Coming soon to Liz Lidgett Gallery as part of the Ordinary Magic Show on March 27 are 5 new large pieces from my Drippy Ceramics series.
Inspired by traditional Chinese pottery and ceramics, these pieces celebrate the beauty and imperfection of objects made by human hands.
Centuries and centuries before artificial intelligence or even the Industrial Revolution, artists and artisans were throwing pottery on wheels and painting, enameling, and glazing these utilitarian objects to be true handmade works of art.
With the use of and reducing of impurities in porcelain, Chinese potters were able to use the bright white base to show off a multitude of colors of paint and glaze, creating stunning plates, vases, pots, jars, and more. As more of these pieces began to be imported to Europe, these cobalt blue and white styles inspired Delftware and companies like Spode and Staffordshire in England.
Wider ranges of color were used in Chinese ceramics, creating trends like blue and white, red and white, green and white, and famille rose (often made specifically as exports).
While many other cultures were creating and innovating pottery and decoration, such as Japan and Middle Eastern cultures, my research has been primarily focused on Chinese ceramics, as their influence and innovation on the decorative development of this art cannot be overlooked.
Art and objects made by humans are becoming more and more rare these days. It is a truly special thing to have a one-of-a-kind object, and a hallmark of something man-made is is knowing it was manmade, whether that's through something that been personalized, a small imperfection: perhaps a stray fingerprint in clay or a bug caught in paint from a plein air painting, or dust that has been caught, simply because the item was made in a studio by a human and not in a factory by a machine.
I am in awe of these ancient works of art made by human hands centuries ago, not even assisted by electric light, and these paintings of mine are an honor and celebration of humans and the beautiful things they create with their minds and hands.
These 5 new Drippy Ceramics pieces will be included in the Ordinary Magic Show at Liz Lidgett Gallery opening March 27. Join my mailing list for all the info!