Email: alyupa 'at' alisonjpetty.com
phone 778-898-5383
studio location: Vancouver, B.C. Canada
By working with porcelain clay, glass, and rubber, I explore objects that relate to the organic systems of the body and natural world. These sculptural works are smooth, bulbous and rhythmical in form, reflecting the physical attributes of both humans and microorganisms. Theses objects interrelate, sometimes appearing punctured or about to burst, while others are coupled, actively engaging in some kind of interactive process. Suggestive of containment, gestation, passage, and a reflexive connectivity, I consider the seductive perplexity of human physicality through these objects. Intrigued with the flesh that spans from the interior to the exterior of the body’s orifices, I explore this tactile transition from a dryer protective layer to a wet slippery lining inside the body. The dynamic function of our multilayered epidermis informs this contrast of naked porcelain with the bulging plasma-like rubber. Referencing cross-section anatomy, I am interested in how both skin functions to hold the inner body in place, as well as it’s wondrous malleability to stretch from the internal outward, accommodating extra fat, muscle, and fetus. As it resembles such membrane and internal organs, my work parallels skin, bones, and body fluids that make up our common, yet mysterious interior compositions.
Although, my most current body of work remains rooted in process, it has diverged in purpose, making a departure from the utilitarian. Using the wheel to throw long slabs and bottomless bowls, I invite gravity and force to determine the shape of each sculptural form. Surrendering accuracy and control for a looser approach, I allow the elemental nature of clay to define it’s own form in both raw and firing states. Working intuitively to investigate objects, the process often reveals the concept, inviting the potential perimeters of materiality to forge.
Going beyond material boundaries, I explore the interactive relationship of fused glass and rubber with these porcelain objects to make the work feel more supple, responsive, and alive. Encapsulating a handmade object within rubber requires making plaster and silicone molds over these thrown forms. This is an ironic contradiction in process that confronts the opposition of handmade and manufactured aesthetics. My intention is to create work that challenges the boundaries of ceramic conventions, while retaining the fundamental integrity found in the pottery practice.
Handcrafting is a viable yet underappreciated form of intelligence. The ceramic process requires the body to think, interact, interpret, and judge. I approach clay as a medium that draws on both a cerebral and visceral knowledge. Teaching ceramics in various capacities, I have found that it requires a strong foundation in the technical in order to engage it as an expressive medium. Although there are fundamental principles to clay, I approach teaching ceramics in a way that allows for trial and error, personal exploration and expression within a structured framework that introduces the wide range of technical possibilities. Whether the focus is on functional or sculptural ware, I encourage students to consider aesthetics, design, and utility as well as meaning and context. I believe in a cooperative class environment, offering a critical yet supportive atmosphere in which students are free to examine, discuss, and self realize. I intend to relate a comprehensive understanding of ceramics to student artists, by informing hands-on art making with slide, video and Internet lectures drawing on both historical and contemporary aspects of ceramic art.
Operating within the craft tradition, I am aware of the contemporary issues of ceramics within visual culture. Informed by the discourse of art and craft, I am increasingly concerned with the status of ceramic art. As such, I am compelled to attain respect and an equal esteem for our discipline in the art world. As an artist and teacher, I am motivated to not only creating work with technical and conceptual integrity, but also further intellectualizing theoretical perceptions and visual dialogue in ceramic art. Assisting others with artistic approaches to realize their creative vision is an invaluable experience that drives me to expand further within the perimeters of my own art practice.
Working for over fourteen years, Alison Petty has developed a comprehensive approach to clay, making both sculptural and utilitarian works. She has studied at Goldsmiths’ College, University of London, received her BFA from Concordia University, and MFA from the California College of the Arts (formerly, the California College of Arts and Crafts). For over eight years, she worked as a Studio Manager and in a community pottery studio, and has taught ceramics at both recreational and university levels. Alison Petty has traveled internationally, visiting many communities with strong ceramic traditions, including, Europe, Fiji, Cuba, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Brazil. She has exhibited in both Canada and the U.S. and was recently selected to receive both a B.C. Arts Council Grant and the George and Dorothy Saxe Scholarship for Ceramic and Glass art.
