Insufficient Data: a ceramic map

The work I completed in Denmark lifts and borrows from the accepted visual language of maps; using this I created a dialogue that explores my insufficient sense of direction.


I am fascinated by how maps offer a visualisation of space, they show us the connections and distances between places and this formed the basis of my research during the residency.


This work uses clay to appliqué my interpretation of the new place of Skælskør and Denmark with  collected maps and other people’s observation of that same place to create a collage of expectation, reality, imagination and perception.


What I thought Denmark would be like (mountainous) was very different to what its is actually like (very flat and spacious) and this became an important part of the work I created.

The culmination of our residency was the Guldagergaard Project Network III Group Exhibition at the Apple  House Gallery. 


The exhibition will travel to Grimmerhus International Ceramic Museum from 16th April - 20th August 2012.


http://www.grimmerhus.dk/

The culmination of our residency was the Guldagergaard Project Network III Group Exhibition at the Apple  House Gallery. 


The exhibition will travel to Grimmerhus International Ceramic Museum from 16th April - 20th August 2012


http://www.grimmerhus.dk/

Back of my head makes a guest apperance: Guldagergaard Newsletter

Just before the end of Project Network (the residency programme I was taking part in) the quarterly Guldagergaard Ceramic Research Centre newsletter was published, featuring an article on the Network and a picture of me working away. 

Guldagergaard Danish Ceramics Residency

Two weeks ago I returned from the small harbor town of Skælskør in Denmark after completing a six week residency at the International Ceramic Research Centre; Guldagergaard.


I had an amazing time  creating new work, meeting international ceramic artists and exploring both the local countryside and sights of Copenhagen.


I created a new body of work inspired by maps. I worked with very different clays; experimenting with low-fire coloured earthenware clays including a local brick clay in both red and yellow, terracotta and a black clay. I shared new processes and ideas with the other 8 ceramicists sharing the studio.


Here are some highlights of my time there:

The 2D Table... an important place set up in the library for me and fellow networker Elodie Alexandre http://elolala.wordpress.com/

 Here our ideas took shape in paper, collage and drawings before being developed into clay in the studio.

Each night two of us would cook for everyone... a shopping trip for 16 people.

The demo plate of traditional Danish Smørrebrød, introduced to us by Helene a Danish Ceramicist on the networkhttp://www.helenesoesschjoedts.dk/?page_id=110

The beautiful view of the fjord in Skælskør on an extended bike ride to the post office

A new process I explored; backpainting coloured slip onto a plaster bat before rolling in clay, sometimes the bits left over are as beautiful as the result

Build your own Lego man in the Lego shop in Copenhagen, the possibilities are endless.

Sailor trousers, Check. Scuber diving helmet, Check. Banana, Check.

The view of the farm house we stayed in, through the sculpture park where it was located.

Working through ideas with drawings, maquets and unfired pieces

Working away in my (unusually clean) studio space

Posed Pondering over one of my collaged maps

The ice has melted, only 2 weeks ago this was complelety frozen (see earlier blog posts for evidence!)

The huge bridge at Korsor linking the Danish Islands Zealand and Funen, we were given a tour by Helene's inlaws after being invited over for lunch and taken to a flee market

A natural wonder... this strange ice forms were re-imagined as a mountain in my finished pieces

Tiny mountain tests

An array of test tile islands

The vast expanse of fields that formed a lasting impression of Denmark in my mind and featured in my completed ceramic map

Day 4

Today was a relatively productive studio day. I made my mountain! Just a fairly quick test, as im used to moulding rather than modelling straight from clay. I think it translated my drawing quite nicely. 

Also had a plaster demo from Richard who seems like a bit of a plaster pro, excited to use a template on the whirler. After lunch Jess showed me the local second hand store... Complete with budgies in cages and run by an old couple, it's huge. Definitely somewhere I could get carried away, but I was very restrained and only bought a 78 for my gramophone at home, I have no idea what it is so that'll be a good surprise for when I get back. For dinner Roberta made the hugest (authentically italian) tirimasu I have ever seen and it was bloody delicious! Finished the day in the studio and with a chat with my friends Megan, Carly and Harry on skype.

 The Tirimasu!

Some more tests that went in the kiln today.

3 days in

Its 3 days since I arrived in the small Harbour town of Skælskør in Denmark. I am settling in nicely.

My first day started with breakfast, then I headed out on a "research based" wonder before our introduction at 11am. I left without my phone or a map,

just a sketchbook which I made some bad, sketchy maps in as I walked aimlessly, but secretly trying to reach the harbour, which I did and was beautiful, with more of those characteristic yellow and terracotta houses on the other side of the water. I used yellow houses along with carlsberg house, dead fish and pile of acorns as landmarks on my maps. After admiring the harbour and soaking up some early morning sunshine I started heading back.

With about 10 minutes to spare before 11am I realised I was lost and asked an old man walking his dog. It took a while to establish that we could both speak English and that I wanted to get to "ah the ceramik workstatt?!" he told me he didn't know where it was but that he'd drop of his 'Hund' at his friends house where he was staying and then drive me in the car... I followed him round the street and got into his old red van which smelt like his 'hund' and took a few minutes to start. As soon as we got down the road I realised where we were and quickly directed him to Guldagergaard, dropping into the dinning room just in time for coffee, danish pastries and our meeting with Richard!

The rest of the day was spent with our introduction, tour of the studio, discussing our plans for our projects, another trip into the town where we explored the houses

on the otherside of the harbour and I gave myself such bad pins and needles drawing the melting ice on the water's surface I thought I was going to topple of the boardwalk into the frozen sea! Then another communal feast, some local beer (theres a brewery in the town) and a film.

Saturday was drizzly and grim and I spent the day thinking through ideas, got some clay and started some tests. I'm working with a red brick clay, inspired by the colours hear, to try something other than my usual porcelain and because its really cheap and most of the other clays are very expensive.

I've got in my head that I really want to make a ceramic mountain... think I may just have to make one to get it out of my head.

Denmark doesn't have any mountains.

Sunday began in the studio, making more test tiles.

After lunch I had planned to cycle to a nearby town to get the ferry to a small island to explore and maybe get in some cartography. Me and Jill set off on some of the slightly wobbly and flat tyred bikes towards the port. Turned out to be much further than the 10 minute cycle we'd been told and it was extremely windy, we realised it would be dark by the time we made it to the island and back and Jill was defeated by the wind and headed back. I carried on, past stretches of fields with the occasional house, stopping to photograph formations of ice in the ditches at the side of the road - frozen as abstract maps of flowing water, cracks and melted islands. After a slow 7km I cycled through a forest and to the sea, another beautiful sight, the ferry was just coming in. I sat in a tree and admired the view while eating my Danish pastry. I checked with 3 boat men when the ferry runs and picked up a schedule leaflet - my souvenir of the 14km wind beaten round trip!

Arriving in Denmark

Arrival in the plane to Denmark was exactly what I was hoping for... The view from the plane featured islands of ice in the sea, with lumps of snow floating around, curving rows of off shore wind mills and perfectly set out houses in neat rows.

Understanding the train timetable was a little harder than I hoped, but made it onto the right one in the end. Highlight of the journey was seeing two 7 year old Danish rude boys drinking cans of monster at the station. Snow and yellow houses with red roofs boxes have also been ticked!

I've now been here a grabs total of 7 hours, made it after a pretty uneventful bus journey, the bus was waiting for me as I got of the train and I still got off at the right stop despite drifting off.

I then trudge up the road round the corner and up the road again, dragging my suitcase behind me until I found Guldagergaard, the way shown by an official looking road sign. On arrival I peered in through the windows until I came across Paul one of the current assistants here, who showed me the house, which is huge, beautiful and very cosy then took me back to the studio where I met 'the boss'; Richard. Richard has suitably Scandinavian; arty thick rimmed round glasses which he wore on top of his head the whole time I was with him, and comb-backed silvery yellow hair.

After being shown my room, I took a seat at the large table in the kitchen and it was here I stayed for most if the rest if the night, i met Jessika and Miriam, the other 2 assistance and we sat and chatted while Jess and Paul prepared dinner (two people cook for everyone each night). Other people arrived in dribs and drabs throughout the evening, mostly entering with bemused faces through various doors into the house. Organisation us definitely not commonplace here and noone really new what was going on, but luckily Paul, Jess and Miriam were there to look after everyone.

I managed to stay up until the grand time of 9.30pm, by then 8 of us had arrived, with Helene the final project network-er getting here after my bedtime. There's 15 of us in the house in total; 3 guest artists, 3 assistants and 9 project networkers consisting of; 1 French, 1 Lithuainian, 1 Japanese, 2 Danes, 1 Israeli, 6 Brits, 2 Americans and 1 Finish.

Guldagergaard Danish Residency

So im heading to Denmark to do a residency at the ceramic research centre Guldagergaard. Very excited about going somewhere new, meeting people and having 6 weeks just dedicated to making work.

I've packed layers of thermals, got my sheepskin lined DMs, about 10 sketchbooks and 3 cameras and I'm ready to go...

I'll be making ceramic work looking at maps while im there - exploring how they offer a visualisation of space and show us connections and distances between places.