Ceramic Oval Vessel by British Studio Potter John Ward

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Description

A stoneware vessel in an oval form with dipped rim with glazed by British studio ceramist John Ward (1938-) circa … Read more A stoneware vessel in an oval form with dipped rim with glazed by British studio ceramist John Ward (1938-) circa 1997. The form of this vessel is minimalistic and intentionally ambiguous between being a pot and a vase. Being organic and earthy with harmonious proportion is the artist's iconic aesthetic. The vessel has a slight textured surface and is covered in a lava-black matt glaze with a soft bronze wash. The shimmering effect is very subtle and can escape the eyes of a casual observer. An unusual and rather mysterious piece from the artist's repertoire. The base is branded with the artist's seal and initial "JW".
From a UK collection.
John Ward’s ceramic artwork is found in the permanent collections of many leading art museums including the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, and The Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Biography (courtesy of Oxford Ceramic Gallery):
"The leading hand-builder John Ward was born in 1938 and trained at Camberwell College of Arts in the 1960s. He is one of a number of significant modern potters to have concentrated on the pared down individual vessel form, most particularly the bowl, as a touchstone for exploration. His generally simple work has been augmented by more complex structures, the shapes cut and altered, perhaps with abstract, geometric decoration and cut-away rims that give some of his pieces an architectural quality. In addition to urban surfaces, his work evokes honed natural forms, the kind of bonier, elemental landscape he has lived in since he moved close to the Welsh coast in 1979. His best pots speak eloquently of the limitless language of the bowl and globular jar, their sculptural and metaphorical resonances.". See less