NEW CERAMICS. The European Ceramics Magazine

Transcription

1 NEW CERAMICS NEW CERAMICS The European Ceramics Magazine

2 Galerie Marianne Heller shows New works by the ceramic artist Claude Champy France Juli September bis bis August November Eröffnung : Sonntag, Juli September, Uhr Uhr 19 th April 14 th June 2015 photo by Michel Lunardelli Opening hours: Galerie Marianne Heller Tue - Fri & Uhr Friedrich-Ebert-Anlage 2 Sat Öffnungszeiten: Am Stadtgarten The Di-Fr: gallery 11 closed -13 Uhr from und to of Uhr May. D info@galerie-heller.de Heidelberg Sa: Uhr, und nach Vereinbarung Tel: + 49 (0) zus.: So, So, Uhr Tel.: + 49 (0) info@galerie-heller.de Friedrich-Ebert-Anlage 2 Am Stadtgarten D Heidelberg 64 NEUE KERAMIK MÄRZ / APRIL 2010

3 CONTENTS 04 NEWS International PROFILES 08 Carolyn Genders UK 12 Bettina Kocak Germany 16 Gökhan Taskin Turkey / Netherlands 20 Péter Ujházi Hungary 24 Bernd Fischer Germany 28 Elke Eder-Eich Germany 32 Roswitha Geyer Austria 36 Joko Miki Japan 40 Bibi Krieg Belgium NEW CERAMICS NEW CERAMICS / 2015 FORUM / EDUCATION 44 Bioceramology: Ceramics is Bio Gustav Weiß Art Criticism EXHIBITIONS / EVENTS 46 Karen Müller at the Porzellanikon Selb Germany 48 ICSIS Innsbruck Österreich 50 International Ceramics Conclave 2014 Dehli India 53 Pink Porcelain Düsseldorf Germany 54 Jade Treasure Lonquang China 57 BOOKS New books KNOWLEDGE & SKILL 58 Red flames over Thurnau kiln building Developing skills IN STUDIO 62 Palma Babos Evelyne Schoenmann Interview / Developing skills 16 DATES / Exhibitions / Galleries / Museums 64 Exhibition diary International 68 COURSES / SEMINARS / MARKETS International 74 ADVERTISEMENTS International 76 PREVIEW / IMPRINT Information COVER: Wall Panel BY Carolyn Genders page 8

4 NCECA-CONFERENCE 2015 PROVIDENCE - USA

5 3/2015 EDITOR'S NOTES Dear Readers of NEW CERAMICS The year s exhibitions and events almost always begin for me with the NCECA convention in the USA. This year, it took place in Providence, about three hours drive or train journey north of New York. And in those parts it was just as cold as the year before in Milwaukee, north of Chicago! This time too there were mountains of snow in the streets, and driving cross country shows the lakes are still frozen and the landscape is covered in snow... But I willingly put up with that, even if I fondly recall conferences in California or Florida. You do not go for the weather but the overwhelming abundance of impressions, exhibitions, talks, social contacts, meeting friends from all over the world and exchanging views with other members of various international organisations is the magnetic impulse that produces the attraction. This time, for example, a meeting of a small group of the members present from the International Ceramic Magazine Editors Association (ICMEA) prepared the 2016 conference in China and discussed the future subject of the Janet Mansfield Award as well as the Emerging Artist competition taking place at the same time in Fuping. Further details will be announced later this year by Elaine O Henry, current president of ICMEA and editor of Art and Perception. The opposite page serves as a kind of trailer to show you some snapshots from the NCECA conference. The report is to follow in the next issue. This time it will be presented by Evelyne Schoenmann, who is also responsible for the "In Studio series". This was her first visit to the conference, so we can expect a completely unbiased and fresh impression of the event. What I noticed especially was that a number of the major international suppliers of raw materials had set up stands resembling those of the galleries, where they presented artists work. This is a kind of sponsorship of the arts that is worth copying. In relation to this, I can inform you that Karima Duchamp (cf. issue 2/15), who won the 2014 NEW CERAMICS prize at the Oldenburg International Ceramics Fair, has decided to take up an artist s residency at the ClayStudio in Philadelphia and will be spending the month of May there. An apartment, a work space at the ClayStudio and the use of materials will be made available to her free of charge. She chose Philadelphia; she had the opportunity to work in Denmark, Italy, China or the USA. Karima is under no obligation, but perhaps she will send us a brief account of what she has experienced in Philadelphia in one of the coming issues. If we take a look at the activities in the coming month, in the next few days (I am writing in the middle of April) the Deidesheim Art Fair, Intonation, will be taking place, parallel to Ceramic Art in London, followed by COLLECT, also in London in May, at the same time as the market in Frechen, closely followed by the market in Diessen, followed by the market in Höhr-Grenzhausen and in July the festival in Aberystwyth, Wales; also in July, we have the triennial conference of Australian ceramists in Canberra and one month later the Ceramics Fair in Oldenburg. In August, the Xth International Keramiksymposium in Römhild follows, and later, in October, the Grassimesse in Leipzig. In the coming months, competitions take place in Slovenia and Romania, and in September we will probably be organising a seminar with Peter Callas in Höhr-Grenzhausen. He is one of the best-known woodfire ceramists in the USA and a former colleague of Peter Voulkos. Here too, further details are to follow. I am sure I will not have been able to mention all the important upcoming events, and I apologise for this. Of course, we will not be able to attend all of the events either. But as in every year, the staff of NEW CERAMICS will try to give you a comprehensive and interesting overview of ceramic events in Europe and worldwide, and where we cannot attend in person, we will try to obtain authentic coverage. With this in mind, we can together look forward to interesting and eventful months to come. We will be back with more news in July. Until then, very best wishes. Yours, Bernd Pfannkuche With Angela Klärner-Clark at the NEW CERAMICS stand during the NCECA conference in Providence MAY / JUNE 2015 NEW CERAMICS 3

6 DIE NEWS INFO / EXHIBITIONS / PRIZES Auguste Papendieck Prize - The 2014 Auguste Papendiek Prize awarded by the bank, the Stadtsparkasse Bremen, has been presented to ceramist Lutz Könecke. The prize was awarded on 24 April 2015 by Joachim Döpp, board member of the Sparkasse. The prize includes the publication of a catalogue and a solo exhibition at the Focke Museum, which was opened with the award ceremony. The show was completed with further entries nominated for the Papendieck Prize. Könecke, who was born in 1973, first studied at the School of Design in Göttingen and from at the Kunsthochschule Kassel. He has had his own studio in Großenrode since The photo schows award-winning work by Lutz Könecke. BURG 100: Professors at Burg Giebichenstein exhibit their work For its 100th anniversary, Burg Giebichenstein University of Art and Design is presenting a major exhibition of works and results from the teaching of the current professors from 16 April 7 June. At the Volkspark in Halle, the professors will be showing an exhibition of what they have observed, moved, trained and challenged, including a discursive platform with an extensive supporting programme. Exhibition and discursive platform - until 7 June Volkspark Halle, Schleifweg 8a, Halle (Saale), Germany. New Centre of Ceramic Art (CoCA) at York Art Gallery - New centre dedicated to exhibiting, researching and promoting ceramic art. Opens August 1 st A new national centre dedicated to exhibiting, researching and promoting ceramic art will open in York on 1 August The Centre of Ceramic Art (CoCA) will showcase works from York Museums Trust s world class collections of ceramics, including more than 5,000 examples of British Studio Ceramics, the largest collection in the world. New works and installations by contemporary artists will be commissioned as well as research by leading academics. CoCA will also act as a ceramics hub - promoting a wider programme of exhibitions, lectures, learning opportunities and public events. An online presence will showcase the collections to a global audience and also promote other key ceramic events and exhibitions around the country. The centre is being created as part of the 8 million development of York Art Gallery. Dr Janet Barnes, CBE, chief executive of York Museums Trust, said: York has one of the finest collections of ceramics in the country, including works by some of the most respected and admired studio ceramicists. CoCA will become a home for these collections, showcasing these fantastic works of art through a changing programme of exhibitions and events. For more information, go to an enormous appetite for breakfast and life The culture of breakfast - At the Grassi Museum of Applied art in Leipzig, in the exhibition " an enormous appetite for breakfast and life", a range of aspects of the culture of breakfast in various eras and countries have been taking centre stage since 6 March. Baroque porcelain meets the functional no-nonsense coffee machine in Jena glass, the bread basket in pastel-coloured French Faïence from the 18th century meets a contemporary toaster and colourful painted china tableware from the 1920s. With changes in our eating habits, the shape of the things we use when eating also changes. An exhibition of over 300 pieces from the museum s holdings documents the evolution in early morning eating habits chronologically. In addition, 12 glass display cases present the subject matter arranged according to various themes. Typical breakfast habits like continental breakfast, the Champagne breakfast, breakfast outdoors and the packed breakfast are examined more closely. The exhibition runs until 31 May GRASSI Museum of Applied Arts, Johannisplatz 5 11, D Leipzig, Germany Picnic hamper with standardised cutlery, sandwich box, thermos flask, crockery and butter dish made by the East German company, VEB Campingartikel Thum, 1960s in imitation leather, aluminium, meladur, rubber, metal. Photo: Christoph Sandig, Leipzig In the Passage of Time - Au fil du temps - Cathy Fleckstein - This year s summer exhibition at Kellinghusen Museum is dedicated to Cathy Fleckstein, who has been a resident of Schleswig-Holstein since 1975 and is now among the most distinctive ceramists in Germany. The exhibition gives a chronological overview of her work: her early pieces from around 1980 are on show, casts taken from walls, mural pieces and sculptural work up to the present. A catalogue is being published from the series Ceramics Borealis, on contemporary ceramics from North Germany, published by the foundation, the Sparkassenstiftung Schleswig Holstein. The exhibition opens on Sunday, 21 June 2015 at 3 p.m. and runs until 6 September Museum Kellinghusen, Hauptstrasse 18, Kellinghusen, Germany. Tel.: +49 (0) museum@buergerhaus-kellinghusen.de Ceramic image "View of the Other End", 2014, h 64 cm photo - Bernd Perlbach Celadon Project In 2015, a new exhibition and exchange programme is to begin. Through China at Work, close contacts have developed with artists and craftspeople in Chinese ceramics centres such as Jingdezhen, Yixing, Fuping/Chenlu and Longquan. Chinese specialists are now seeking closer contact to Germany and Europe and frequently interested in travel, exhibitions, working visits and encounters. As a kick-off event, the exhibition Jade Treasure. Chinese Celadon from Longquan is on show in Berlin Mitte from 6 16 June Master craftsmen and their pupils will be showing world class traditional and modern celadon. Venue: Forum Factory, Besselstraße 13-14, Berlin, Germany. Opening ceremony: 6 June 2015 from 4 p.m. Artist Mao Weijie and many others will be present, an illustrated talk by Anette Mertens gives an introduction to celadon production in Longquan. Cf. article on p. 54 ff. 4 NEW CERAMICS MAY / JUNE 2015

7 EXHIBITIONS / EVENTS / PRIZES DIE NEWS RAKUVARIA LIVE - a festival with a difference, Whitsun 2015 This festival, in Sevenum, the Netherlands (approx 50 km west of Duisburg in Germany) is different because dozens of ceramists will not only be showing their work but will also be working with no secrets, with raku in all its many variations. Over 20 kilns will be fired simultaneously. Visitors in campervans, caravans and tents are welcome to camp next to the festival site. Artists will also be showing their creative skills in stone, glass, iron, tin and bone. The festival takes place in and around the Rakuvaria building, Ulfterhoek 25 in Sevenum on Sunday, 24 May and Monday, 25 May from 11 a.m. 5 p.m. The legendary WOODSTOCK EVENING is on Sunday evening, 24 May 2015 from 9 p.m. accompanied by live music, fires and kiln firings. INTERNATIONAL CERAMICS FESTIVAL Fri 3 Sun 5 July Aberystwyth, UK. New look for festival website - Europe s leading ceramics event has a bright new website to reflect the prestige of the event, held in Wales every two years. Potential visitors or just those with an interest in ceramics can view the site at It is regularly updated with the latest activities and events scheduled for the weekend as they are confirmed. 59th Faenza Prize sculptures by artists from all over the world will be exhibited at MIC Faenza from 27 June 2015 to 24 January A record Faenza Prize. This year the 59th International Competition of Contemporary Ceramic Art has collected more than 600 entries. The Competition started in 1938, has successfully became international since the seventies and it has always been a medium to survey contemporary ceramic sculpture outcomes. The Jury composed of Claudia Casali, Director of MIC Faenza, Monika Gass, Director of Keramikmuseum, Westerwald, Höhr-Grenzhausen, Germany; Grant Gibson, Director of the Crafts Council Magazine, Great Britain and Daniela Lotta, Art and Design historian, teacher ISIA in Faenza, examined a great number of works, about 3 pieces per artist for a total of 1,800 works. They selected 56 works for the Under 40 category and 72 works for the Over 40 category. Waiting for the next meeting of the Jury (the first days of May) to award the different prizes. Das Werden der Dinge Hans Fischer, Johannes Nagel, Wang Qi With their latest exhibition entitled Das Werden der Dinge ("The Cominginto-Being of Things") gallerist Angelika Metzger presents three ceramists for whom not simply the finished object or vessel is the goal but programmatically, the process of its making is a major part of their work and as such remains visible in the finished article. Not an anticipatory, planning, conceptualising, or in brief: technical rationale guides their actions but a curious poetic of the material which, without a guarantee of success, feels its way forward in the unknown. The artists use the freedom with which they approach this objective each in their own, unmistakable way. The photo shows work by Wang Qi. Exhibition until 10 May Galerie Angelika Metzger, Hauptstraße 18, Johannesberg, Germany. Tel. +49 (0)6021/ Korean artist wins State Prize At the Internationale Handwerksmesse in Munich in March this year, the Bavarian State Prize for skilled trades and the emerging talent awards were presented. All areas of the crafts were eligible for both prizes. This year, ten State Prizes were awarded in the skilled trades and eight prizes for emerging talents in the fields of skilled trades and technology. Although not many ceramists exhibited at any of the specialist exhibitions or the solo exhibitions, there were nevertheless two prizewinners from the field: among the emerging talents (up to 35 years of age), Sarah Pschorn from Halle an der Saale and State Prize winner Bokyung Kim from South Korea. Her thrown porcelain vessels place emphasis on the beauty and attraction of this material. The young artist (b. 1986) seeks to achieve perfection in all phases of production in order to do justice to the material. -so Ceramics Triennale Apeldoorn / NL Die Ceramics Triennale 2015 at the CODA Museum in Apeldoorn/ NL shows work by more than 50 artists from the Netherlands, Belgium, France, Austria and Germany. Various aspects of ceramics can be discovered in the exhibition and individual styles of the artists. City Councillor Detlev Cziesso and CODA Director Dr Carin Reinders opened the 2015 Ceramics Triennale on 29 March and awarded three prizes: the 1st prize went to Paula Bastiaansen/ NL (photo below), whose excellent, precise and extremely fragile work have made her an internationally renowned artist. For her poetical, moving, doll-like piece, Momo & Ferdinand, Mirjam Feldhuis/NL received the 2nd prize. Azeline Tolmbaye/F was awarded the prize for emerging artists. The movements of her "Hare" have been wonderfully captured in clay, revealing directness, vitality and spontaneity. The judges were: Frank Steyaert (B), Monika Gass (D) and CODA Director Carin Reinders. Runs until 25 May CODA MUSEUM / 7311 CL Apeldoorn / Vosselmanstraat 299, Netherlands MAY / JUNE 2015 NEW CERAMICS 5

8 DIE NEWS INFO / EXHIBITIONS / PRIZES Ceramist Portrait - Contemporary Ceramic Art from the USA A fascinating annual event for the world of German ceramics is the "Ceramist Portrait" at the Oldenburg International Ceramics Fair. The event, with workshops, presentations and talks by outstanding representatives of the international world of ceramics little known in Germany is dedicated to contemporary ceramic art from the USA. And the choice of the Werkschule Werkstatt für Kunst und Kulturarbeit for the Ceramist Portrait this year once more with a Master Class promises something special again: with Professor Marc Leuthold and sculptor and experimental ceramist Ian Meares from St Petersburg, Florida, two renowned artists represent contemporary positions in the world of American ceramics, which differs greatly from the German scene. Admission to the Ceramist Portrait and the master class is limited. Bookings and further details: 0049 (0) and Form follows failure - An exhibition by the ceramics course at BURG Giebichenstein. Curated by Prof Martin Neubert. Cooperation between the BURG and ARTd Driburg arts society. At the invitation of ARTd Driburg, the ceramics course from the BURG will be exhibiting at two venues in Bad Driburg the historic town hall and in the castle, Burg Dringenberg. Form Follows Failure describes the necessary level of experimentation with the material that defines working sculpturally as well as the opportunity to make unexpected discoveries during the work process. Both define the profile of the ceramics class at the BURG. Exhibition until 31 May Venues: Historisches Rathaus Dringenberg, Burgstraße 30, Bad Driburg. Burg Dringenberg, Burgstraße 33, Bad Driburg, Germany. Frank Louis receives the 2015 Keramikpreis from the state of Salzburg The two appreciation awards go to Andreas Vormayr and Daniel Wetzelberger. State Culture Officer Dr Heinrich Schellhorn presented the three prizes on 24 March at the Galerie im Traklhaus. The nationwide Salzburger Keramikpreis is the only award in this field and thus has even greater significance. The prize of the state of Salzburg has been in existence since The prize went then to a young women from Salzburg selected by the judges and was known as the Arno Lehmann Prize. From 1993, the prize has been awarded on a national level. It was presented this year for the tenth time. In 2015, eighteen artists were selected from among 50 entries by the judges (Dr. Barbara Rollmann-Boretty, Munich, Elmar Trenkwalder, Innsbruck and Kurt Spurey, Vienna) for the exhibition at the Landesgalerie im Traklhaus. Save the Date: Exhibition and competition at the Keramikmuseum Westerwald for Museumsfest The theme for 2015: Silent Strength and Power Drink: CERAMICS AND TEA - the classic TEABOWL and creative variations on it. The exhibition opens on 6 June 2015 at 6.30 p.m. Four or five prizes will be awarded, aech worth EUR 500, and one prize of materials. Classic and serially produced items are requested, imaginative ceramics as well as experimental one-off pieces and painted decor Applications by 24 May 2015 at the latest to: kontakt@keramikmuseum.de. Up to three pieces per applicant are permissible. There are no further regulations to make it possible for any interested ceramist and participants at the market to join in. Students, schools, colleges, groups, and school classes are welcome. A panel of expert judges will select the prizewinners; the awards will be presented on the Saturday evening of the market weekend during the opening ceremony of the exhibition. Application forms are available for download on Keramikmuseum Westerwald, Lindenstrasse 13 / Höhr-Grenzhausen ARTS DU FEU - On 17 and 18 October 2015 fire arts will be the main theme in the mediaeval town of Gruyère for the ceramics, glass and metal market. The first edition of this event was highly successful in 2013 with 60 exhibitors and more than 6,000 visitors over the two days. Now the application period for the 2nd edition is open. The Arts du feu association plans to bring together around 100 exhibitors from Switzerland and the rest of Europe. The market will take place indoors on the premises of the restaurant and outdoors in the street. Artists must have produced their works themselves. Further details and application forms are available from Contact Anne Grandgirard, secretary to the Arts du feu association, Responsible tourism offices 1663 Gruyères Tél (0) tourisme@gruyeres.ch Gudrun Petzold at the GG-Galerie für Gegenwartskunst For Gudrun Petzold, her highly intimate relationship to nature is a constant source of inspiration and the most important object of intense artistic study. Processes of constant change also define her latest ceramic sculptures, which she is showing at Elfi Bohrer s contemporary art gallery, GG-Galerie für Gegenwartskunst in Bonstetten, Switzerland, from May 2 to June 7, These fragile structures in warm, earthy colours, unglazed or partially covered with a stone matt white glaze that masks some of the colour of the clay are reminiscent of abandoned rudimentary cocoons or pieces of tree bark. With them, she takes one of her main themes, harbouring and enclosing, to a new associative level. They are joined by rock-like sculptures and foldings in marbled and layered clay whose surfaces also provoke associations with geological formations. Enhanced by carefully balanced abstraction, they are also perceived as powerful symbols of ongoing change. Hans-Peter Jakobson 6 NEW CERAMICS MAY / JUNE 2015

9 COMPETITIONS / EVENTS DIE NEWS Waldkirch municipal arts prize presented to ceramist Markus Klausmann The prize worth EUR 1500 is presented to creative artists from the city who have distinguished themselves with their outstanding achievements in their specific field. Markus Klausmann has worked in Waldkirch for more than thirty years and with his work he has enriched the city s cultural life. Disciplines such as sculpture are allowed to enhance his ceramics, and he uses the technique of saggar firing and shino glazes to create in distinctive vessels. What allows Markus Clausmann to consciously control random processes is his craftsmanship and experience that he has acquired over the decades. In connection with the award, an exhibition is on show until 6 May at the Elztalmuseum Waldkirch, Kirchplatz 14, D Waldkirch, Germany. Telephone +49 (0)7681 / Susan Collett The Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada has purchased the clay sculpture titled AXIS l by Canadian Artist Susan Collett, (Toronto) from Galerie Elena Lee, Montreal. The sculpture has been placed in the permanent collection of Canada House, Trafalgar Square, London, The High Commission of Canada. Collett was invited to attend the official opening of Canada House in the presence of the Queen and Prince Phillip. The red carpet welcome was decorated with Royal Canadian Mounted Police, The High Commissioner for Canada Gordon Campbell and former Foreign Affairs minister John Baird. Canada House features the best of art and design across Canada. Several of the selected artists from across Canada were in attendance. Being a part of this collection represents an honour for Susan Collett and her growing international portfolio. Susann Collett 261 Niagara St., Toronto M6J 2L7 susan@susancollett.ca I 20th anniversary of Gallery Carla Koch - Special anniversary exhibition presents new work by 22 artists. From Saturday 18 April to Sunday 3 May the Amsterdam gallery Carla Koch celebrates its twentieth anniversary. With an anniversary exhibition of small objects in a limited edition for up to 750, especially designed by 22 artists with whom the gallery has had a fruitful collaboration for many years. Participating artists: Paula Bastiaansen, Wouter Dam, Eduard Hermans, Kayoko Hoshino, Anne Marie Laureys, Wietske van Leeuwen, Johan van Loon, Anita Manshanden, Bodil Manz, Kaat Pauwels, Anima Roos, Alberdien Rullmann, Esther Stasse, Rik Vandewege, Ingrid Arts, Hanneke Fokkelman, Mieke Groot, Susan Hammond, Isgard Moje-Wohlgemuth, Barbara Nanning, Carine Neutjens, Koen Vanderstukken. Gallery Carla Koch, Detroit Building, Veemkade 500 (6th floor). NL-1019 HE Amsterdam ckoch@xs4all.nl (0) und darüber hinaus ("Beyond that ") Ceramics by Ute Naue-Müller in Dresden On 21 May of this year, an exhibition opens at Galerie Sybille Nütt in the Baroque Quarter, Dresden, which allows a lot of space for personal associations with the exhibits: sophisticated pieces with delicate nuances of form and content. Truths and what goes beyond them. Besides ceramic figures and vessels by Ute Naue-Müller, prints and paintings by Chemnitz artist Michael Goller will be on display. And beyond that, the old Ute Großmann would like to introduce the "new" Ute Naue Müller with her work. Galerie Sybille Nütt, Obergraben 10, Dresden, Germany. sybille-nuett.de From 21 May 27 June 2015 Exotic ceramics from the 1950s - Figures, wall masks and vessels On a journey through time back to the 1950s, the visitor discovers several aspects at once: the history of ceramics, of industrial production conditions, of social and political circumstances, of aesthetic and cultural features of a time that defined the development of the Federal Republic of Germany. It is not only a playful attitude that emerges here, but also a yearning for faraway places, exoticism and eroticism and for finding a place in society. Art or kitsch? Cult or culture? No matter. The exhibition is a feast for the eyes and an intelligently made retrospective for ceramics aficionados. In the 1920s and 30s the Viennese producer Goldscheider was the world market leader for figural ceramics. After the war, entrepreneur Ernst Carstens purchased licences and moulds from Vienna for his own factory. In 1953, production of ceramic wall masks and figures began under the name Goldscheider West Germany. With these products, Carstens was successful not only in West Germany but also abroad. In 1960, production had to be discontinued for a variety of reasons. With its more than 200 exhibits, the exhibition shows the whole breadth of a successful phase of German ceramic history. Exhibition from 17 March 2 August 2015 at the Stadtmuseum Schloss Wolfsburg, Schloßstr. 8, Germany. Siegfried Stöbesand, M.A. MAY / JUNE 2015 NEW CERAMICS 7

10 PROFILE Ceramic Magic CAROLYN GENDERS explains the philosophy behind her work 8 NEW CERAMICS MAY / JUNE 2015

11 CAROLYN GENDERS PROFILE From the moment I touched clay - the clay from the ditch at the bottom of my parents garden when a child - I felt a connection; a feeling, a twitching of my fingers, an urge to squeeze and form the clay. I fell in love! Today, I still have the same feeling of anticipation as I untwist the tie of the clay bag and see the soft buttery white earthenware. I am a handbuilder, predominantly a coiler. I love the calm peacefulness of coiling, the inescapable rhythm; rolling the coils on the table; the slow rotation as I gently push the turntable round; the movement round the piece as my fingers attach the coils, and later, when the roughed out form is firmer, the methodical rhythm of the scrapers, smoothing and caressing the form, slowly revealing the honed shape as I scrape off excess clay. Surface however, is another matter. I have the heart of a painter, but my canvas is not flat and two dimensional, but three dimensional in form. Early work was concerned with pattern pattern and colour, how pattern can change the visual perception of shape as it weaves around my forms; simple classical coiled vessels. Now my preoccupations are form and surface together, how they interact; creating harmony or exaggerating the discord between form and surface, flattening the form, emphasising movement and rhythm with the painterly marks and brushstrokes. Pattern is left behind. Painting the clay surface I express my ideas, responding to the form using slip, vitreous or Terra Sigillata; one a drier mat surface; the other having the finish of a sea worn pebble. My ceramic pieces are an amalgam of all the studio years; of the drawings, paintings and prints that I have made and of my personal experience of looking, feeling and making. I am an intuitive maker who works best at the subconscious level and I prefer to leave interpretation to others. Stuart Dickens of the Bevere Gallery, Worcester, UK knows my work well as I have a long relationship with the Gallery. He writes, Carolyn s voice is that of the abstract expressionist, communicating at emotional as well as aesthetic levels. However, there is no sense of Well let s start here and see where it goes. This is the work of a ceramic artist who sees the finished vessel before the first brush stroke is applied. Paradoxically there is no predictable pattern development here, and like the jazz musician, it is the free improvisation within a given harmonic or in her case aesthetic framework which produces the moment of sheer joy. I find this statement insightful and a good place to start talking about recent work. I always have, and continue to prefer working within very narrow confines. Ceramics is a vast field with endless possibilities for making: What clay? What temperature? What glaze? Shiny or matt? Slip, raw, unglazed? It goes on and on. So early on, I decided that as a decorator, for whom colour is SO important, I would limit myself to the best firing temperature, to achieve bright, luscious coloured high fired earthenware. I also made the decision that I prefer my work to be on the matt side and when I discovered vitreous slip, I found the perfect medium; once fired, though happily taking multiple firings, good opposite Spring is here, 2014, 27 h x 36 w x Ø 35 cm right Abstraction Wall Panel, 2014, 30 x 30 cm MAY / JUNE 2015 NEW CERAMICS 9

12 PROFILE above below Winter Light, 2014, h 23 x w 35 x Ø 21 cm Hot Stuff, 2014, h 12 x w 21 x Ø 22 cm colour possibilities and no glaze layer, the liquid clay becoming part of the body but containing enough frit that glazing is unnecessary. Later, adding Terra Sigillata to my surface repertoire, I now have an alternative voice of expression. That is the practical level. I continue this approach aesthetically too. I am an abstractor and, as Stuart Dickens astutely remarked, an improviser. Landscape is my inspiration, primarily that of the Ashdown Forest (a medieval wooded landscape of East Sussex), where I live, or the nearby rolling hills of the South Downs. I work thematically, developing ideas from this nonabstract source. Not for me the diligent capturing of view, instead I let myself respond to what I see and the emotions evoked, as I plant myself in this landscape, becoming part of it, feeling as though I am caught up in a Henry Moore sculpture, yet a natural phenomenon. My sketches reflect this, noting shapes making marks to remind myself and annotating sketches for colour reference. Back in the studio, these notes lead into large loose explorations on paper, exploring scale, variation of brush marks and colour harmonies. These are the beginnings that lead directly into ceramics, paintings and vinyl print, each piece standing alone, yet part of thematic development, one leading onto the next. By the time I touch clay or stand in front of a canvas I am free, uncluttered by sketchbook or maquette. I am ready to let my subconscious take over, responding to the material, guided by my fingers, each touch or mark being the starting point for the next until I know it is time to stop. My references are rarely ceramic, though I am proud to be part of the ancient tradition of pottery and derive great pleasure from the thought that my practice is not dissimilar to that of the ancient potters; materials and techniques still very much the same, just used in a wholly contemporary way and, in my case, not making for practical purposes but purely for the aesthetic. I am influenced by the work the work of English painters of the mid twentieth century; William Scott, Patrick Heron and the colour of Howard Hodgkin; specifically, how they apply paint, choice of subject and their use of colour and brushwork. Also Ivon Hitchens, who lived and painted for much of his life in Sussex, his references of

13 CAROLYN GENDERS PROFILE Purples yellow dot, 2014, h 18 x w 24 x Ø 28 cm TECHNICAL STATEMENT All my work is made in white earthenware clay, grogged with molochite. Predominantly coil built but I also use press moulds, made by me, and some slabbing. Surfaces are either vitreous slips fired to 1140 or burnished Terra Sigillata coloured slips fired to All pieces are once fired in an electric kiln. landscape and sea similar to mine. Sculpturally, I admire Barbara Hepworth, not only for her work, but for her dedication to her art. Her determination to continue whatever, not always easy to do when balancing a vocation and family life. But influences, inspiration and references aside, the joy of the creative process comes full circle with the packing and firing of the kiln. As I pack, softly handling the pieces so as not to smudge the powdery dry slip surface and quietly shut the door, the anticipation grows and continues as I hear the click of the controller switching on and off as the temperature rises. After hours of cooling down, I can at last open the door. That feeling of excitement, as I crack open the kiln door and get a glimpse of the fired pieces, never diminishes. Slowly unloading the kiln, I contemplate the painterly forms with their true colours, now vibrant and glowing or tonally harmonious, enjoying too the tactile experience of touching the cold stone-like surface, a stark contrast to the soft fragility of the unfired forms. Then I start considering the results. What works? How to take ideas forward? Knowing that the process is not over, the voyage goes on, the cycle begins again and my love affair with the clay continues. Magic! Carolyn Genders set up her studio in 1980 after training at Brighton Polytechnic, Sussex achieving a BA Honours Degree in three dimensional Arts. After several years of working as a ceramist she returned to complete a Post Graduate Diploma at Goldsmiths College, London. She is well known for her handbuilt coiled forms with rich surface colour and decoration. Her work is exhibited throughout Britain and is widely represented in public and private collections. In 2011 she was awarded the Acquisitions Award at the 7th Internationale Keramik Biennale, Kapfenburg, Austria and received an Honourable Mention in the 9th International Ceramics Competition in Mino, Japan. In 2012 she also received an Honourable Mention in the Ceramics Multiplex. Varazdin, Croatia. She is a Fellow of the Craft Potters Association of Britain. She regularly gives workshops both in the UK and abroad and is a visiting lecturer in several art schools in the UK. CAROLYN GENDERS Oak Farm, Lewes Road, Danehill, East Sussex RH17 7HD, UK Tel. +44 (0) carolyngenders@gmail.com MAY / JUNE 2015 NEW CERAMICS 11

14 PROFILE Goldgrubenkeramik Bettina Kocak European ceramics before the wheel Fascinated by archaeology, other cultures and their prehistoric ceramics, I had long been seeking a way to express myself ceramically. In my search, I was always deeply impressed by the dignified, powerful aesthetic of ancient pieces. Although some ceramics were over 2,500 years old, they spoke to all the senses of my modern being. The aesthetic of those times was so timeless and connected me mentally with people and cultures, even if they had no longer existed for thousands of years. Was there a timeless sense of form, ornamentation and aesthetics? This idea would not let me go and so I began to search for ceramics from the early history of what is now Europe with a stamped decor, besides the familiar cultures from America and Africa. It took some time until I stumbled upon the ceramics of the early Iron Age in central Europe ( B.C.E). The fast wheel already existed south of the Alps, but it did not among the Celts of the Hallstatt culture. Richly decorated ceramics and metalwork were found as funerary gifts in large burial mounds, evidence that a rich ruling class had formed that could afford such things for life after death. An entire stylistic era was named after a town in Austria: the Hallstatt Period. Worldwide, independently of each other, the early peoples of America, Africa, China and Central Europe developed in their first ceramics similar forms of expression in form, ornamentation and colour. This was remarkable. On the other hand, we are all only humans with the same basic neuronal connections, and it is the same planet with the same raw materials in the soil. What is also interesting is that it was only the beginnings that were similar: triangle, rectangle, circle or impressed lines were the basis of the ornamental stamped designs. Red from ochre and black from soot or galaxite ( mangan-spinel") formed the colours that were painted on and fired. Shiny engobes and burnishes were also used as decoration or 12 NEW CERAMICS MAY / JUNE 2015

15 BETTINA KOCAK PROFILE to compress the body of the pot. The pots were initially hardened in a bonfire firing, later in a mud kiln with a perforated floor. Glazes were entirely absent. Interestingly, as soon as an early culture developed, the ceramics differed markedly. My love of ceramics began while I was graduating from school. I attended seminars and worked in a pottery during my holidays. I was deeply fascinated by being able to express myself in three dimensions. I would have liked to pursue proper ceramic training, but life with its various detours intervened, and years later, I found myself as a single mother living abroad. What should I do? At the age of thirty, I made a complete new start in Frankfurt am Main. A very tough time. I decided to divide my energies: I earned a living by training to work in healthcare, in order to be able to work there part time at a later stage. I then built up a field of activity for myself in ceramics. I always kept in mind setting up my own ceramic studio to be able to live from the sale of my own ceramics. I had discovered the ceramics I wanted opposite page - Plate painted in graphite and red, Ø 32 cm right - Plate with stamped decor filled with white slip; vitreous slip brushwork, Ø 30 cm below right - Stepped plate with four steps. Alb-Hegau pattern with painted vitreous slip. Stamped pattern filled with white slip, Ø 46 cm MAY / JUNE 2015 NEW CERAMICS 13

16 PROFILE to work with, but I knew nothing of the appropriate methods of handbuildng, shortening the clay or of firing techniques. I realised that before I could develop something of my own from this, I would first have to learn to understand it all. So I experimented and researched for several years in specialist libraries, with archaeologists for early and prehistory as well as in my studio in order first to make reproductions for museums and exhibitions. Then, later, I was free. I could liberate myself from purely imitating and could develop my own style. Today, I first allow a piece to have an effect on me I try to understand it as a whole, with all the historical background that I now know. I reproduce this impression in my ceramics. I am not concerned with reproducing individual lines or patterns precisely I try to capture the soul of the piece. This means I can make unique pieces with a personality, pieces that like their historical models, consciously retain irregularities and marks from the making process. The eye then always has something new to discover the piece comes alive. To recognise the timelessly beautiful and to give it life again through my work is wonderful. When the piece finally stands finished before me after hours or days of work and drying, a great sense of contentment comes over me. Not only because it is good to create a vessel or a stepped plate from a viscous mass I feel I am in a sense a conveyor of ancient European traditions. Once more taking up the ancient forms, patterns and techniques to transpose them through my ceramics into the future. It is a fine feeling to be a part of this process of transference. In my latest edition, which is white, the spirit of the past can be sensed. I combine wonderful ceramics wit comprehensive knowledge of early and prehistory with modern techniques. A very exciting combination to my mind. above - Conical-necked vessel with Alb-Hegau pattern, Ø 39 cm left - Double-handled vessel, bonfire firing, Stamped decor with white incrustations, Ø 25 cm opposite page - Plate with three curved steps. Stamped pattern filled with white slip. Black vitreous slip brushwork, Ø 45 cm 14 NEW CERAMICS MAY / JUNE 2015

17 PROFILE STATEMENT I handbuild every piece from slabs. I sometimes use plaster or clay moulds for the base, which gives me a symmetrical starting point. The rest is freely constructed from slabs 6 cm in width and 1 cm thick. This makes it possible to make pots with a tiny foot and a wide-arching body typical of Hallstatt ceramics. It takes me about two hours to make a vessel of 25 cm diameter. After this, it is loosely wrapped in plastic for at least one day and has to rest. When it is leatherhard, the pattern can by pressed into the clay, stamp by stamp. Lines are pressed in with a wooden modelling tool, they are not scored. With this method, for a large stepped plate measuring 46 cm in diameter, 5332 individual stamps are applied. Painstaking work, but with suitable breaks it can be done. When the pattern is finished, for the Alb-Hergau pattern red and black vitreous slips are applied. Then I again wrap everything in a thin plastic sheet, leaving a hole in the middle. The piece then dries slowly over a period of two to three weeks. This is especially important with the stepped plates to avoid cracking at the rim. I bisque fire to 900 C. After this, the stamped pattern is painted with white slip and the excess is wiped clean with a sponge. The white thus remains in the indentations. The final firing to 1070 C can now follow. If the piece is to be for daily use, i.e. impermeable, I fire the white slip to 900 C and then coat all the red and black areas with latex. A semi-matt glaze is then sprayed on and the latex is carefully removed with a pin; the piece is then fired to 1,070 C. Finished! Bettina Kocak was born in the Black Forest in 1964 and grew up in Frankfurt am Main. After studying art history and art teaching for three years I wanted to switch to studying ceramics, but life with its many detours intervened. Besides a part-time job, I mainly work as a freelance ceramist in my own studio. I have been working with ceramics for 30 years, and for 17 years I have focused on the Celtic Hallstatt Period. I regularly give pottery courses, make reconstructions of ceramics and their further development for museum display cases and exhibitions, I attend symposia and fairs for early and prehistory, supply museum gift shops, develop series of experiments with archaeologists (e.g. on bonfire firings), and since 2012, I have been selling my ceramics at juried pottery markets, taking part in competitions, continuing my personal development in seminars on various subjects. There is no end to it. The subject is so wide-ranging! Goldgrubenkeramik Bettina Kocak Goldgrubenstraße Frankfurt, Germany info@goldgrubenkeramik.de MAY / JUNE 2015 NEW CERAMICS 15

18 PROFILE M. GÖKHAN TASKIN A dominant pivot in the duel between order and chaos Johan van Loon 16 NEW CERAMICS MAY / JUNE 2015

19 M. GÖKHAN TASKIN PROFILE In contrast to their apparent simplicity, two elements of a picture form a complex composition. This individual pieces are made of composite forms that through their soft colour shades draw attention to their various parts and the way they are connected. Sometimes the structure seems open, sometimes closed. The ceramic sculptures of M. Gökhan Taskin refer to architecture and landscape. Ironically, he refers to landscape in general as lines scratched on natural surfaces. In his home town of Ankara, Turkey, he is fascinated by the alternating contrasts of urban chaos and order, and in particular by the abrupt transitions between the two extremes. This led him to becoming interested in the history of architecture, which is reflected in his work. This ranges from the reconstruction of a Corinthian capital, the analysis of a Gothic cathedral or Baroque facade to the deconstructivist structures of an urban landscape. While he was in Germany and later in the Netherlands too, he was able to compare the urban and landscape qualities of central Europe with those of Turkey. The expression of this comparison can clearly be seen in his works. He understands architecture as space. Besides the literal meaning of architecture as the art of building the art and theory of the planning and execution of building, like the textbooks say architecture also has a figural and constructive meaning for him. For instance, an anatomical structure, the structure of the skeleton, the muscles and sinews, but also typographical structures, the way in which a sign such as a letter is constructed. The origin of one of the works of M. Gökhan Taskin can be found in the strange hump of African cattle (kudu). This striking hump made him want to reconstruct the skeleton of the animal and then to partially recompile it. Also the weaving of Anatolian women, who express their feelings and moods in the endless repetitions and variations of patterns in their carpets may be the occasion for him to take up meaningful details and to express them in clay. Taskin starts out from two-dimensional images, making the transition to spatial, architecture-like proportions. And it may be no coincidence that in some pieces it is possible to find a square and compasses the ancient symbols of freemasonry, the worldwide humanist league of brotherliness. M. Gökhan Taskin s painting has always stood on an equal footing with his ceramics. Through his life in the Netherlands, his painting experienced a profound change. He not only experiments with the composition of the colours but also with the material. He uses colour not only in its chromatic function but also as material (coloured pastes), applied like a slip in his ceramic works. In this, the relationships to architecture and building can repeatedly be found, opposite Solidarity, , h 45 x b 30 x d 30 cm, Limoges porcelain, cobalt chloride solution and transparent glazes, 1280 C above Porcelain Object, 2001, h 20 x b 20 x d 20, Limoges porcelain with celadon glazes, 1280 C either based on urban or landscape architecture or on anatomical structures. M. Gökhan Taskin creates paintings, etchings and monotypes in which he plays a game with the composition, with overlapping and intersecting forms. Corner joints at ninety degrees, sometimes one thick line, then one thin one, or light and dark that fold up and fall into a suggestive infinite space. The colours are bright and direct, with very little restraint. The skin of the painting and the etching varies from thick and granular to thin and flowing, transparent, glossy, matt, sometimes burnished. And in some pieces, mythological beasts like lions and bulls appear. The work of M. Gökhan Taskin seems to arise from a duel between order and chaos. Since 1999, art critics have been writing thus about Mehmet Gökhan Taskin s ceramic, graphic or painterly works when he exhibits them in the Netherlands. At the end of the 1980s, he learned to transform material and design into art at the faculty of fine art in Ankara, Turkey, with the assistance of the theories of the Bauhaus. With a scholarship in the early 1990s from the German academic exchanges service, DAAD, he was again able to study in Germany at the Hochschule Niederrhein University of Applied Sciences in Krefeld. By accident or design at the DAAD, he found himself at the former architecture and textile design school in Krefeld, the former design centre of Bauhaus teachings, known to us all as the Zentrum. MAY / JUNE 2015 NEW CERAMICS 17

20 PROFILE If I compare Taskin s current work with that from his previous periods in Turkey and Germany, I can see that the duel had started earlier in his work. He studied under two professors at the same time, who both had different styles and who came from different cultures, and he tried to learn from both. I believe that at that time, a duel came about between round-fluffy and straight-solid lines. Was it a duel between dreaminess and reality? Who knows. In his own words: I am tired of bureaucratic and academic intrigues but I still keep on working If in the process of preliminary planning of creative work, with the assistance of analytical reflection, you have collected a great deal of experience and ideas and saturation point has thus been reached, after the resultant explosion of expressivity you can no longer speak of a random occurrence. Although he has distanced himself from his academic surroundings, I still see him going to work in the form of academic orientation. In his earlier work, he drew inspiration from the work of architects Zaha Hadid and Peter Eisenman and from painters like Frank Stella and Franz Kline. His methods have developed in terms of technique and content as mentioned by art critics above, but something new has also come about in his work: a delicate ironic twist has been added. This ironic twist may be found in the titles of his works as well as in the use of colours and forms. This where personal studies, his comparisons with experience in various cultural spheres but also reactions to global events are expressed. His work with titles like Discrimination, Solidarity, Nature morte avec Kopuz (Kopuz: stringed instrument), the Landscape of a Water City, Closed Openness and Icarus in Light etc. these pieces bear messages that go far beyond the visual and the formal. He designed a smiling silhouette of Vincent Van Gogh on a ceramic souvenir for the Van Gogh House in Zundert, the Netherlands. It is entitled Vincent Dish 2008 and was produced with the support of Villeroy & Boch. For four years, from , Mehmet top left Nature Morte avec Kopuz (Kopuz: Far Eastern guitar ), , h 45 x b 30 x d 20 cm Limoges porcelain with celadon cobalt and copper-carbonate glazes, 1280 C Scorpio, 2010, h 25 x b 45 x d 30 cm Limoges porcelain, copper carbonate glazes, 1280 C 18 NEW CERAMICS MAY / JUNE 2015