Exhibition Themes
Introduction
The relationship between the drawings artists make and their ceramic practice is a largely hidden world with few drawings ever having been put on public display. The title of the exhibition, Firing Thoughts, is taken from a statement by Eric Mellon:
‘…drawing onto clay is firing thoughts into ceramic. The concern is not academic correctness in drawing but to create a work of visual decorative poetic surprise, and aesthetic satisfaction.’ (1991)
In this statement Mellon reveals an attitude to the value of drawing which is shared by many ceramic artists. It is a common perception to regard drawing as a prelude to making, what is often considered to be design in the formal sense. However in reality this practice is rarely so clear or distinct. There are some artists who use drawing in this manner to explore ideas, but the world of formal design rendering which was prevalent in industry from the eighteenth century has all but disappeared, superseded by the use of computer generated images.
John Chambers was employed to design for Pilkington’s pottery but it is clear from his archive that he loved to explore all sorts of ideas through drawing. His design work is more than a tool of communication for others to manufacture in clay and it shows his love of drawing in a variety of media. His designs for painted tiles reveal sensitivity to the qualities and characteristics of fired ceramic colour in the way he captures their soft fluidity.
This exhibition exposes material which has largely remained hidden from public view. It reveals a lot about how the artists think and work. Like any exhibition this one had its own constraints and simply presents a flavour of some approaches and attitudes to drawing. This display is just the tip of the iceberg of drawing and design activity. Hopefully in the future more artists may be encouraged to reveal their many and varied means of exploring the world which helps us to understand their work more fully.
Drawing which parallels or integrates itself within ceramic practice
With some artists the activity of drawing is inseparable from the activity of making. It is undertaken to express ideas rather than to formalise thoughts or designs.
Sharon Blakey’s drawing is also seemingly inseparable from her work in clay. She says
‘I don’t know where I start with drawing or where I stop because I draw in the clay and I draw after working clay, it’s a continuum…I think I draw as if I’m making and make as if I’m drawing’. (2006)
Susan Halls makes continuous and extensive use of drawing in her work. Sometimes her drawing is the place where ideas are interrogated to the point at which thoughts of clay work begin to emerge. When discussing the instigation of a series of sheep she said
‘…from drawing and looking at the sheep I started to see these clay images in my head. I could see how I could find a way through the form, the translation, and even the glaze.’ (2004)
A different kind of drawing which is closely integrated within the ceramic practice may be seen in the ‘tool series’ of drawings made by Claire Curneen. They are intense silhouette renderings of seemingly innocuous objects which take on emotive meaning when seen in a religious context.
Claire has studied the collection of tools in the Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford, noting household, medical and dressmaker’s tools. These drawings were carried out independently of Claire’s familiar figurative ceramic work but in time they have exerted a powerful influence on her work. She also made some ceramic versions of the drawings.
Amongst the examples on show are some large outdoor drawings, created in a spirited manner, which underpin the ceramic investigations and help us to understand the intensity encapsulated within the artist’s ceramic work.
Ewen Henderson made frequent drawing trips, for example to the site of ancient standing stones, where he would spend the day making many drawings in all kinds of weather.
‘Messy drawings, I like messy drawings, drawings that have struggles, there’s a lot of blood and sweat in these, and that’s how they should be seen’ (Ewen Henderson, 2000)
Drawing being used to develop design ideas
Perhaps the most obvious use of drawing is as a means of exploring ideas before making them in clay. Bernard Leach is an exception in terms of publicly revealing his drawings. Writing about design he commented
‘…but I do depend upon drawings done at all sorts of odd moments when an idea of shape or pattern leaps to a visual image. Of these I have kept some hundreds in a drawer ever since I first began to make pots, destroying those which cease to ring true, and adding new ones from time to time.’ (1940)
Walter Keeler explores ideas in his sketchbooks making numerous variations on a detail, for example the placement of a handle on a jug or the assembly of forms to make a teapot. In these drawings it becomes obvious that they are of necessity following a train of thought in a manner that is far less time consuming than making each variant in clay.
It is particularly revealing to see how ideas are generated and developed through drawing. Eric Mellon’s working drawings for Bill Ismay’s 80th birthday plate are closely related to his normal drawing output but here are being used as a kind of problem solving drawing.
Steve Dixon’s work is complex on many levels, containing references and hidden meanings which are fascinating to unravel. He makes extensive use of drawing and reveals ‘I was always an avid sketchbook keeper.’ (2005) His sketchbooks contain notes, drawings and collages depicting various pieces of work in development. The ideas are gradually assembled from a complex gathering of elements which sometimes created difficulties.
‘Sketchbooks became the place where ideas were worked out, so much so that it became hard to capture it in the work.’ (2005)
John Chambers was employed to design for Pilkington’s Tile and Pottery Company, but it is clear from his archive that he loved to explore all sorts of ideas through drawing. His design work is more than a tool of communication for others to manufacture in clay and it shows his love of drawing in a variety of media.
Drawing as a tool for recording
Many artists use drawing for recording information, it is the most direct means of describing something for a visually inclined person. The type of information recorded can vary from glazing notes (see Jim Malone) to kiln records (see Alex McErlain). The need for recording details of clay body and slips becomes obvious when it is realised that months may pass before the pot is glazed.
Some artists like Lucie Rie record the pots which are sent to galleries or exhibitions, a quick drawing, sometimes with annotations, is often easier to recognise years later than a description in words.
Jim Malone’s carefully recorded forms enable him to recall vital information during the glazing session and in addition they serve as notes for future making sessions. It is interesting to see how his drawings portray the pots in three dimensions and become a record of his making concerns throughout a particular period.
With some kinds of kiln, for example wood firing or salt glaze kilns, it is critical to record the way the pots are set in the kiln as this impacts on process. Firings may be undertaken on a seasonal basis and the setting plays a significant role in controlling the movement of flame. Information is gleaned from these notes and incrementally adds to knowledge which may take many years to acquire.
Sharon Blakey records her extensive technical testing of materials with drawing and notes which are orderly, methodical and inherently beautiful. It may not seem entirely necessary to make these drawings beautifully but the artist intuitively works with the same degree of care and concern within all aspects of her work; it is inseparably part of her creativity.
With the advent of digital cameras this type of drawing may be superseded but many artists will say that with drawing comes greater understanding and perhaps that time spent recording is giving more to the artist than just a visual record.
New approaches to ceramic design
The invention of computer aided design has had a significant impact on design for industry but less so on the work of the artist potter. However the computer as a drawing tool holds both potential and fascination for some artists. Rob Kesseler manipulates microscopic images of pollen and seeds. He uses the extraordinary ability of the computer to impose layers of colour in rapid succession. The remarkable images are developed from real forms which are invisible to the naked eye. These images could not be generated in any other way and therefore his means of drawing is digital. The images eventually become translated into ceramic transfer designs. Kessler writes,
‘Henry Fox Talbot’s unsuccessful attempts to improve his drawing through the use of the camera lucida inadvertently led to other means of capturing nature. His experimentation with chemically coating paper enabled him to produce photogenic drawing and in so doing laid the foundations of photography. In my work at Kew I have used scanning electron microscopes to investigate and reveal to a wider audience complexities of nature not visible to the naked eye. The resulting black and white images are subsequently re-mastered using subtle washes and layers of digital colour to enhance the forms and reveal structural characteristics with greater clarity. I am trying to create a new phytopia of mesmeric images to captivate my audience in the same way that the original flower attracts its audience of insect collaborators.’ (2006)
Tavs Jørgensen has spent much time exploring the potential of the computer as a design tool which enables him to develop forms in an abstract manner by inputting data. Critically the subsequent forms when translated into clay benefit enormously from the artist’s sensitive interpretation in a manner which usually eludes computer aided manufacture.
It is interesting to speculate what John Chambers and other designers from a different era would have made of the computer as a design tool.