Monday, January 12, 2009

Robin Reichelt Plays With Clay

Ceramic artist Robin Reichelt always intended to earn her doctorate at Penn State, specializing in medieval art and architecture. Along the way, she enrolled in a ceramics course and never looked back. She is now happily obsessed with clay and with creating forms that are both fun and functional, like the brand new sushi bowls and trays she just brought to Chemers Gallery. Not only usable, these bowls and trays make beautiful art pieces, with nuances of color and pattern. Made from high fire porcelain, these pieces are utterly tactile, a joy to handle.

Blue and Gold Floral Sushi Bowl
High Fire Porcelain

Robin explains her attraction to clay as "the physicality and immediacy, the inherent contradiction of working with clay in its different forms. Wet clay is extremely impressionable, malleable. It will assume almost any shape and can reveal your desires. Only during the firing process does clay develop a will of its own, a will to which all clay artists must bow. The heat of the kiln takes our passion, our ideas, our vision, and reshapes it all. Sometimes the result raises us to a new level of creativity, and other times it's a catapult into the abyss. I am in awe of this process whether the end result is a humble piece of tableware or a reference to man's first building material. Both are civilizing. Each time I come back to the studio I experience a sense of wonder and renewal. Each piece of clay is a new beginning. Each firing is a tempering. Each trip through this cycle brings contentment - at least, for me."


Celadon Swirl Sushi Tray
High Fire Porcelain

Hurry into Chemers Gallery to see more of Robin's playful ceramic pieces!





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2 comments:

  1. These pieces are beautiful! Their delicate and simple styles with the fine detailed designs... beautiful.

    I really like the way the first one has wavy edges, and the second one's pattern and color are gorgeous.

    - Jessica Paik

    ReplyDelete
  2. So glad you like Robin's work! If your in southern California, come in to see her beautiful dishes in person!

    ReplyDelete

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