Evocative: The Art of Porcelain
March 30, 2019 - June 22, 2019
- 1306
March 30, 2019 - June 22, 2019
25 Caroline St North
Waterloo, Ontario
N2L2Y5
Evocative: The Art of Porcelain
March 30 to June 22, 2019
Guest Curated by Jonathan Smith
When we speak of porcelain, one of the last images to come to mind is that of landscape. Especially after years of the hand crafted pot, reminiscent of Bernard Leach, one is more likely to think brown and round. But for centuries, the ceramic world was populated with objects bearing bright images of recognizable decoration that added beauty and meaning to what would otherwise be ordinary, everyday chattel. From the time of the Group of Seven, who wished to instigate a truly Canadian art, it should come as no surprise that Canadian ceramic artists would incorporate the theme of landscape – from rolling geological features to patterns of water, from wind driven rain and waves – as an inspiration for their work.
Harlan House, Diane Nasr O’Young, and Kayo O’Young each have a different take on their muse that incorporates where they live, but also personal autobiographical details that drive their visions. Harlan House, born in Vancouver but raised in Calgary, lives in an 1840‘s old stage coach inn on hard rock farmland north of Picton, Ontario. His garden and his world travels often meet in his sometimes gentle, sometimes politically pointed work. Diane Nasr O’Young and Kayo O’Young live on two acres of land snuggled up against the eastern branch of the Humber River, north of Kleinburg, Ontario. Nasr, born and raised in Trinidad, creates work that is inspired by the lush and fantastical flora and fauna of her childhood. O’Young carries with him memories of the classic sumi ink drawings of his native China with their veils of colour tinged with the dense woodlands that once surrounded his Ontario house and inspired the work of Tom Thomson.
This exhibition brings together three different visions, each one personalized, but each rooted in the places, past and present, that inspire them.
Join us for the Opening Reception on April 7 at 2:00pm with remarks at 2:30.
The Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery is pleased to partner with the Art Gallery of Burlington for this exhibition.
In the Tower Gallery, an extension of the exhibition features the work of Magdolene Dykstra, guest curated by Jonathan Smith.
Header Image: "DRAGON TEAPOT" (c. 1995), Diane Nasr O’Young, Private Collection.