Porcelain Touchstones, often ethereal, always tactile.
Known primarily for her often ethereal, always tactile work in porcelain, ceramicist Judith Davies has an intensely ‘touch, don’t touch’ quality. She has exhibited her ceramics for over thirty years both nationally and internationally. Her work is informed by specific locations in the landscape; by geology, natural form, recurrent pattern found in ripples in water and sand, rock formations and effects of weathering.
She employs few tools in her making processes, relying on the sense of touch to form the work and to embed texture into the surface of the clay. Processes are often repetitive and labour intensive, working rhythmically and to strict timings that the material dictates. Colour is applied post firing, using natural pigments such as indigo and earth colours, Davies applies and removes layers, washing away and sanding back to reveal marks formed in the making. These patterns emerge, and then are sealed with wax.
Shifting Boundaries is a collaboration between Jude and Yvette Hawkins, a visual artist of British-South Korean origin working across installation and sculpture. Over a one-year period, the two have developed a visual dialogue, pushing the boundaries of materials and adopting an experimental approach to making.
Working with natural pigments and exploring methods of dipping, pouring and washing.
Building up layers of deposits, forming a palimpsest of mark-making that evidences also the interaction of the hand. Working across scale and colour, the work finds a meeting point where both their practices co-exist. The Porcelain Touchstones are hand-built from porcelain using pinching and coiling methods.
The coastal regions of the north east of England and border of Scotland have been Davies’s focus over the last four years. As well as exploring boundaries in the artists’ individual practices, the work brings to light the use of boundary on a physical and geographical scale by referencing the border lands of Scotland and England, formed in most part by the river Tweed. The artists have collected raw materials from the river banks, creating pigments and dyes that explore the geological changes from limestone to iron rich rock as the border is crossed.
Handmade Edinburgh
The Hub, Edinburgh
Friday 27 – Sunday 29 October 2017
Following the success of Handmade in Britain’s first year in Scotland, Handmade Edinburgh will be returning to the Royal Mile this October.
This premiere contemporary craft and design event is a fabulous opportunity to shop for gorgeous textiles, jewellery, ceramics, glass and more from a handpicked selection of designer-makers from Scotland and beyond.
Makers will be on hand throughout the weekend to talk about their work and showcase their collections.
Davies’ ceramic work has been included in publications including surveys of contemporary practice in ceramics and has been the focus of articles in Ceramic Review. She trained in Fine Art and Illustration and has an M.A. in Ceramics. She has taught both ceramics and drawing at University and is herself an unfinished work.
Shifting Boundaries
Sat 9 Sept – Sun 12 Nov
Mirror Gallery
South Hill Park, Ringmead, RG12 7PA
South Hill Park Arts Centre is the Creative Heart of Berkshire. It is a multi-purpose arts centre housed in an 18th Century mansion and set in extensive parkland. It offers a wide variety of shows, courses and a café/brasserie in its many space:
A key part of the South Hill Park remit is supporting and commissioning new work across the arts, from both established and emerging artists.
Feature ©Images Yeshen Venema
