome kitschy modernist vase signed Vallauris

Petite Chocolatière – Charles Voltz

Vallauris

Vallauris art deco vase

( newdekorart )

Retro Vallauris hand-painted wall plate

Alexandre Kostanda

Traditional form with drip glaze

Alexandre Kostanda

Jaques Innocenti coffee set

Modernist sea foam glaze, free form vase signed Vallauris

( Collectors weekly.com )

Musee Jean Cocteau – Menton, France

Roger Capron – Vallauris

 ( Exposition “Biot reçoit Vallauris” )

 Vallauris lava textured glaze vase

Vallauris expo poster 1993

Large ceramic modernist platter – Vallauris

Faïence Vase by Jacques Innocenti

Vallauris  1950′s

 Sources cited - http://ceramicsconversations.blogspot.com.au

http://www.vallauris.org/

http://www.vallauris-golfe-juan.fr

Clayart bliss at Vallauris is a post from: Ceramics & Pottery Arts & Resources

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Wandjina  rock painting - ( Kimberley Foundation )

…

Aboriginal rock paintings in the Kimberley

Bradshaw/ Gwion Gwion

The Kimberley mountain ranges stretch across the northern tip of Western Australia. Joseph Bradshaw, an English pastoralist  found the original rock art sites in 1891 on the Roe River in the north-west Kimberley. They became known as the Bradshaws, but currently the figures are more commonly known by their local Aboriginal name Gwion Gwion or Gwion, a name derived from one of the Aboriginal beliefs in the Kimberley that explains their origins.  The Bradshaws are significant to world history because instead of depicting animals, they use humans as the primary subject. The use of humans as subjects is very rare for paleolithic art. This  mysterious form of rock art could legitimately be referred to as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world.

Ancient Bradshaw cave art paintings

( Bradshaw Foundation )

The late Graham Walsh, documented and studied the art for over 40 years. The combination of the pictures themselves and the oral history of the local tribes led Walsh to conclude that they were painted by an unknown Asiatic race before the last ice age. Walsh also concluded that they were a form of iconography. Walsh based his conclusions on the fact that the paintings showed no signs of development and simply appeared in their most advanced form.

It is an Aboriginal understanding that the fauna and flora of the landscape possess an ‘increase centre’ or an area of high electro-magnetic energy where the performance of correct rituals will increase the life essence or Kurunba stored. The natives know that it is not the actual paintings in the caves that activate the Kurunba but the rocks on which they are drawn; the rocks being imbued with the ‘spirit’ of the entities depicted. Sacred works of art such as the Wandjina act as powerful images, capable of stimulating and intensifying mind power during rituals, similar in nature to Vantras or designs used in Tantric meditative techniques. Bradshaw/Gwion rock art  is best recognised from the depiction of graceful, active, long-bodied humans, often of a mulberry hue with tassels, hair adornments, and possibly clothing .

 Bradshaw rock art figures

( Bradshaw Foundation )

Bradshaw rock art in the Kimberleys

( photo – Hugh Brown  )

 Bradshaw Tassel figures

( Kimberley foundation )

 Gwion rock painting  at King Edward River

 Bradshaw/Gwion  rock paintings

( Chris O’Connel photo )

 Bradshaw rock art – Graham Ezzy – flickr

Bradshaw Art of the Kimberley

Wandjina

Here, in some distant age, mysterious enigmatic images of mouthless beings, some clad in robes and surrounded by what appears to be a halo, were inscribed on the rock faces of numerous caves. Sacred to the Aboriginal of the Kimberleys, the images are revered as awesome beings who in primeval times, wandered around the landscape, instructing the indigenous people in the use of weapons and tools and initiating the tribal laws, rites and customs, and after completing their task they disappeared into the heavens or into the ground. They called themselves Wandjina, sometimes spelled Wondjina.

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Allison Newsome’s detailed and intricate sculptures and ceramic reliefs address issues of the environment and how humans interact with it. Locations where she has resided such as the redwood forests in her native Northern California, Mexico and Prudence Island at Narragansett Bay have been sources of inspiration for her sculptural art. Her works all reflect an intimate connection with the elements. Clay-Ojai-Harvest, Shell Tree Gotto, Clay-Woman-Digging-Steamers typically traverse her ongoing themes of sustenance and the wilderness. Her body of work has explored the fundamental, utilitarian, methods implemented on our land and water and how our landscape and human psyche have changed from the wilderness to the agrarian, into the industrial / post industrial. Highly textural pieces combine with earthy palettes and splashes of colour to express her unique narrative. In addition to clay she also utilises other natural elements such as branches, shells, and flowers to create ephemeral sculptures.

Alison Newsome’s ceramic sculptures are in the permanent collections of The RISD Museum, the Newport Art Museum, Mobile Museum of Art in Alabama, and The Beatrice Wood Museum. Her artist residency at the Beatrice Wood Center for the Arts in Ojai, California resulted in a strong body of work and a video http://www.beatricewood.com/allisonnewsome/newsome_video.html

Allison Newsome received a MFA from Rhode Island School of Design and a BFA from Chico State University.

Shell figure in a grotto

runnels and rivers

Bronze Woman Mining – Allison Newsome

Amphora workshop

Allison Newsome sculpture

Well shaft cups sculpture

Shell Tree Grotto

( The Cove installation )

Post Pre-Pottery Figurine Workshop - Thursday – Sunday, October 24 – 27, 2013

The Beatrice Wood Center for the Arts
Tel: 805-646-3381 or email us at artcenter@beatricewood.com.

Neolithic pre-pottery figurines (5,000.00-3,000.00 BC) as a metaphor and point of departure for clay sculpture.

Ojai Orange Pants collection

Pink Blossom Branches

Sespe Mountains

Shell tree in the grotto

High Tide

( On Island exhibition )

Factory Garden Folly

Clay Salt Marsh with Reclining figure

( Agrarian series )

Clay Orange Skirt

Clay Ojai Harvest

( Agrarian series )

Clay Nun Buoy with Pelican

( Aquatic series )

Clay Mid Channel Buoy

Clay Lighted Bell Buoys in progress

Apple blossom branch skirt

As in nature Allison pushes the extremes of her materials. Her combination of glazes heightens the drama and lustre of each work, giving life and motion to the sculpture.

The Harvard Amphora and the Figure workshop was a multi-disciplinary collaboration with University of Rhode Island’s Inner Space Center and included Amphorae research from Black Sea Byzantine shipwreck discoveries. The Amphora shape has long been associated with the human figure as it not only contains fluids, but makes figurative reference to the foot of the pot, the shoulder, the neck, and other aspects of the body.

Almonds Harvest

Sculpture from The Cove series

Water, rocks, clay and corn

Images of corn feature in Allisons sculptures. ( a universal symbol of connection to the Earth and ruled by the Earth Element – you can smell the earthiness in fresh corn )

Donkey night

Still of Three

Orange Tree

Allison at bronze factory – Strassacker, France

Balance of Water  - during construction

Narra of the Narragansett –  2011

( Bronze sculpture )

…

Alisons Website is HERE

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A 5,200-year-old bowl found in Iran’s Burnt City in the 1970′s featured a series of five images that researchers have  identified as being sequential, much like those in a zoetrope. Giving the bowl a spin, one would see a goat leaping to snatch leaves from a tree, as seen in the video clip below. What is also interesting is the images were drawn in distinct frames, similar to a film strip.

The remarkable piece of pottery was unearthed from a burial site by Italian archaeologists, who hadn’t noticed the special relationship between the images that adorned the circumference. That discovery was made years later by Iranian archaeologist Dr. Mansur Sadjadi, who was later hired to direct the excavation of The Burnt City, located 57 kilometers from the city of Zabol in the southeastern Iranian province of Sistan-Baluchestan.

While no one questions the early instance of animation, researchers have been at odds over the significance of the earthenware bowl’s artwork. It was originally thought to depict the goat eating from the Assyrian Tree of Life, but archaeologists now assert that it pre-dates the Assyrian civilization by a thousand years. Maybe some budding entrepreneur had it spinning on a pottery wheel and charged admission to come and witness the dancing goat.

While this is a rare example of a deliberate sequential animation, other techniques were also exploited to add an animated look to pottery. The pottery of many early civilizations have images that depicted their lifestyles. Village life, religious icons and rituals, sporting activities and other pursuits like hunting were a popular narrative. Several panels on pots were sometimes utilised and pottery imagery became a form of storytelling and  historical documentation. The round surface quite often contributed to the perception of motion and added to the dynamic. Some pottery artists had the skills to create figurative imagery that was full of movement, sometimes supported by decorative patterns, which also have the ability to convey motion.

 Figurative and decorative pottery art have maintained their popularity through the ages and they surely stir up deep psychological connections with the past. Both form, imagery and richer hotter colours contribute to an appearance of kinesis and these possibilities are explored below. It is notable that from a Feng Shui perspective, ceramic pieces that express movement are useful for placing in Chi static locations as they promote chi flow.

 Amphora vase, designed by Eduard Stellmacher

( Treadway Toomey )

A Safavid Blue and White Bottle Vase, Persia, 17th Century .

( Sotheby’s )

Beth Tarkington

Lidded Jar – Birthe Flexner

Sascha Brastoff –  red earthenware tribal wall plaque

( Eric Berg’s Early California Antiques )

Ceramic Mid-Century vase – Ruscha Milano

Claywork – A Little Company   …    Turtle Spiral

David Porras

Dragonware Plate  - Rayven Vintage Etsy

 [ Dragons are generally displayed with a  strong dynamic ]

Eldreth Pottery

Island Girl Pottery – Etsy

Cut Wheat Vessel – Jennifer McCurdy

Rough Curly Vessel – Nicholas Bernard

Light Blue Teapot and Mug – Kelly Lynn Daniel

Mata Ortiz-   ” Paquime Pottery”

Mitchell Grafton – Brown Snake jug

Model wearing paisley silk Balenciaga gown 1954

( An example of a static pose, creating a sense of movement byvirtue of composition )

Plate with a hunting scene

Queen Tut Pillow by Gail Markiewicz

Satsuma ware Vase

Stig Lindberg.

Textured platter – Michael Kifer

( c2ceramics.blogspot )

The Statue of the Unkown Maroon –  Port-Au-Prince. Haiti

Italian modernist vase -Elio Schiavon,  circa 1960

Villeroy and Boch vase

( Treadway and Toomey )

18th/19th Century Oriental turquoise glazed twin handled bottle shaped vase

( Denhams Auctions )

Plate by Mara - emotions expressing movement

June Kaneko – spirals always convey motion

Hercules and the Hydra Serpent

Jennifer Mecca  - Vase With Orange Flowers

Gliding Kuan Yin statue

Solomon Turning to Idolatry

Pierre Reymond (1513-1584) French enamelist

Three Raku Bottles

Raku fired fish

Alan and Rosemary Bennett – Cedar Creek Gallery

Denise Romecki

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When the student is ready the master appears :

Past Japanese PM, Morihiro Hosokawa left the tough political arena for another path that was possibly just as demanding. After retiring from Japanese politics in 1998, he decided to retreat to a quieter life in the countryside of Japan. The plan was to do some reading, a bit of contemplation and stop to smell the cherry blossoms. But then on a whim he decided to learn pottery. Leafing through a pottery book  wondering who would be an appropriate teacher, Shiro Tsujimura caught his attention, particularly for his Shigaraki pottery. Additionally his reputaion for being a gruff and wild spiritied master supported  his decision as he didn’t want favouritism from being an ex PM.

Shiro Tsujimura at The Elusive Tea Bowl Workshop

When Shiro Tsujimura  was younger he considered becoming a Zen monk, and underwent formal training at Sanshoji, a Zen temple monastery, until he took up the discipline of clay at the age of 22. He was no stranger to an austere lifestyle as Morihiro discovered after he was accepted to study with him. Shiro built his house and studio in the mountains at Nara, where he  lived with his wife, 3 large dogs, around 20 cats and the bats, moths and insects that visited through the generous gaps in the walls. Sometimes for meals they would roam the woods looking for wild mushrooms and Hosokawa had to adapt to no mobile phone usage and an outside toilet made entirely of wood.

Tsujimura would rise at 6am and go to his wheel and start throwing and go through to mealtime around 7 pm.  Hosokawa sat next to him at another wheel each day and watched and also threw clay. His instructions were succinct. ” Chuck it ” for abandon that attempt and start again, ” you ask too many questions ”  if a question was asked and “stupid man” – for some encouragement. There is a saying, ” the less a master tells you the more you learn “. While in the studio, department store and gallery people would come to visit Tsujimura, asking him if he would like to do an exhibition. It didn’t register that the 73 year old man apprentice covered in clay used to be their Prime Minister. After 18 months Morihiro Hosokawa felt he had discovered the joy of using a pottery wheel and creating works and left to work in his own studio. Morihiro Hosokawa mostly makes tea ceremony ware, using many of the different glazes that characterise each of Japan’s famous pottery districts. Hosokawa also practices the art of calligraphy.

Morihiro Hosokawa on his pottery wheel

Hosokawa Morihiro garden ceramics

Morihiro Hosokawa

Morihiro Hosokawa Raku chawan

Stoneware tea bowl raku black - Morihiro Hosokawa

 Black raku stoneware -  Hosokawa  2008

(  Five Colleges and Historic Deerfield Museum Consortium )

Morihiro Hosokawa

Tea Bowl - Morihiro Hosokawa

Shigaraki fired vessel

Morihiro Hosokawa

…

Works by  Shiro Tsujimura :

 Shiro’s summation of  his artistic approach:  “A lengthy period of study isn’t necessary to make good pieces,”  “It’s not a matter of killing yourself over technique, but of the result.  It’s not even whether you use a traditional wood-fire kiln or a gas kiln. That is, it’s not a matter of process, but of whether you make pieces in the image you hope for. In the end, it is the artistic goal, the spiritual aspect.”

Shino tea bowl

Shiro Tshujimura tea bowl

Iga Uzukumaru jar

Flower Vase Iga Style

( Ippodo Gallery )

Tsujimura Shiro Tea Bowl

(  Lacoste Gallery )

Shino Sake Cup

Sake cup Ido style

Black oribe style tea bowl

Ido tea bowl

Iga Water Jar

Natural ash glaze large jar

Karatsu tea bowl

Expressive abstract Kohiki jar

Natural ash glaze faceted vase

Tea Bowl - Shiro Tshujimura

( Lesley Kehoe Galleries )

Natural ash glaze spherical vessel

…

Other Japanese ceramics  that have caught my attention  lately :

Slab Molded Ikebana Vase

John Dix Chawan

( http://flyeschool.com )

Inayoshi Osamu

( http://flyeschool.com )

Modern Japanese Chawan Tea bowl  - Kawai Toru

Takayuki Sakiyama

Tetsuya Ishiyama

(  ippodo gallery New York )

Charger – Shoji Hamada

Ichino Masahiko

( Yufuku Gallery, Tokyo )

Mihara Ken

( Yufuku Gallery )

Maeta Akihiro porcelain faceted vase

( Yufuku Gallery )

…

Cited Sources -

http://pingmag.jp/2013/03/19/morihiro-hosokawa-interview-part-1/

http://www.e-yakimono.net/html/hosokawa-morihiro-jt.html

http://jmiyazawa.com/tag/shiro-tsujimura/

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