The Gardiner Museum Artist Residency was a remarkable period providing a consistency of space, and self-contained time to produce the work that has been ruminating for some time.
Housed within the museum, the residency was a singular opportunity in its capacity to unite making and the direct observation of the historical record. I was able to examine the pattern relationships found between pots across the full spectrum of the Gardiner’s collection and explore how these patterns – familiar as two-dimensional surface decoration – could be generated to hold space as three dimensional objects. The migration of these motifs into contemporary adaptations of historical forms is a continuation of the mutation of ceramic vessels and surface design throughout history.
Over the course of ten weeks, I explored various ways of engaging with these gridded patterns. Results included some of the objects seen here. Grids were generated as flat components, then glaze fused together (Window Lattice, Stacked Trellis) or built over balloons, fired and built within to create sculptural objects (Accretion). The threads of this work and research continue to be explored in current studio work.