Connection to materiality: Engaging with Ceramic practice

Abstract

This exposition introduces an exploration of ceramic material from the perspective of an artist-researcher. The ceramic material is explored through aesthetics and making. In this exposition the material connection is understood as a broad term introducing the idea of different levels of involvement with the material. The material connections are reflected from two different perspectives, giving a more holistic idea of what influences the act of making and perception. In this exposition, I explore the material connections mainly from the subjective perspective of a ceramic practitioner and partly from the perspective of the viewers who have no prior experience of the processes of making. Together with the written content, I show different works e.g. videos and a sound file that reveal parts of the processes in ceramic practice. The video and sound works are discussed here as process aesthetics, exposing the experiences, that have aesthetic quality, in the context of making. Through these examples I discuss different levels of engagement with the material and its processes. The aim is to open the material connections in a different light describing the idea of diverse levels of engagement in the ceramic practice.