Michael Gustavson "Eclipse 17" Raku Ceramic, Abstract Crescent Sculpture on Marble Base in Sage, Carmel California Art, 11 X 19 Inches, 2025

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In this raku-fired ceramic sculpture by California artist Michael Gustavson, a full, rounded sail shape rests on a polished black … Read more In this raku-fired ceramic sculpture by California artist Michael Gustavson, a full, rounded sail shape rests on a polished black marble base, its crown dipping to a navy point. The front is built from large pieces of glaze: burgundy and sage, a pale blue-green, and a patch of amber that crazes into a net of golden cracks. A crisp orange circle and a black wedge sharpen the composition, while the straight back edge carries a rough, deep-blue slate texture. Gustavson thinks of each form as a three-dimensional canvas, and the broad curve here gives him more room than usual for color to overlap and flow. The shape recalls a leaf or a wing, though the surface stays purely abstract.

The black base and rich glazes suit a dark credenza, a marble console or a bookcase with deep shelves. Sage and burgundy complement olive, plum and rust, while the navy edge works well with charcoal walls and brass. Placed on a low coffee table or a pedestal, it offers a changing view as people walk around the room.

Raku-fired glazed ceramic, 11 x 19 x 9 in (27.9 x 48.3 x 22.9 cm).

Gustavson fires his work in raku, the traditional Japanese process, which he has adapted over decades into his own method. For his large pieces he does not lift them from the kiln into combustible material; instead they stay in the kiln while pine needles are introduced at lower temperatures to create the reduction atmosphere. Layered glazes, crackle, drips and fine drawn lines build luminous color, and he treats every form as a three-dimensional canvas.

Michael Gustavson is a ceramic artist based in Murphys, California, who has worked in clay for more than four decades. He earned his MFA from San Jose State University in 1980 and describes himself as a painter-sculptor, treating each form as a three-dimensional canvas and glaze as his paint. His work is held in private and public collections worldwide, including IBM, Kaiser Permanente, Seagate, Cranbrook Museum and Eastman Kodak.

Building on the traditional Japanese process of raku, he developed his own firing approach, leaving large pieces in the kiln and introducing pine needles at lower temperatures to create reduction. The method allows larger scale and unusually vivid color. His wheel-thrown, hand-stretched vessels suggest the figure in motion, his wall reliefs use fragmented slabs and negative space, and recent outdoor sculptures and benches carry his surfaces into tectonic forms, with nods to Miró, Kandinsky, Mondrian and Pollock. See less