Earth & Fire

Tiffany Johnson, Kylie Johnson

Description

Earth and fire represent the two elements that produce a ceramic object. Without the other they are simply components; together they create both practical objects and pieces of art. Working as both primer and inspiration, Earth and Fire explores the techniques, practices and tools of over forty-five working ceramicists.
Creating everything from woodfired and fine porcelain wares, sculptured vases, everyday cups, bowls and plates, to jewellery and wall pieces, these artists work in a wide range of styles and mediums to create their ceramics. Although the methods vary, the overall sentiment is that the earth and fire that the artists use to make their objects are the ultimate masters. Just when they think they know one thing, the clay, glaze and heat will teach them another. There will always be more to learn. Working with clay is, quite simply, humbling.
Written and compiled by Kylie Johnson and Tiffany Johnson, Earth & Fire captures the diverse beauty and utility of ceramics, demonstrating that clay doesn't just get under your fingernails; it gets under your skin.

Sujets

• Loisirs
• Artisanat
• Pottery
• Ceramics
• Crafts
• Hobbies

Informations

• Publié par: Thames & Hudson Australia Pty Ltd
• Date de parution: 25 avril 2023
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781760764135
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 7 Mo

Extrait

EARTH
FIRE
& Kyl ie Johnson an d Tiff any John son Modern pott ers, t heir to ols, techniques and practi ces

Contents Fore word 6 Intro ducti on 11 Eart h and fire: A par tne rshi p 17 The lang uage of cl ay 21 Throw 29 Hand 81 Cast 121 Flame 14 1 Mark 181 Form 229 Index of ar ti sts 270 EARTH FIRE
6 Page 1: The work o f Nicole tte John son (p . 261 ). Page 2: Asuk a Mew t hrow ing a vessel u sing a pot tery wheel ( p. 35 ). Opposite: Sculp tur es fr om Vipoo Sri vila sa’ s 2022 se rie s Always Bette r T o gether .
Foreword I always lov e to see ho w art ists arran ge their stud ios; whet her they are mes sy or clean, fi lled with dar kness or li ght, organised or chaotic. Studios are a window into an art ist’ s practice and w hat inspires the m. Not only bein g a place for creating ar t but also a refl ection of th em and what they ch oose to sur round themselves wi th as they creat e. Loo k to the back grounds to discov er what art ists are collect ing themselve s – I love a gl impse into another art ist’ s studio life. You also might pick up some ti ps, discove ring how anoth er might hold a to ol a diff erent way , or arrange thei r process . The photos alon g with the approa chable yet vivid detail of their practi ce make s this boo k enticing on many levels. Reading Eart h & Fire , I discover ed so many ne w art ists that ex cite me. Th e range of cultur al backg rounds, infl uences, skill levels and ty pe of work is quite ex traordi nary . Yo u can tell t he art ists in this bo ok are highly skille d and enjoy what they do. My sugges tion to yo u would be to re ad one art ist at a time, let yourself reflect on their sto ry , their proces s, and you wil l not be ove rwh elmed. Use the icons and te chnical inf ormation to cross referenc e other art ists who use the same clay or fire to th e same temp erature, see how dif fer ences occur . We ca n all star t with the same clay body bu t end up with ve ry diff erent work – th at is the art istry of the individual. I’m sure you will , like I did, find the book to be approachable as a reference boo k and as a piece of inspiration for y our own creati ve life. Fo r me, reading it felt like visiting a fri end’ s studio for a cup of tea with the m. This book assures me that the futu re of ceramics is bright and se cure, with ma ny new talents tak ing on ceramics as their profes sion. There is a s trong sense of community th rough the pages, as well as the mes sage that shari ng knowledge is a good thing because i t inspires othe rs. There shoul d be more boo ks like this, where we can fe el reassur ed that havin g a life in ar t is valid and enduri ng. Vipoo Srivi lasa

9 Angus McDia rmid ’ s stu dio and ga lle ry (p . 14 3 ).

Introducti on Eart h and fire : two elem ents that ar e the mai n comp onents of any pi ece o f ceram ic . Mu d and heat. Pot ters hav e been tu rning eart h int o sto ne fo r over thirt y tho usand years . Cera mic s are one of the o ldes t hum an creat ions . In th is boo k, we intro duce you to some of the mo st ex citin g ceram ic art ists worki ng tod ay , and di scuss ho w the y work, what mat eri als the y use and their though ts on the me dium . Kyl ie Johnson
12 Previous: Poetr y vessel gr eenware by Ky lie John son. The book is divide d into tw o sections: Eart h and Fire. In Eart h, we explo re the process of building form s with the base m aterial of cla y, and in Fire we see how the alchemy of he at and fin ishes can cre ate such dive rse work. The sections indicate each art ist’ s prime approach, and their spe cialties ar e identifie d with six dif fer ent icons. Throw: wheel throwin g creates fo rms by using th e rotation of a whe el and guiding hands to construct a vessel. Hand: handbuilding ca n create a more org anic result as the ar ti sts use their han ds and fing ers as too ls. Cast: creating a ca st is a technique use d to form work that is not ea sily achieved on the wheel or by hand, and when multiples are required. Flame: bare flame an d ash produced by a woodfi red kiln can have a profound eff ect on the finished look of a piece . Glazes can also reac t in an electric o r gas kiln which may aff ect colour , transparency and text ure. Mark: while some ceramics h ave a quietnes s about them, others are def ined by mark making. The clay is a replace ment for a canv as and the ar ti sts use their uni que marks, whe ther they be bo ld, metall ic, symbolic, or satirica l. Form: similar to mark , ceramic ar ti sts have a free dom to ex plore clay and how it responds whe n creating form s or sculpture. Fire can mak e or l iterally break these forms. To create a boo k like t his is no small task, pa rt icularly when de ciding whose work to profile. T o present the sc ope of work b eing done by c ontempora ry ceramicists is alm ost impossi ble. Our aim is t o celebrate ceramics an d show how these ar ti sts create, why they w ork with clay , and where they pu rsue their cra ft . My sister , Tiff any , and I select ed ar ti sts from all ba ckgrou nds, ethnicities and locations around Austral ia. We i ncluded ar ti sts we have known for many years and whose practi ce we already know int imately , and others we hav e only admired from afar . We tal ked t o career potte rs whose work has spanned dec ades and who are still work ing as passionate ly as they did when they star te d. Then the re are potte rs and ceram ic art ists who hav e only bee n practising th e craft for a short time, but hav e chosen it as a lifelong purs uit and are so ded icated that the quality of their work belies their expe rience. We hav e chosen to share all typ es of make rs, from ex hibiting ar ti sts whose work is instal lation, non- functi onal and esote ric, to pe ople who make plates and cups for us to eat and d rink from. Thi s takes in producti on potte rs to handb uilding sculpt ors, those obsessed about woodf iring to those who are highl y illustrativ e and decora tive makers . We hope this breadth of cre atives show s the diversit y of ceram ics – at one point their wor k can be in a gallery and the next on a kitchen ta ble. Y ou can wear a pai r of their earr ings or arra nge a bunch of fl owers in the ir vase. I have bee n a ceramic ar ti st for thir ty years and have bee n working solel y in my own pract ice for the past twenty . For the past ten years (a nd counting) , I have also had the privile ge of owning and running pap er boat pres s, a ceramic g allery in Brisbane that shows ceramics from around Aust ralia and Japan. Being a make r myself and shari ng the art form in my gallery gives me an und erstanding of both sides of the me dium. During my c areer , I have seen many changes . Recentl y I have witn essed an uptick in the popul arity of ceramics. Over the pa st ten yea rs, the galler y’ s customer base has become m ore informed – they now see m ore value in a handma de piece. This sentiment is g rowing around the world, which is w hy a book li ke this i s so import ant for ke eping that con versa tion going. Ther e is a long way to go but I hope this book ope ns more hear ts to the length s makers go to, the time they pu t into their caree rs and the she er hard work it take s to turn a block of clay into a form .
INTRODUCTION 13 The underlying t hread we discov ered as we int erv iewed these art ists is that their inte nt is pure bec ause clay dem ands that of them. They have a love and respect o f the medium an d recognis e how clay is ancien t, from the ea rt h, it is turn ed into ston e, and is also a my stery . It is for many not j ust seduct ive but med itative. Clay , in the end, is th e greates t teacher . The ear th and fire th at the art ists use to make thei r objects are the ultimate masters. Just when you thi nk you know one th ing, the clay , glaze and hea t will teach you another . There will alway s be more to le arn. Work ing in clay is, quite simply , humbling. Sharing infor mation and pass ing down ideas and gl aze recipe s is a par t of the craft that I value more th an ever af te r writing th is book. They know they are not reinven ting the whee l; the y are simply try ing to mak e some thing beau tiful and meaningful , useful and v aluable, that people can fill the ir lives wit h: drink from, eat off, look at, be inspired or mov ed by . And all of them st rive to make goo d quality work that is consid ered, not was teful. T here is meaning and thought in thei r practice, a nd this is part of what t hey share w ith the wo rld. The joy of being able to mak e some thing that is lov ed by anothe r, and which some of their spirit and ene rgy goes into , is a senti ment we heard ov er and over . Many of the ar ti sts in this bo ok are also tea chers of the cra ft , and their stories an d opinions have given us many insightful moments. They have a consciou s consideration for th e environmen t and are cour te ous to our Ear th . They know tha t what they make will last thousa nds of years . Ceramics has a proud histor y a nd legacy spanning millenni a, and par t o f the unwrit ten oa th of a contempo rary maker is to keep this histor y a live and pass on this legacy . The ceramics industry seems to be in a renaissan ce, not seen for fort y years. This is to be cel ebrated, especiall y in this fast -p aced world. The quicke r and noisier the worl d gets, the more we ar e turning to the handmade, the human connection. No other physica l art istic medium connects yo u more closely to another person than a cup that you raise to your li ps and drink f rom, that has the ma ker’ s mark, energy an d love in it . Clay is a tea cher . An emotional roll ercoaster . It is aff ected by the elemen ts and weather in th e throes of making. It is mud and it is cold. And th en it is subjec ted to fire, and it is all abou t alchemy at th at point. Ceramics i s a job, a caree r, a hobby , an art . It is for those w ho understand nuance but are also p hysically and mentally to ugh. Y ou must be a magician an d a renegade, and