Ceramic
Objects and sculpture made from clay shaped while soft and hardened by firing, from earthenware and stoneware to porcelain.
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About
Ceramics begin as clay, shaped by hand, on the wheel, in moulds or from slabs, then fired so it hardens permanently. Firing temperature largely defines the type: porous earthenware fires lowest, dense stoneware higher, and translucent porcelain highest. Glazes, glassy coatings fused in the kiln, add colour and seal the surface.
Clay is among humanity's oldest art materials; Jōmon pottery in Japan goes back more than 10,000 years. Greek painted vases, Song-dynasty stoneware, Islamic lustre tiles and Italian maiolica each set standards of their own. In the 20th century, studio potters such as Bernard Leach and Lucie Rie treated the vessel as personal expression, while in 1950s California Peter Voulkos tore and slashed stoneware into sculpture with the energy of Abstract Expressionism. Toshiko Takaezu's closed, rounded forms and Grayson Perry's narrative pots extend the range. Look for the clay body, the glaze and the marks of making.
