Abstraction & Abstract Expressionism
A number of themes emerge when looking back at the history of ceramics during the twentieth century in the Northern hemisphere. First, I have to mention Bernard Leach. Sometimes seen as ‘The Father of Studio Pottery’, his influence on UK ceramics is without doubt. I mention him because Abstraction and the Modernist movement is a contrast to his work, but there is an overlap in the sense that both Leach and Abstract Expressionist artists were working at the same time – and in fact, in the same place, St. Ives in Cornwall.
Leach founded a pottery in St. Ives Cornwall along with Shoji Hamada whose principles were centred around the Mingei movement of crafts. It strikes me that this is similar to the Arts and Crafts movement here in the UK which was a reaction to the mechanisation of processes and standardization of products that was seen at the end of the 19th Century. His work with Hamada started the dialogue that has continued to today between British and Oriental ceramics. He appeared to have Very Strong Opinions about what was correct in a pot – and Sung dynasty Chinese pots were the ones for him¹.
At the same time as Bernard Leach was making and writing about functional pots, there was a second, different set of ideas in the world of ceramics. William State Murray was part of a set of artists, and, seemingly, most expressly, artists not potters, who described pottery as the middle ground between Sculpture and Fine Art. For example, his first solo show was described as showing that pottery was plastic sculpture in a purely abstract form. He exhibited his work alongside influential Modernist abstract painters like Ben Nicolson. His influence lasted until the 1940s, particularly as he taught at the Royal College of Art. However, when he moved to East Africa, he stopped making pots and seems to have disappeared from pottery view.
Later in the 1950s Picasso became known for the freedom of expression that he gave to decorating ceramics. Lesley Jackson² makes the link between Hans Coper’s early work and Abstract expressionist painters. Rie and Coper absorbed contemporary art into what they did so that the whole piece is an integrated expression of Modernism. These two great pioneers in studio potter were part of a wider picture of the ‘New Look’ and contemporary art and craft movement which included 2D art and textiles.
Abstract expressionism has influenced many potters and artists who used ceramics as a means of expression. In the US, Peter Voulkos is a clear example, reportedly being influenced by Miro and Picasso through his teacher Anthony Prieto³. And more recently, artists such as Felicity Aylieff have written about abstract expressionism as a theme for informing their work⁴.
While my pottery is generally functional (whether that’s using it in the kitchen or as an feature in an interior design scheme), I am drawn to the idea of using Abstract Expressionist ideas in my surface decoration. I have been looking at Abstract Expressionist painters like Howard Hodgkin to try to understand what these artists are able to convey, creating a surface that’s expressive and thinking less about representing a ‘thing’ but more a feeling or memory. For me, that often relates to the natural world around me here in Kent where I live. I love being enveloped by the woods on walks, and the vistas that are available to you from the top of the Downs.
¹ Leach,B. (1976) A potter’s book London: Faber & Faber
² Jackson, L. (2020) ‘Contemporary’ design of the 1950s: Rie and Coper in Context’, in Petrie, K & Livingstone, A (Eds) The Ceramics Reader New York: Bloomsbury Academic p. 121-136.
³ Failing, P. (2020) ‘The Archie Bray Foundation: A Legacy Reframed’, in Petrie, K & Livingstone, A. (Eds) The Ceramics Reader New York: Bloomsbury Academic p. 160-176.
⁴ Julius,C. (2024) ‘Painting Giants’, 303 (November/December) p.42-46.