material nomad – vilnius, lithuania
i have been travelling to vilnius, in the baltic country of lithuania since 2013. it is a country with a long history of oppression from outside sources and whose people have suffered so much, and as a consequence, demonstrate such resilience. no more so than in 1989 when in a bid to gain independence from the soviet union, 2 million people held hands to form a human chain covering the three baltic states - from vilnius to riga and tailin.
such a powerful and positive show of humility, and unity. an amazing display of peaceful human demonstration and endeavour. listening to colleagues and friends talk about these events, with such pride - how families suffered and yet still showed great courage in their joint struggle - such a show of kinship and connectedness to their fellow countrymen and the country itself was truly humbling. so important to me that i should create work to reflect these connections, individual stories, emotions and traditions.
vilnius - nomadic makers
looking for a ceramic workshop to enable me to make while i was staying in vilnius, lithuania, i discovered the ‘black ceramics center’. a family run workshop by ieva paukstyte schinello and father, eugenijus paukstyte - dedicated to the preservation of the making and firing techniques of the black ceramics of lithuania. a method of single firing the earthenware pieces in a wood and smoke fired atmosphere, the smoke and wood oils permeate the clay, making the material waterproof and giving the surface a black metallic finish.
it was during his time that i met maya kitti, who is also a fellow nomad and potter. once a week i and maya, would visit the center. each thursday we would slip slide our way to the center through the february snow and ice - worth every step, for the time we could spend ‘making’ - sharing the home crafted wheel.
as we would take it in turns, wheel vibrating and shaking our very core, using our feet to apply pressure to slow or speed up the wheel, we would laugh and smile and simply enjoy every moment. learning new skills from each other and adapting to new materials and a very different making environment. as these were new materials and firing methods to us, we did not have any clear expectations, we were content to get our hands in the clay - so we were completely overwhelmed by the results - deep black colours with blue and metallic undertones, they were beautiful.
on my return home to the uk and my own workshop, i wanted to crush some of the pieces to see what had happened to the clay. i had ideas of making pieces at home as i reflected on my lithuanian journey and experiences. once crushed i bisque fired some of the material, as i felt that this would burn away any oils making it more stable. this was then added to some audrey blackman porcelain.
this vessel is entitled ‘vilnius tales’ the title refers to the adventures i had whilst in vilnius in lithuania, discovering a place to make, new materials, techniques and meeting the makers. the materials had seeped into the clay and glaze creating flecks throughout the forms.
a closeup detail of the ‘vilnius tales’ vessel showing the crushed materials within the porcelain walls. the material was added into the clay and then thrown. as the material runs throughout the clay body there is a feeling of depth to the vessel, some particles come through onto the surface leaving residue.
for this piece entitled ‘vilnius told’ i have added less refined crushed material, so the pieces are larger and have not been bisque fired. i then added this to some audrey blackman porcelain which i used to throw the walls of the form onto a previously thrown base which has no material added.
the results are beautiful, the material has seeped out onto the exterior unglazed surface while in the glazed interior the material has run, giving the exterior a very textured tactile surface. the title ‘vilnius told’ references the use of the previously made ceramics that have been crushed and added to the clay.
lithuania - 100 fires(‘100 LAUŽŲ/# LT100’)
i was fortunate enough to be there in 2018, as they celebrated the centennial of the restored state of lithuania - marking the 100th anniversary of the act of independence of lithuania which was signed on 16 february 1918.
these celebrations, though restrained in nature, showed an upswell of a very deep national pride and identity. one hundred fires were lit along the entire length of the main street, gediminas avenue, in the center of Vilnius.
once the celebrations were over and most people had left for home, i returned in the early hours to gather ashes from the burnt out fires. this collected ash is currently being used within the making of a compositional piece. i am making a one hundred piece composition, some forms have the ashes within the clay and others are crucibles to hold more of the ash - as a celebration of lithuania and it’s people.
this vessel ‘#100 fires vilnius’ has had some of the ashes and burnt wood added into the clay. this vessel captures a moment of celebration, of national pride and embedding a country and its people within the form.
