About 5 years ago I noticed a shift in the sculptural paradigm that has dominated contemporary art for the last 100 years. The last 100 years or so, contemporary art has been dominated by the ready-made Duchampian approach to sculpture where the artists would find something and then the artists would make that object into a work of art. Artist began making ceramic sculpture. Ceramics have always been associated with utility and design.
However, artists such as Peter Voulkos, John Mason and Ken Price were creating compelling ceramic works that broke that association. Ken Price's ceramic sculpture held a prominent presence in the Los Angeles art scene. Peter Voulkos bought a new approach to ceramics by bringing to it the sensibilities of Abstract Expressionism. Curators, museums and galleries began to take notice. Outside of Los Angeles, in the City of Pomona, the American Museum of Ceramic Art opened it's doors in 2004. Ken Price's retrospective at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 2012, John Mason's inclusion in the 2014 Whitney Biennial and Pacific Standard Time's focus on ceramic's LA history are examples of institutions embracing ceramics as a viable and compelling sculptural media.
Recently, 3 current shows in the month of December have highlighted a new generation of emerging artists who are engaging in ceramic art. Each artist is involved in a new dialogue that has brought about a change in the approach to sculpture. Sculpture is now returning to a hand made approach where the artist is creating objects from the raw material. The emerging artists featured in this post show that ceramics are no longer solely for utility. Instead it is a new paradigm that is emerging in the 21st Century, and the use of ceramics are leading that charge.
Highland Park Museum of Ceramic Art - Monte Vista Projects
Organized by Tyler Waxman
Inspired by shows such as the Los Angeles Museum of Ceramic Art at ACME and Dirt on Delight at ICA, the HPMCA aims to celebrate the current excitement and resurgence of artists working with ceramics. Clay, being one of the oldest known expressive and utilitarian materials, is no longer restricted by a narrow definition of craft or purpose. The exhibition is a survey of contemporary ceramics being made in Los Angeles today.
Ranging from veteran artists and professors, to mid-career professionals, through younger artists just completing or in their graduate studies, the HPMCA features a diverse and eclectic roster of artists.
Participating artists include:Peter Callas, Joe Goode, Phyllis Green, Julia Haft-Candell, Roger Herman, Anabel Juarez, Shoshi Kanokohata, Chris Miller, Brittany Mojo, Kristen Morgin, Thomas Muller, Jackie Rines, Brian Rochefort, Emily Sudd, Christian Tedeschi, and Tyler Waxman.
Matt Wedel's solo show is beautiful. Wedel's use of clay is masterful in how he straddles the line between the abstract biomorphic and the figurative. The resulting forms are an exuberant representation of an idyllic, mythological and abundant landscape that embodies the exhibition title, a direct reference to the bucolic scenes in naturalist painter Edward Hick’s The Peaceable Kingdom (1845-46). When one enters the gallery, the viewer is met with figurative work that recalls the work of early modernist such as Edgar Degas, Matisse and Giacometti. Wedel's figurative works wants to invoke an Edenic paradise, which the artist attempts to resurrect. The abstract works are flowery and plant-like figures that are strange and beautiful at the same time. The use of ceramic addresses a lost paradise and makes a statement of both humanity's present and possible future.
On view until December 30, 2015
L.A. Louver
45 North Venice Boulevard
Venice, California 90291
tel: 310.822.4955
Kathy Butterly "The Weight of Color" - Shoshana Wayne Gallery
Kathy Butterly's solo show at Shoshana Wayne Gallery approaches ceramics by creating objects that invoke color, design and an air of elegance. However, by taking the utilized objects, such as cups and tea tass and vases, and bending them into the unrecognizable. Butterly still maintains the essence of the objects. The artist wants the viewer to interpret the objects themselves and find meaning within each fold, bent and curvature of the ceramic object.
On view until December 24. 2015
Shoshana Wayne Gallery is located at Bergamot Station B1.
2525 Michigan Avenue,
Santa Monica CA, 90404
Hours: Tuesday - Friday, 10a - 5p ·
Saturday 11a - 5:30p · Closed Sunday + Monday ·
(310) 453-7535
