LONDON — Roger Law, is known for his caricature work in publications such as ‘The New York Times,’ ‘London Sunday Times,’ ‘Der Spiegel’ culminating in his work on the satirical British TV show Spitting Image. But Rogers relocated to Sydney, Australia after the show closed to get away from the pressure and fame; to make a new life for himself. Fortunately, he maintained his fascination for the surreal and grotesque.
“The first step was closing the factory gates on the satirical puppet workshop Spitting Image. Moving to Australia, it turned out, was the next great stride. No one can live in Australia for long without becoming very aware of the influence of China.” — Law
Roger Law, Fresh Water Cauldron, Celadon, 35 x 48 inches. Click for larger image
Roger Law in his studio, Jingdezhen, China. Photograph by: C Michael Coulson
Law became enraptured with sketching the native Australian flora and fauna, which turned his eye toward ceramics – a new modality for this exotic bestiary, Law says.
“I had previously travelled widely in Australia drawing surreal and exotic creatures found in the wetlands and seas around that sunburnt country – everything from Weedy Sea Dragons to Cheer-leader Crabs.
Roger Law, Mudfish Bowl, Porcelain modeled and carved, celadon glaze, 5 x 15 inches. Photograph by: Derek Au. Click for larger image
Roger Law, Large Paradise Pot II, Celadon, 71 x 28 inches
Drawing influence from Asian ceramic techniques, Law began traveling to Jingdezhen, China’s Porcelain city for months at a time. He eventually moved there to focus on fine-tuning his work, creating his giant striking ceramic vessels from which he carves out his Weedy Sea Dragons and Cheerleader Crabs.
Most of the workshops in Jingdezhen are highly specialised, family businesses – skillful pottery sweatshops, not unlike my Spitting Image puppet factory. Porcelain City was as busy making things as Britain in the 1950s. I felt oddly at home in this strange culture.” — Law
Roger Law sketching out his creation. Click for larger image
Click for larger image
(detail)
Law is represented by Sladmore Contemporary in London. The gallery writes his “spectacular ceramics [are] as witty and beautiful as his caricatures were rude and ugly.”
You can see more of Law’s work here. Cfile also has a digital copy of the catalog from his latest exhibition with Stephen Bird Transported at The Scottish Gallery (Edinburgh, November 30 – December 23, 2016) on cfile.campus. If you are a Cfile member, you can view the catalog, or begin your 30-day free trial.
Read more Cfile reflections on Roger Law and his work.
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Its intriguing to see Roger Law infusing luscious, fat, buttery Jingdezhen celadon with the kind of incisive and lyrical voice that is so original and compelling in the work of his earlier career.
Nowadays, long freed from the satirical gladiatorial arena of TV and its it biting, narrow world of episodic broadcast and relentless production schedules, Roger is a survivor of his own success/excess.
Leaving London, heading south towards the pole star, charting his course to the upside-down world of the Antipodes and its proximity to Asia he discovered, like a cultural castaway, that translocation to the sunny beaches of Sydney allowed him to re-orientate. to regenerate and shed a few outer layers of creative skin.
Observing the pulse of life in a light filled studio with a sweeping coastal view, his tremendously vivid imagination, drawing skills and mastery of direct graphic expression began to explore new possibilities. Anyone familiar with his marvelous pen and ink drawing could see he was only a step away from the rich calligraphic art of China and Japan. It was merely a matter of time before the lodestone of Jingdezhen and its pottery workshops beckoned. For artists (especially Australian artists) to work in China is something of a cliché these days; though many are called, few, like Law, seem chosen.
There is something very special about the richness, detail and life that he injects into to the celadon juggernaut that, at its worst, is the mass production output of Jingdezhen. Law knows how to subvert the norm, how to expand possibilities of lyrics and scale, and how to enrich the life of a traditional form with imagination, narrative and humor.