VESSELS, Various Artists

Gallery ‘74, 01 Apr 23 - 24 Jun 23

Vessels are an everyday feature of most of our lives, in both practical and decorative forms. Curator Michelle Keeling invited four ceramicists to showcase a collection of their handmade vessels. From Claudette Forbes’ urban illustrative take on the much used milk bottle, to Ikuko Iwamoto’s eccentric table top pieces inspired by the microscopic world; each ceramicist brings their own unique making style to this recognisable form.

Featured Artists:

Claudette Forbes is an emerging maker who creates ceramic art that is provocative, subversive, playful and humorous. Growing up in inner city Bristol, Claudette’s work explores the complex issues surrounding inner city areas and communities. Now based in Peckham, London, this illustrative collection of work is Claudette’s modern urban version of the blue and white willow pattern ceramics, popular in England at the end of the 18 th Century and mass produced in Stoke on Trent.

Rachel Foxwell is a process led maker, based in Frome, Somerset, creating decorative earthenware vessels inspired by her passion for the rhythm of colour and light. An intrinsic part of her practice, Rachel develops her own colour palette of ceramic slips, an essential variation of hues and tones to create a combination of rhythm and contrast in her work. Rachel meticulously applies these coloured slips to thin clay slabs before assembling them into her signature clean, simple cyclinders.

Ikuko Iwamoto is a London-based Japanese artist working with porcelain. Ikuko’s eccentric vessels draw inspriration from intricate and fragile looking structures and odd forms found in the microscopic world. Ikuko uses the slip casting technique to create a hollow body, before attaching spikes and piled-up dots to create tension, fragility and flow. Ikuko’s work is held in several public collections including the Victoria& Albert Museum and Manchester Art Gallery.

Jessica Thorn is a Bristol based ceramicist, working with porcelain. Jessica uses both slab building and wheel throwing techniques to create the individual components of her tactile vessels. The presence of the line in Jessica’s work is a visual representation of their construction - a trace of her craftsmanship embedded in each piece.

Curator: Michelle Keeling