Exhibitions in Brief is our bite-sized overview of the most exciting and current exhibitions in the ceramics world. Each entry is accompanied by a few pictures and a statement from the artist or gallery. Please follow the links below to learn more about each show.
Above image: Work by Ken Eastman at Marsden Woo Gallery
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Tony Marsh at the Pierre Marie Giraud Gallery, Brussels (March 12 – April 11). Click to see a larger image. From the Gallery: Marriage, fertility, creation, death and the difference between the numinous and the physical are the essential primary subjects related to human experience that occur and reoccur in Tony Marsh’s work. Much of the work is dichotomous in nature; being both sensual and cerebral, organic & geometric, solid & weightless, masculine & feminine. In the end, whether it might be a vase on a table, an empty coin bank, the bowl on the night stand, a burial urn or a ballot box, what could be more natural than to put something in a vessel.
Rupert Spira: A Life in Ceramics at the Oxford Ceramics Gallery, Oxford (May 9 – June 14). From the Gallery: Rupert Spira holds a unique place in the development of contemporary ceramics. This major retrospective brings together outstanding pieces from every stage of Spira’s career, largely drawn from his own collection. It is on show from 9 May to 14 June at Oxford Ceramics Gallery, 29 Walton Street, Oxford. The exhibition is accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue and the majority of works are available for sale.
Ken Eastman: Behind the Gates of Clay at Marsden Woo Gallery, London (May 6 – June 13). From the Gallery: In this latest collection of statuesque and contemplative vessels Eastman further explores his work’s unique relationship between sculptural pottery and architecture. Each viewing point offers a new experience through strong use of colour, differing textural qualities, and the undulating curves and folds of these multi-faceted forms. To quote Tessa Peters, ‘Eastman continues to make exceptional abstract vessels that are nothing less than profound and poetic reflections on life.’
Bente Hansen at Puls Ceramics, Brussels (April 20, 2013 – June 1, 2013). From the Gallery: Bente Hansen has long been one of the leading lights of Danish ceramics as an artist, designer, and teacher. Her work graces the major collections both public and private worldwide. This show will highlight her recent energetic colorful decoration on vessel forms. The application of layers of colored transfers, gold, and silver nuance the ceramic glazes as they are transmorgrified by the firing, melting, and mixing. Some may see a thoughtfully reflective working process related to the geometric language of a kaleidoscope of Bauhaus forms, Avant-garde, architecture, collage and even Japanese textile. Others will discover much, much more as each layer adds a new paragraph, a new chapter to her tale. Hansen once again stretches our imagination to new heights. But above all else, viewers will discover the genius of her own expressive world.
Joan Serra at Puls Ceramics, Brussels (April 20, 2013 – June 1, 2013). From the Gallery: Catolonia, along with Denmark, are two of Europe’s most exciting arenas for contemporary ceramics. Joan Serra is unquestionably one of its very best exponents. New work for his first Puls exhihition shows him to be a master of dialogue with Nature. Abstract compositions of cracked and melted clay are a powerful sequence of visual almost geologic events. He breaks, deforms, alters, and over-fires; cracking and melting his clay into a form of miniaturized Land Art. Serra’s is the chaos of fire taken to its limits; a witness to the violence of earth that confirms yet glorifies our minuscule human scale. Some pieces take cracking and melting to an irreversible stage, an Armageddon of clay. They collapse, fall over, disintegrate or simply melt, creating an aura of mystery surrounding the volatile destinies of Nature. Everything has a beginning and an end; his ceramic pieces reflect that reality with pure clarity.
Kristina Riska: New Work at Hostler Burrows, New York (May 6 – June 5). From the Gallery: The scale of Riska’s recent work can be said to be one of its most impressive attributes, some of her objects standing at over eight feet tall. They appear fragile, delicate and exhibit a quality of lightness uncharacteristic of something so monumental. Her craftsmanship is especially apparent not only in the delicacy she imbues her grand pieces with, but also in the beauty of her glazes, given the limitations of firing such sizable objects in-oven. Throughout her career Riska has remained true to her creative process. Whether endeavoring upon a giant elliptical sculpture or a serving dish, an elevated aesthetic permeates all of Riska’s creations.
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