Nijole Šivickas, High-Fired Clay Cubist Landscape Wall Panel, circa 1970s

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Nijole Šivickas, High-Fired Clay Cubist Landscape Wall Panel, circa 1970s
Lithuanian-born Colombian artist Nijole Šivickas (1925–2018)
High-fired clay with oxides … Read more Nijole Šivickas, High-Fired Clay Cubist Landscape Wall Panel, circa 1970s
Lithuanian-born Colombian artist Nijole Šivickas (1925–2018)
High-fired clay with oxides and pigments, custom wrought-iron mount
28" W × 6.5" H × 1.5" D

This exceptional wall panel by Lithuanian-born Colombian artist Nijole Šivickas reflects her postwar European modernist training and her later immersion in the vivid material culture of Latin America. Crafted in the 1970s and acquired directly from the artist, it exemplifies her mastery of relief-mosaic ceramic technique. The high-fired clay surface is built up into an intricate network of interlocking geometric forms, each uniquely finished: some retain a gritty, sand-textured matte surface, while others are glazed in mineral blues, turquoise, deep teal, warm ochres, and blacks. The turquoise and blue tones suggest copper oxide glazes, while the darker hues derive from iron and manganese-based pigments, all fused permanently into the clay body through high-temperature firing.

The horizontal composition channels Cubist and Constructivist spatial thinking, abstracting the visual language of aerial landscapes, urban grids, or geological strata. Bands of blue evoke water or sky, while earthen tones suggest terrain or architectural foundations. The relief creates shifting shadows that animate the surface as light changes, reinforcing the sense of movement and layered depth.

The work is presented in its original custom wrought-iron mount, designed as an integral architectural element and not removable. This approach was typical of Šivickas in the period, underscoring her intent for her ceramics to function as permanent, environment-shaping artworks.

Provenance: Purchased directly from the artist in the 1970s.
Most Recent Exhibitiations - 'Studio,' Museo de Arte Moderno de Bogotá (MAMBO), Colombia, 2024. See less