Glorious (ceramic) shoes!

Ceramic shoes by Fiona Wong

I'd wear these whether they are clay, terracotta, porcelain or stoneware!

I love the texture and the little imitation stitches!

ORANGE MOON SANDAL Terra cotta, 27x 10x 6cm, 2004

Beautifully adorned

BLACK SANDAL WITH SILVER TEETH

Chocolate black clay & silver 

27x 20 x 7cm, 2004

The faux embroidery on these boots is genius!

FOUR PETALS
Chocolate black clay; terra cotta
30 x 22 x 20 cm, 2004

Porcelain Flowers for Spring!

A ceramic treat from National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) in Seattle last month. 

Today’s weather and springy blooms reminded me of these pieces.
The artist is Ying Yeuh Chuang

Ying Yeuh Chuang was born in Taiwan and then moved to Canada. She says "Certain ideas I learned while growing up in Taiwan have stayed with me, while others have been abandoned. In this same way, I am selective about how I adapt to Western philosophies and ways of living, leading me to live a hybrid existence with elements from both these cultures.  This way of thinking has intern influenced my interest in hybridization, leading me to take elements from plants or sea anemones in order to combine and create forms that are symmetrical and asymmetrical.

From hybrid forms inspired by organic material and imagined objects, my work comes together through a hands-on process and evolves into forms completely different from the initial object.

...individual elements, while independent, can also be used like building blocks to create larger units of pattern, which in turn can create even larger patterns exponentially."

Spring...Proms...Pottery?

Porcelain dress-up time

Inevitably the onset of spring brings prom season here.   Watching teenagers on my road head out last night to the yearly ritual of Junior Prom all decked out in fine suits and fancy dresses, I was reminded of some lovely work I saw at NCECA this year.  Ceramic Artist George Rodriguez had a wonderful installation at the Seattle Design Center which featured a fashionable dress - and set me to thinking about those shadows on the wall of the gallery.  A wallflower perhaps?

Dress detail

George Rodriguez In “In Shadow” (wall installation) 2012
 ceramic 120 x 101 x 3 in.

Detail of wall tiles

The Beginning...

Spring is in the air here in the Philadelphia area as proven by the lovely green coating of pollen on my car today! The sneezing and itching may yet inspire a new piece of work but in the meantime I’m working hard on my Wrecking Ball series. 

I was first inspired to do a series based on wrecking balls and other implements of destruction a few years ago while watching a wrecking ball take a big swing at the old sports and concert venue, The Spectrum, in Philly.  I had a lot of anticipation for the first swing.  I had imagined that the ball would hit the building and there would be an enormous shudder on the ground as the forged steel ball hit the old building with an ear-deafening blow.  I pictured a cloud of dust arising and  bricks and chunks of concrete exploding inward as the giant ball accelerated through the wall.

And then....poof...the ball hit the wall and not much of anything exciting happened. My dreams of the first swing knocking out a large part of the wall disintegrated the way I had thought the building would. I began to picture the ball as a big soft pillow instead of a 12,000lb hunk of steel.   Spheres, balls and round shapes were already a part of my art vernacular so it seemed like a tiny leap into making my ceramic scuptures larger and following the wrecking ball to see where I would end up. If you want to follow my journey with me, check back here occacionally for some photos and information about my own work.

In the meantime, I’d like to share some work that inspires me. Let me know what you think.