Welcome to NewsFile, our round-up of newsy tidbits and happenings from the world of contemporary ceramic art and contemporary ceramics. We’re launching this edition with a fresh book looking at a contemporary “new wave” of our favorite medium.
Book: New Wave Clay
Ahryun Lee
A new book New Wave Clay by Tom Morris‘ features a fresh survey of 55 of the world’s “most imaginative” artists leading the field of contemporary ceramics through innovative design, architecture and art, Creative Boom reports.
The new book by Tom Morris features classically trained potters who create design-led pieces, product designers who use clay as a means of creative expression, as well as fine artists, architects, decorators, illustrators, sculptors and graphic designers. Their collective output goes far beyond pots into ceramic furniture, sculpture, murals, wall reliefs, small-scale architecture and 3D printing.
Four thematic sections include discussion and commentary by Edmund de Waal, Hella Jongerius, Grayson Perry, Martin Brudnizki and Sarah Griffin.
Eric Roinestad
Derek Wilson
You can purchase the book on Amazon here.
Halima Cassell Wins Prize
ArtForum reports British Pakistani artist and sculptor Halima Cassell received this year’s $30,000 Sovereign Asian Art Prize––Asia’s most established contemporary art prize––for her bronze work, Acapella (our featured image).
From the Sovereign Art Foundation:
Acapella is a sculptural piece by Pakistan-born Halima Cassell and was inspired by the artist’s deep love of music. The ripples and flows represent musical movement and rhythm and the dark patina resembles a nocturne (from the French word meaning ‘nocturnal’, from the Latin nocturnus), a musical composition that is inspired by, or evocative of the night.
Known for using strong geometric forms with recurrent patterns and architectural principles, Cassell’s definite lines and dramatic angles in stoneware, bronze and ceramic sculptures help realize a fugal language and movement.
Read more from ArtForum here.
New York Ceramics and Glass Fair Canceled
ARTFIXdaily reports The New York Ceramics & Glass Fair––after 19 years––is canceling its January 2019 exhibition at The Bohemian National Hall. Fair organizers tell the publication they did everything to keep the beloved fair, which attracted international collectors, interior designers and curators, going.
“This was a truly hard decision for both of us to make. Shows have been difficult for everyone in our business for the last 10 or so years, and exhibiting at them is expensive. We are fully sympathetic to this because it is equally difficult and expensive from a management perspective.“
You can read more about the cancelation on ARTFIXdaily here.
Shoebox Mix-up
We can only imagine the disappointment when a French family found their precious Joseph Seibel kicks had been tossed out only to be replaced with this vase. All joking aside, the vase hidden inside was far more valuable––a rare 18th century Qing Dynasty Yangcai Famille-Rose porcelain vase, CNN reports.
The intricately decorated vase was hidden away in an old shoebox. After finding it, the owners took it to Sotheby’s Paris to be appraised, whereupon the auction house told them it dated from the 18th-century.
Sotheby’s set an auction estimate of $590,000 to $825,000 for the vase, but the day of the auction it sold for a whopping $19 million due to its rarity on the market as most examples are currently housed in the National Palace Museum and other museums around the world.
Read the rest of the report here.
Not Just a Cup
Japanese multidisciplinary design firm Nendo has released a picture book about a cup, but this is Nendo––founder Oki Sato in fact––so its main character is no ordinary cup. Aptly titled, Not Just a Cup, the story is about a cup, as Nendo explains, that notices it can’t stir the coffee without a spoon and desperately attempts to solve its predicament by changing itself into different forms.
The plot of the book showcases the essence of design and emphasizes the notion that design is not only about creating beautiful shapes, but about recognizing the little inconveniences in our everyday lives, and finding new ways to solve them.
The overall message of the book is that even the smallest and seemingly boring things in our daily routine can enrich our lives and excite us when given a bit more attention.
Check out DesignBoom‘s report here.
Noted Ceramist + Professor David Crane Honored
David Crane, ceramicist and professor of fine art in the School of Visual Arts at Virginia Tech’s College of Architecture and Studies, has been conferred the title of professor emeritus by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors, VT News reports.
A member of the university community since 1980, Crane has made significant contributions to creativity and innovation through his work in ceramics. His artworks have appeared in more than 275 national and international exhibitions and he has conducted 36 invited lectures and demonstrations. Reproductions of Crane’s ceramic works have been published in 10 books, along with numerous catalogs and articles. His work appears in private, university, and museum collections.
Read the rest of the report here.
Love or loathe these ceramic happenings from the world of contemporary ceramic art and contemporary ceramics. Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
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