Metamorphosis

摘要

Slipware is a snake that has shed its skin. The technique of slip-covered clay finished with a glossy lead glaze is much the same as it ever was, but in the last quarter of a century the ware has become very different: it has acquired a new skin. Years ago slipware was easy to identify. One glance at a ceramic object would usually suffice to tell you if the piece was slipware or not. Slip was obviously poured, trailed or sgraffittoed and the colour palette was limited. In recent times the diverse methods of slip application and the combination of slipware with other techniques has resulted in work that is much more subtle and varied. The appearance of slip-ware has come a long way from the historical wares, yet the essential qualities and spirit of the genre remain undimmed and slipware retains the spirit and gusto for which it has always been known. The humorous and illustrative qualities also live on as a central part of many pieces.Annabeth Rosen (USA) and Jean-Nicolas Gerard (France) are makers whose veins run with the blood of the tough seventeenth century slipware potters and platter makers. Neither potter uses slip to create an image as Toft or Taylor did but the spirit of these early makers pervades their work. Their pieces are on a large scale; size, texture and colour creating pots with a commanding presence. In her collaged tiles and plates Annabeth Rosen revels in the rawness of crudely cut clay softened by glazing with copper or iron rich glazes that are reminiscent of archaic European country pots. There is a very 'in your face' quality to her work that captures the vital spontaneity of historical pots whilst presenting us with something new and demanding. Though simply made at the clay stage, her pieces undergo a gruelling programme of glaze firing and are often reglazed up to seven or eight times to achieve the balance and depth of colours that she desires.