April 25
2021
April 18
2021
Audience
Leandro Erlich: Dalston House
temporary installation
gives verwer new perspective
uses audience to create art
not complete without interaction between artwork and members of the public.
Bibliography
unknown, 2013. [online] Domusweb.it. Available at: <https://www.domusweb.it/en/news/2013/06/27/leandro_erlich_dalston_house.amp.html> [Accessed 13 April 2021]. – (unknown, 2013)
March 21
2021
Collaberation
This Pottery Man and Shop Dog scene
This sculpture titles “Pottery Man and Shop Dog scene” is a ceramic sculpture that was created by Rex Hogan in collaboration with Suzanne Reese Johnston and Whelchel Meaders. All three of these artists primarily create ceramic vessel and sculpture forms based around cockerels, birds and other creatures.
The above artwork depicts a man sitting on a box next to a dog holding a bottle of moonshine with a sign behind him reading “a pottery man and his shop dog” as well as “yes, i’ve been making face jugs a long time, why do you ask?”. The sculpture is 14.5 inches tall, 14 inches deep and has a base of 10 inches in diameter. Further more, the dog figure within the Sculpture is 6 inches tall and 6 inches deep, whist the male figure is 13.5 inches tall, 4 inches wide and 5 inches deep.
On of the things I like the most about this sculpture is how loose the design of the figures are as they have an almost illustrative look to them. I also like how although the artists have different styles, each part of the sculpture works well together, from the way the figures are sculpted to the detail on the characteristic ‘jug head’.
Bibliography
Johnston, S., Hogan, R. and Meaders, W., 2021. Rex Hogan Collaborative Pottery Man DP1775 – Christopher Park Gallery. [online] Chickenmanart.com. Available at: <https://www.chickenmanart.com/folk-and-outsider/pottery/rex-hogan/rex-hogan-collaborative-pottery-man-dp1775.html> [Accessed 21 March 2021]. – (Johnston, Hogan and Meaders, 2021)
March 13
2021
Aesthetic
Edward William Godwin
“From 1860 to 1900, a group of artists, architects and designers in Britain found themselves united in the search for a new beauty. The Aesthetic Movement aimed to create a new kind of art, an art freed from outworn establishment ideas and Victorian notions of morality. This was to be ‘Art for Art’s sake’ – art that didn’t tell stories or make moral points, art that dared simply to offer visual delight and hint at sensuous pleasure.” (Museum, 2021)
The above image is of a set of red earthenware ceramic pots created by Edward William Godwin in 1877. Godwin used sgraffito decoration on cream slip to depict Japanese-style motifs such as birds. The artist designed these pots as decorative pieces rather than functional, in line with the aesthetic movement. Godwin used symbolisms to show the beauty of aesthetic as well as straight forward pictorials such as the use of a table illustration on his first pot with the word ‘Kawphyrite’ (copyright) in mock-Greek next to it, referring to the plagiarism of Godwin’s furniture pieces around this time; it is clear in his designs that he was interested in the relationship between ceramics and furniture and the interaction between the two to bring together interiors within their own aesthetics. The shape Godwin chose to use for these pots is not seen as traditional, however, he chose this eccentric style to highlight the pots decorative nature and to revive the traditional styles, such as slip-ware whilst further highlighting the artist work itself.
Bibliography
Museum, V., 2021. V&A · Aestheticism. [online] Victoria and Albert Museum. Available at: <https://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/aestheticism> [Accessed 13 March 2021]. – (Museum, 2021)
Museum, V., 2008. Vase | Watt, William | Godwin, Edward William | V&A Explore The Collections. [online] Victoria and Albert Museum: Explore the Collections. Available at: <https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O158260/vase-godwin-edward-william/> [Accessed 13 March 2021]. – (Museum, 2008)
March 7
2021
CW1
March 2
2021
Place
Installation Art
“Sediment Sampling” is an Installation piece by Swiss artist Karin Lehmann that pays homage to decay and the transformation of an area/place. It was created in 2014 and exhibited in Münster, Germany. The artwork portrays 200 unfired clay pots that have been filled with water; the water dissolved the clay, making the pots crack and deform, leaving many of the pots in colourful puddles of formless clay.
Unlike most installation artworks, this piece does not just sit and fill as space, it gives the room a narrative of decay, transformation, and natural beauty. Instead of the artist involving herself in the artwork she lets water and nature work together to form the colourful markings that cover the floor as well as transform the 100’s of hand-crafted pots into unique textures and shapes. This installation shows the beauty of destruction and allows nature to take its course to create art, pushing the viewer to think about what becomes of items after we no longer have use for them, like what will happen with these clay forms once the exhibition is over.
Bibliography
Rodgers, B., 2014. Exhibition | Karin Lehmann: “Sediment Sampling” | CFile – Contemporary Ceramic Art + Design. [online] CFile – Contemporary Ceramic Art + Design. Available at: <https://cfileonline.org/exhibition-karin-lehmann-sediment-sampling/#:~:text=Here%E2%80%99s%20an%20exhibition%20for%20the%20existentially%20troubled:%20Swiss,fall%20apart%20into%20a%20puddle%20of%20formless%20clay.> [Accessed 2 March 2021]. – (Rodgers, 2014)
February 24
2021
Gender
Venus Of Willendorf
Venus of Willendorf is an 11.1cm tall limestone sculpture that was found in Austria in 1908 and is currently exhibited in the Naturhistorisches Museum in Vienna. It is thought to be one of the oldest surviving works of art, estimated to have been made between 24,000-22,000 B.C.E. There has been a lot of speculation around the meaning of this statue, however, many believe that it is a symbol of The Devine Feminine (Torres, 2021), Mother Nature and fertility.
The sculpture depicts the female form with exaggerated features such as the breasts and hips, this could indicate the character’s ability to nurse a child, this along with the deliberate attention to the pubic region of the sculpture, where traces of a red ochre pigment can still be seen, suggest that the sculpture was based around fertility and the female ability to give birth to and mother a child.
Instead of giving the figure a face, the artist chose to carve 7 horizontal bands that wrap around the head in concentric circles. Although some believe these represent braided hair, others believe that the seven rings on its head symbolized the seven levels of consciousness or the seven chakras. The fact that the artists chose not to add specific facial features to the sculpture shows that the artwork is not a portrait of a particular person, but rather an artwork that pays homage to the female form.
Bibliography
Torres, E., 2021. What Is The Divine Feminine?. [online] The Good Trade. Available at: <https://www.thegoodtrade.com/features/divine-feminine> [Accessed 24 February 2021]. – (Torres, 2021)
ZYGMONT, Dr.B., 2015. Venus of Willendorf – Smarthistory. [online] Smarthistory.org. Available at: <https://smarthistory.org/venus-of-willendorf/> [Accessed 23 February 2021]. – (ZYGMONT, 2015)
February 17
2021
Effective Communication
Logo Design
Communication can take many forms. One of these forms is the visual representation of logos, which play an important role in conveying the purpose of a brand while grabbing the attention of potential customers. An example of this can be found in the logo of the Craft Village. This is a popular tourist attraction in Derry, known for its wide array of shops focusing on arts and crafts. It is home to many galleries, cafes, craft supply shops, custom wedding cake shops and more.
This logo depicts one of the four famous gable gateways of the Derry City Walls in two tone red and white – the colours of the Derry City coat of arms and flag. The use of such a recognisable city feature in this logo draws in both tourists and locals with a sense of connection and city pride. Emphasis is drawn to the word “craft” with the use of a darker shade of red, highlighting the main purpose of the area. This communicates information in a clear and concise manner, without requiring extra text that would otherwise distract from the logo.
Bibliography
CraftVillage, D., 2016. DerryCraftVillage – A Gem in the Heart of the City. [online] Derrycraftvillage.com. Available at: <https://www.derrycraftvillage.com/> [Accessed 17 February 2021]. (CraftVillage, 2016)
February 10
2021
Innovation/Provocation
3D printed Ceramics
3D printed ceramics is the most recent innovation within the ceramic field: first introduced to the industry in the 1990’s, it has constantly grown in both its development and popularity. This form of ceramics allows artists to use CAD (Computer Aided Design) software to produce ceramic pieces. This process can be used for many areas within the ceramic field as it can be used to mass produce products e.g., bowls and other crockery, create complex and small ceramic parts, e.g., ceramic based computer components as well as creating both small and large sculptures and art pieces that have been designed using a computer. 3D printing allows ceramic products to be easily mass produced as it gets rid of the need for people to create the products; Although this allows more products to be made in a quicker time frame and reduces the probability of error, there are many ceramicists that are against the use of this process within the ceramic art forms as it overlooks traditional ceramic art methods as well as extinguishing the unique human qualities found in hand built ceramic creation.
Bibliography
Carolo, L., 2020. Ceramic 3D Printer: All About Ceramic 3D Printing | All3DP. [online] All3DP. Available at: <https://all3dp.com/2/ceramic-3d-printer-ceramic-3d-printing/#:~:text=Ceramics%20have%20been%20a%20hot%20trend%20in%203D,ceramics%20is%20challenging%20and%20costly%20with%203D%20printing.> [Accessed 9 February 2021].
January 29
2021
Identity
Cultural Identity
Ireland has a very strong cultural identity from its drinking culture to religion and Irish craft. The above image is of a Belleek Angel of Protection. Belleek pottery is one of Ireland’s oldest and most traditional forms of ceramic craft; founded in 1857 by John Caldwell Bloomfield in county Fermanagh along the banks of the river erne. This form of ceramic craft is known for its simple yet detailed design as well as its perfection, in fact, since its founding there has been a rule of destruction, where if there is even a single flaw in a piece it will get destroyed. This rule is an uphold of tradition and you can even join in on this tradition by visiting the Belleek pottery studio where they allow visitors to smash the imperfect pieces of potter, something which would bring people together to do something fun in relation to Irish culture. The pottery itself is made with porcelain clay and clear/white glazes, with small and delicate details such as shamrocks, flowers, golden trims or prayers.
Bibliography
Belleek, 2021. Belleek China Angel of Protection Figurine | Crystal Classics. [online] Crystalclassics.com. Available at: <https://www.crystalclassics.com/belleek/figurines/B4249.htm> [Accessed 1 February 2021]. – (Belleek, 2021)