UK based Terri Smart has a secluded pottery studio in Surrey overlooking a garden and fields, and she likes to interact with the natural world for inspiration. Her evolving sculpture trail winds through fruit trees and a wild flower meadow. ” I am influenced by natural elements such as wind and water and I like to emphasise the contrasts between nature and man. ” For over 20 years now she has remained fascinated by the feel of the clay, the delight in making a structured piece out of a formless lump, the adventure of experimentation with new techniques and the excitement of taking the finished article out of the kiln.
Although her studio is not near the sea, a regular feature of her current output has been boats traversing the waves and seas. These are hand built from clay using the slab building method and matt glazes to produce soft forms that are inspired by the rise and fall of waves. Most of her work is hand-built in textured stoneware clays, and decorated with coloured slips, oxides and glazes before firing to 1220C. ” Sometimes ideas come fully formed into my head, sometimes I develop a piece directly in clay. At the moment most of my work is handbuilt; I enjoy the slower, more thoughtful pace of the process as opposed to working on the wheel. “
Having been influenced by her artist father, Terri took up a career in architecture and interior design, working in the UK, Abu Dhabi, Paris, and Hong Kong. It was during her time in Hong Kong she took up the study of ceramics at ” The Fringe ” under the guidance of Liz Cameron. This was followed by the establishment of a studio in Singapore before returning to her current studio in East Clandon in 1994.
The use of the heart as an icon for love and devotion has been one of the most enduring through the ages. In the traditional art and folklore of Europe, the heart symbol was drawn in a stylized shape. This shape is typically coloured red, suggesting both blood and, in many cultures, passion and strong emotion. The heart, as one of the red suits in playing cards decks, have existed since the 15th century. The shape is particularly associated with romantic love; it is often seen on St. Valentine’s Day cards, chocolate boxes, and similar popular culture artifacts as a symbol of romantic love. In Eastern spitiuality, the heart is depicted as a lotus with 12 petals, vermilion coloured and known as the Anahata Chakra.
Vintage 1980s Haeger Ceramic heart vase
The heart symbol can be traced to before the last Ice Age. Cro-Magnon hunters in Europe used the symbol in pictograms, though it remains a mystery exactly what meaning it held for them. The symbol didn’t become universal until the Middle Ages. The heart icon became a major symbol for medieval heraldry, where it was used to signify sincerity and clarity. In art and chivalric literature, the heart became increasingly seen as synonymous to the Holy Grail.
The Egyptians believed that the heart was the center of life and morality. Egyptian mythology held the belief that after death, your heart is taken to the Hall of Maat to meet the the Goddess of Justice. There your heart is weighed against the Feather of Maat. If your heart is lighter than the Feather, you join Osiris in the afterlife. As the heart was once widely believed to be the seat of the human soul, the word heart continues to be used poetically to refer to the soul, and stylized depictions of hearts are used as prevalent symbols representing love.
Stevie Wonder was a prolific writer of love songs so I have included two here from his classic 1979 double album ” Journey through the secret life of plants “
Laminex, shag-pile, plastic pots, automobile tail fins and a lot of other fads from the 50’s and 60’s didn’t quite make it into the new century except with various niche collectors. However the ceramics from this era have stood the test of time and are still sought after and used.
Jean de Lespinasse – An impressive and unusual vase by this decorative potter who worked from his studio in Nice during the 1950’s.
The 50’s, 60’s and 70’s were groovy times, the designer and trend setters were out to make a statement. Colours were bold and bright, the Atomic-age had arrived. It was time to get futuristic and modern. Women even wore stylish Yves St Laurent dresses to go shopping. The mid-century cultural revolution was unstoppable and they were daring to dream. Some fantastic style innovations were born of this era. Music, fashion and consumer products all got a huge makeover from the more conservative 40‘s. Designers and manufactures had grasped the power of marketing to a competitive minded consumer and were producing an ongoing stream of modern innovative styles. And the ceramics of this time were no exception. French, German, Italian, English, Scandinavian and the USA were all strong contributors to modernist ceramic designs in this fascinating period.
50’s shopping
Cyclope Pottery Annecy, France. All are glazed with the typical blue Emaux des Glaciers, for which this pottery was renown.
( AnSeta )
I find the popularity of the lava glazes of this era intriguing. During this time the bomb was widely feared. A Doctor Strangelove scenerio loomed large in peoples minds.. Lava comes from explosions, so its widespread use could have possibly evolved from this subconcious fear. The same can be said for the volcanic glazes, which were reninforced with red, orange and black firey colours. Some of the mid-century pottery were often bulky and heavy with very thick glazes, sometimes multi layered up to four layers deep with different colours and textures.Their appearance was very grounding, which maybe represented a balance to the explorations of alternative consciouness that were actively pursued at the time. Abstract designs were popular, and pop art designs also crept in along with some psychedelic creations.
Retro decor
Elegant 1950’s dish by Jean Austruy. Glazed with a smooth lava like glaze with an abstract design. Length: 11.5ins
Anseta.com
Vintage yellow and black West German vase
Mid-century, vintage style ceramics are still loved by collectors and are becoming increasingly popular. The Atomic-era and Jet-age led to many abstract and innovative designs where streamlined contours were fused with angular geometric shapes.They encapsulate a time capsule of this amazing era and they reflect all it stood for.
Situated 30 miles from Moscow, in a forest in close proximity to the Trinity Monastery at Sergiev Posad, lies the Abramtsevo museum and artists colony, an intellectual and artistic center that played a significant role in the development of Russian culture in the 19th Century.
Abramtsevo first came to prominence in 1843, when the estate was bought by Sergei Aksakov, a writer famous for his semi-autobiographical tales of aristocratic Russian life and treatises on country pursuits. In 1870, the estate was bought by Savva Mamontov, heir to a railroad fortune and one of the most significant figures in the development of Russian national art. He established an artists’ colony at Abramtsevo, and urged his artistic friends to return to Moscow and pursue there interests at his expense. The group that gathered around him included Art Nouveau painter Mikhail Vrubel, Realist Ilya Repin, Impressionist Valentin Serov, landscape painter Vasili Polenov, and the Vasnetsov brothers, Viktor and Apollinarius.
Abramtsevo Bath House
The original intention of the art centre was to increase attention on the national arts, and the preservation and development of traditional folk art. The creativity of the Abramtsevo community reflects a broader cultural tendency that emphasizes both the aesthetic and spiritual realms. Abramtsevo continues to be used as an artists retreat and there is still a School of Applied Arts operating on the estate. Many of Abramtsevo’s activities centre not just on the crafts, visual arts, and architecture but also on drama, music, and set design. Below are a collection of young ceramic artists who have graduated from Abramtsevo and have a flair for creating wonderful figurines.
Eli KalugaInnocent : Eli worked for many years in a porcelain factory, and has since branched out to producing miniture figurines, usually of a lively and expressive nature.
El Innocent
El Innocent
El Innocent ceramic figurine
Four Dancing Ballerinas – El Innocent
El Innocent
Preferring floor to bed – El Innocent
El Innocent
Tea Gossip – El Innocent
Dancing Couple – El Innocent
The main house at Abramtsevo has been well preserved and has distinct French Empire style, designed during the Aksakov era, and a Neo-Russian interior from Mamontov’s time at the complex. It is believed that the main house at Abramtsevo was the basis of Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard.
‘The release of the unconscious’ – Elya Yalonetskaya
Marina Nelyubina :
Marina Nelyubina
Marina Nelyubina
Many various buildings have been built on the Abramtsevo estate by the resident artists. Perhaps the most famous of these is the Church of the Saviour Not Made by Human Hand, a miniscule church based on the medieval Novgorod designs. Inside the church are icons courtesy of Ilya Repin and Michael Nesterov, and the tiled stove and mosaic floor (in the shape of a blooming flower) are examples of Vrubel’s and Viktor Vasnetsov’s work respectively.
Anastasia Tarasova :
Anastasia Tarasova
Anastasia Tarasova
Abramtsevo students and veterans meet at 125 year anniversary
When I first glanced at the pottery of Samsung (Mitsunari ) Miyagi from Okinawa in Japan, I felt his works emanated a vibrancy and clarity which is usually indicative of a positive Chi. He comes from a family of potters and the other family members also produced pieces of a similar quality. Then I recollected how the Okinawan’s have the distinction of having the highest concentration of centenarians in the world. Around 97% of the residents of Okinawa live their life without suffering any physical ailments.
Having an interest in Eastern medicine and having considered the unique Okinawan longevity, I thought I might briefly mention some of the factors that caught my attention. Diet wise, they consume around seven different vegetables in a meal, and they favor sweet potatoes and bitter melons. They never eat till they feel full, but stop at about 75% capacity. Before they eat they toast with the words – ‘hara hachi bu’ -which basically means – ‘overeating : not a very good idea’ . This reflects their cultural belief in balance and moderation. They subsist on around 1200 calories per day ( average in the West is 3600 ) They only indulge in a minimal consumption of meat and favor fish and tofu for proteins, along with seaweeds, miso and rice.
The Okinawan’s believe they are teenagers up to the age of 50, which is probably the most distinctive quality in their mindset compared to the West. A powerful affirmation of youth in that belief ! They remain high spirited into their 100’s and they drink more tea then water, preferring high quality green tea and kohencha tea.
I’m tempted to purchase one of their pieces just to be reminded of the life affirming Chi they so successfully cultivate.
Samsung Miyagi :
Futamono – Samsung Miyagi
Square bottle
Ocotpus ceramic vessel – Samsung Miyagi
Porcelain Cup – arabesque pattern – Samsung Miyagi
Carved green vase
Samsung Miyagi vase
Vessel with finger impressions
Surface carved vase
Okinawa Kiln
Cup with arabesque design – Samsung Miyagi
Large Vase Floral Design
Long neck ceramic bottle – Samsung Miyagi
Hibiscus design teapot – Samsung Miyagi
Samsung Miyagi Ceramic bottle with fish motif
Octopus Tokkuri ( Sake pouring vessel )
Hibiscus Plate – Samsung Miyagi
Samsung Miyagi Okinawa pottery
Samsung Miyagi Okinawa pottery – Tall Vase 35cm
Samsung Miyagi Okinawa pot
Green glaze bottle – Samsung Miyagi
Engraved Vase 30cm height – Samsung Miyagi
Samsung Miyagi vessels Waiting to be fired
Crab motif vase – Samsung Miyagi
Teapot – Samsung Miyagi
Hand painted Bamboo design – Samsung Miyagi
Green Mitsunari Saki bottle by Samsung Miyagi
Japan fish design plate – Samsung Miyagi
Large square platter – Gajimaru trees
Large Vase – Samsung Miyagi
Samsung Miyagi ceramic shop, Okinawa Japan
Censer incense vessel – Samsung Miyagi
Samsung Miyagi green glaze ceramic bottle
Jade green bottle – Samsung Miyagi
Ceramic bottle – Satoshi Miyagi ( father of Samsung Miyagi )
Dobuzuke – Satoshi Miyagi
Large carved ceramic vessel – Satoshi Miyagi
Dachibin – Sumiko Miyagi ( mother of Samsung Miyagi )
Kinjo Toshio – ( Uncle of Samsung Miyagi )
Fish and shrimp carved design bottle – Jiro Kinjo ( grandfather of Samsung Miyagi )
Black on white or vice versa has been used effectively with Eastern calligraphy in art to draw more attention to the the form of the strokes. As the letters quite often consist of simple strokes, the combination is stark and appealing. Early Greek pottery also featured a strong emphasis on using black figures over a lighter background. giving a silhouette effect.
Monochromatic imagery commands a different perception, especially if you’re working without any shades in between. With black and white, the greater contrast makes a bolder statement, creates more depth and mystique, and makes the patterns and designs more dramatic. This can be compelling or conversely over-intensify the appearance. Black and white always produces textures that appear to have more depth and crisper lines by virtue of the wider dynamic range and greater contrast. The added resolution and detail that is possible adds a hyper-realism to the subject, this is evident in B & W photography.
Due to not having the option of using colour film in the beginning, both photography and movies progressed the genre of black and white to a captivating level. Since the late 1960’s, few mainstream films have been shot entirely in black-and-white. In photography it also is less favored then in earlier eras, even though colour digital files can be converted to black and white relatively easily. I think that black and white ceramic arts are being more explored now then in the past. Pottery has always had a range of several colours to work with and never really went through a stage where black and white was used exclusively. With decorative ceramics, it is harder to utilize the shades of grey as easily as in the photo medium, so monochromatic combinations are more common in purely black and white decorative styles.
Kathy Victorino – black and white geometric ceramic vessel
Black and white modernist bar stool
Black and white vase – Sally Hook
Molded earthenware Art Deco vase, decorated with spherical, geometrized black graphics.
Signed Fructuoso – 1930’s
Vintage Arabia Zebra, 1963 Finland Black and White Pottery – Domestikate
‘Populate or Perish’ – Pru Morrison
Square Tumbler with Buzzard – Adam Posnak
Handbuilt Tripod Ceramic Vessel with colored engobes and stains
Carol Eddy
Acoma Sgraffito Pottery Jar – R Garcia
Junko Kitamura – Black/white bowl
Maria Acosta
Maria is known for her flawless painting and unique figures on the bottom of her pots. She is a fixture in the Central barrio of Mata Ortiz with her many varied designs .
Dorothy Torivio – Black-on-White
Sally Hook — twin handled black and white vase
Black and White decanters – Scheier
Laura Carrlin Ceramics – London
Sew Zinski ceramic bowl
Savvas Pottery
Marianne Starck for Michael Andersen (Denmark) sgraffito vase. Circa 1960
Nkhensani Nkosi – ” Tea Time Moments “
Gele
Rowena Gilbert
Miry Clay Pottery
Hubert Ceramics cubist slab teapot
Chulucanas Pottery
Jan Richardson – ‘Spring’ –square vase
Black n white Raku vase – Terry Ha
Staffordshire Tea Pot
Black and white ceramic vessels with incised surface
Mermaid Bowl Dark blue sgrafitto on white – Tessa Morgan
Tessa’s signature work consists of a white clay body decorated in dark blue slip which is then dipped in a clear glaze.
Black and white surafce textured vessel
Dutch Vase – mid-century – Dries Holten
Julia Janeway magpie dish
Gordon Baldwin Bowl
( Andrew Muir )
Atomic 1950’s Sgraffito patterned dish by Lord David Queensberry for Crown Staffordshire China 1955
Acoma pottery canteen vessel with sgraffito decoration – R.Garcia
Seraphin Soudbiinine Stylized Fish In The Shape Of A Lyre
National Ceramics Museum Sevres – France
Mid Century Pitcher Carstens ” Hawaii “ – 1957
Japanese Vase – Kondô Yutaka
Paisley Throne in black and white
Keith Campbell
Jjanna Rebecca Lucario Acoma – black and white plate
Swirl Bowl – DiVanityDesigns
Update 10 june 2014
Wolfworks Studios abstract vase, black and white
Wolfworks Studios abstract vase
Yoshiro Ikeda contemporary Japanese pottery
Black and white face close up – Diane Huminic-pinterest
Black and White face paint – via piccsy
Jun Kaneko Dango, 2001 Hand built glazed ceramic sculpture
83 inch height x 30 x 16
Anita Reay magpie sculpture
Australia
Moody Girl ceramic bottle – Pauline Doyle
Using terra-cotta clay, I spray over the red clay with a white slip. After the slip drys a bit, I scratch back through the slip to see the clay and produce a design on the form. Here you see two faces. Later, I shade with underglaze or coloured slip. This ancient process is known as sgraffito. – Pauline Doyle
PS Porcelain cup
Stig Lindberg dish for Gustavsberg
Jun Kaneko, Black and White Dango,
Large black and white squiggle bowl by Mark Dally
Chris Theiss – ‘A Change Of Direction’ – a teapot of challenging perspectives.
The detailed sgraffito pottery of Tim Christensen :
Tim works exclusively with black and white drawings on porcelain pottery with the motive of conveying a message for the times. Christensen claims his work reflects his environment, and the rhythmic, meditative movements of throwing the clay, shaping the vessels, sanding and carving them, give him time to become even closer to the woods, the sea and the night sky.
Tim’s story : ” I have been making black and white pieces since 2003. I am getting better as I get deeper into this technique of sgraffito. My work is narrative, specifically illustrated, sometimes spiritual, often funny, and understandable. “
‘Emptyboat’
” I make pots about the times in which we live, and the challenges of living in a time in which we are divorced from the natural world around us. I make my work to be appreciated by those who know a lot or a little about porcelain or art, and make it with the hopes that some of these pots will survive longer than me or the culture in which we live, and will still be as pertinent and relevant then as now. ”
‘Hardwork’ – Tim Christensen
” I live in an off-grid cabin near the ocean in Roque Bluffs, Maine. My studio is the woods when the weather is fair, and in the cabin when it isn’t. ”
‘Squidcircus’ – Tim Christensen
” To me, more important than the immediate political or social issues of the day is the greater struggle of humans to find a way to fit back in to the natural pattern of life on earth. This is the defining struggle of our time, and I feel compelled to illustrate this on my pottery. ”
‘Octopusplate’
” I make my forms on a kick wheel nestled in a hollow in the woods, draw where I please, usually in front of a small camp fire, and fire the work in a gas fired kiln, to which I have attached a bread oven. This arrangement allows me to be in very close contact with all of the natural rhythms coursing around us all. The ocean is about 300 yards away, and I often pack up my tools and a few pieces and draw on a very small island named “Despair”. “When I’m drawing, I portray things I’m really interested in, I feel like they are a photograph of my thoughts. Almost like an illustration of my dreams. If I can pull my conscious mind out of the process, I find greater insights than I would ever be able to put into words.”
‘Herd’ – Tim Christensen
‘Lotus’ – Tim Christensen
“Across a channel is the island “Hope”. Seals, a family of eagles, my girlfriend Jenna, and our two dogs are constant companions whether I am working on our land or at the water. ”
‘I saw a kingfisher’ – Tim Christensen
Scratching through the surface on a piece of porcelain
Sgraffito work on the porch with Tim Christensen
‘Swordfish and Mackarel’ – Tim Christensen
11 inches height
‘Winter Clam Digger’– Tim Christensen
Height 8 inches
Tim Christensen
Tim uses the sgraffito method to draw pictures on his porcelain vessels. Each vessel is made with layers of contrasting clay colors and he carefully carves a drawing into the top layer, revealing some of the layer beneath.
