One of my favorite potters is Chris Staley. What I find exceptional about his work is the use of a basic form with alterations. He also has an incredibly beautiful sense of contrast and style.
The Artist:
Here is Chris Staley's Artist Statement:
"The essence of making pots for me is about being human. It's about fragility and strength. It's about the intimate moment when the handle of a cup touches the hand.Pots are about potential.
Pots can create a world of slow time where meaning can be found.
It is a notable experience to use pots that exude the soul of the maker.
All of our senses are engaged in this experience.
Very few things can be touched and leave one a different person. It is this paradox of who is touching whom that gives pots their greatest potential.
As a young boy I often played outdoors and made things out of dirt and sticks. I struggled sitting behind a desk at school. I knew very early that to survive spiritually I had to keep creating with my hands
With technology spreading at a very increasing pace my need to feel the world seems essential." (http://www.personal.psu.edu/cxs41/statement.html)
Very well written I love how his statement has a very natural flow and rhythm to it. But I what I see can connect with is statements about the pottery being an extension from the artist. I feel that everything we do, we put a little bit of ourselves into but something that we create is different. As humans, we innately have a sense of personality and individuality that is diverse from one person to the next. Consequently, we develop a signature that we embellish on all the things that we create. For Staley, the emphasis lies largely on the ordinary and the unique contrast, color change and the over flow of the piece. For myself, I focus of the contrasting colors and textures and vessels that have an ethereal weight about them.
The Artist:
Here is Chris Staley's Artist Statement:
"The essence of making pots for me is about being human. It's about fragility and strength. It's about the intimate moment when the handle of a cup touches the hand.Pots are about potential.
Pots can create a world of slow time where meaning can be found.
It is a notable experience to use pots that exude the soul of the maker.
All of our senses are engaged in this experience.
Very few things can be touched and leave one a different person. It is this paradox of who is touching whom that gives pots their greatest potential.
As a young boy I often played outdoors and made things out of dirt and sticks. I struggled sitting behind a desk at school. I knew very early that to survive spiritually I had to keep creating with my hands
With technology spreading at a very increasing pace my need to feel the world seems essential." (http://www.personal.psu.edu/cxs41/statement.html)
Very well written I love how his statement has a very natural flow and rhythm to it. But I what I see can connect with is statements about the pottery being an extension from the artist. I feel that everything we do, we put a little bit of ourselves into but something that we create is different. As humans, we innately have a sense of personality and individuality that is diverse from one person to the next. Consequently, we develop a signature that we embellish on all the things that we create. For Staley, the emphasis lies largely on the ordinary and the unique contrast, color change and the over flow of the piece. For myself, I focus of the contrasting colors and textures and vessels that have an ethereal weight about them.
2005 18" tall Ribbon Covered Jar
I love this piece. It is like a person. The shape of the piece is beautiful and has that narrow foot ring which I personally feel is great. But what I like is how the piece can be so simple in nature and yet the surface technique can be so elegant that it transforms the piece. Additionally, I love the black and white contrast. I like that using black and white makes the piece have another dimension and takes the obvious feelings that colors exude.
In art, there are certain colors that will give off different emotions. The warm colors are colors like red, orange and yellow and bring joy, optimism and happiness. The cool colors are blue, violets and greens and bring the connotation of sadness, gloom and tranquility. But if we as artists were to take away these colors and live in black and white, how would be able to make the audience feel that same way about the piece. Staley achieves this in my mind by using the swooping thick black lines to provide the audience with movement of the eye. In turn, this gives off the idea of vibrance and activity while being able to maintain elegance.
Plainly stated, Staley is an amazing artist. I love the complexity of the concepts behind his work and the mystery that there is. I hope that art for me is about "being human".
For more on Chris Staley: http://www.personal.psu.edu/cxs41/default.html
I love this piece. It is like a person. The shape of the piece is beautiful and has that narrow foot ring which I personally feel is great. But what I like is how the piece can be so simple in nature and yet the surface technique can be so elegant that it transforms the piece. Additionally, I love the black and white contrast. I like that using black and white makes the piece have another dimension and takes the obvious feelings that colors exude.
In art, there are certain colors that will give off different emotions. The warm colors are colors like red, orange and yellow and bring joy, optimism and happiness. The cool colors are blue, violets and greens and bring the connotation of sadness, gloom and tranquility. But if we as artists were to take away these colors and live in black and white, how would be able to make the audience feel that same way about the piece. Staley achieves this in my mind by using the swooping thick black lines to provide the audience with movement of the eye. In turn, this gives off the idea of vibrance and activity while being able to maintain elegance.
Plainly stated, Staley is an amazing artist. I love the complexity of the concepts behind his work and the mystery that there is. I hope that art for me is about "being human".
For more on Chris Staley: http://www.personal.psu.edu/cxs41/default.html
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