The work of Laurent Craste lies at the crossroads of two mediums.  It participates in the world of visual arts, but never crosses its borders. This is explore in his use of ceramics.  The form, linked by tradition to crafts, requires a technical knowledge and know-how so restrictive that artists are prompted to remain within canonical forms, never pushing their limits.  In this series of ceramic sculptures, Craste has used porcelain vases, representative of certain upper class tastes, and laid into them with a variety of blunt objects, essentially critiquing the fusty conservatism of both this group and the medium itself.

Things fall apart, they break. Fracture, both material and metaphorical is a part of our lives. In the work of Tim Berg and Rebekah Myers, fracture acts as a unifying principle, unifying themes as diverse as luck, consumption and value. Sometimes something must be broken or fractured in order for us to see its value. This may be especially true for our environment. Only when we see the consequences of our actions do we begin to understand our complicity in fracturing it. So animals like polar bears must persist against the tide, fractured from their environment destined to become just another souvenir of a bygone era.

Sometimes we fracture things in search of something intangible, like breaking a wishbone for luck. These actions present us with an opportunity to conjure up some sense of control over the uncontrollable. We like to think we can control our fortunes through the coercion of objects or rituals hoping luck will favor us and blaming it when circumstances go awry.

Sometimes we fracture something in search of something tangible, like breaking into a klondike bar to get to the tasty ice cream center. Unexpected discoveries through the process of fracture are not uncommon and can be exciting or disappointing depending on what one values.

Much of this work is a meditation on value; what one values and how and why one might value the things that one does. This body of work is meant to provoke the audience to consider a world on the brink of fracture and our place within that world.

According to Kate MacDowell, her varied travels from Italy to rural India have greatly influenced her unique artistic vocabulary. She began studying ceramics full-time in 2004. Since then, she has created pieces that ascertain their prestige through the perfect juxtaposition of the beautiful and the alarming. MacDowell’s work is so precise that it feels as if it exists more comfortably in reality than in imagination. If you’re in the UK, you can see her work in the upcoming group show, Shadowside, at bo.lee Gallery in Bath.

Christiane Haase creates such strangely sexual/magical ceramic amulets. There were so many wonderful creature creations I had to post a million pictures after the jump…you really have to see her work in context with the other pieces to appreciate the full effect.

Rocks, Gems, Mutations, and cosmic energy in motion… I present you with the Awesome Video Of The Day by motion graphics artist and ceramicist, Charlotte Cornaton..