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INDEX
Foreword by Martin Bodilsen Kaldahl
8
Jessica Rios Gómez:
Orígenes
16
Maja Højgaard:
Beyond Beauty and Ugliness
24
Alexander Kirkeby:
Regal Imagery
32
Aya Simone Bækhøj Schmidt: Interrelated - and in motion
40
Lærke Møller Hansen:
Appreciation of Kyoto
48
Isabel Schiller Buus:
Fluid Feeling
56
Johanne Marie Jensen:
Despite the exhortation
64
Balázs Telegdi:
Through The Scope
72
Anna Reimers Overbeck:
FIRN
80
Cecilie Romanini Zwergius:
Thrown Landscapes
88
Maria Mai Paulsen:
THE TALE OF HAVKJÆTTAN
96
Maja Ejby:
Capturing Nothingness
Sophie Louise Pedersen:
Earth is singing
104
FOREWORD
In this extraordinary year of 2020 it is a special pleasure to congratulate the 13 graduating students from CRAFTS in Glass and Ceramics at KADK Bornholm with their degree projects and to welcome them as our new colleagues, of whom we naturally expect a lot of new artistic energy and vitality. This publication will show that in spite of all the unpredictable obstacles of the last 4 months, the students have managed to keep their focus and bring their personal visions forward in projects that together draw up a versatile picture of what occupies the minds of a fresh generation of artists and designers. The projects of 2020 show a great diversity of artistic expressions, which reflects a situation where no one particular dogma or theme is prevalent, but many different approaches coexist. The students come from many different countries and their time spent together at KADK Bornholm seems to have crystallized into a number of insights about shared conditions: an acute feeling of the need to take great responsibility for what and how you act as an individual maker in a world of massive overproduction of goods and with huge environmental challenges. There is a lot of scrutinizing and questioning going on - of given object categories, materials and the values that come with them. There’s an urge to shape new identities that try to reach deeper levels of belonging to both historic and current culture - of belonging to a particular place and to meaningfully relate to the material resources of the planet. To literally touch and feel the common ground. Digging and analyzing local raw materials for further elaboration; studying everyday physics; reinterpreting our relationship to things through new performative formats and rituals. Looking at historic shapes and categories through new technologies. Discussing the notion of aesthetic sustainability.
Making things in 2020 is as important as ever. As a professional craftsperson it does come with a great responsibility. Even more so, when you work with materials that gain such permanence as fired ceramics and glass. Interestingly, a well-known line from a popular song by Danish author Johannes V. Jensen, which written in 1925, goes: Hvad hånden former er åndens spor ( What the Hand Shapes is a Trace of the Spirit) was reintroduced this year by a ceramics student from the group in tentatively defining an approach for her degree project. These lines of the almost centenarian song - its patriotic undertones aside - is about looking for identity on a personal level ( and certainly national, when written ), encouraging awareness not only towards the beauty of the land but importantly towards the deeds of the hands of our ancestors, towards their manufactured cultural artefacts that link us to the past. CRAFT is at the very core of the thinking here. It is a tribute to the importance of craft – of engaging and shaping with and through materials, to the essential impulse to make things. It tells of the intense presence involved – of the time and care spent in producing objects and buildings. Of work, body and soul. Of skillful understanding and handling of materials leading to relevant work that communicates with the world giving evidence of its maker and the historic moment in which it was perceived and made. Does this description ring any bells with the CRAFT degree projects in glass and ceramics from KADK Bornholm in 2020? How do the students think about their own making and how it contributes and relates to the world around them? What did they gain from their three years of study, not only in terms of improved craftmanship, added material and technological knowledge but, importantly, in the way they understand and integrate their own time and age and its current concerns into their work as messages to be read now and in the future?
Martin Bodilsen Kaldahl Ceramicist MA RCA; associate professor, Ceramic Design at KADK Copenhagen
OrĂgenes
9
Jessica Rios Gómez
I make ceramic objects that embody an ongoing dialogue between the materials and their surroundings. Together with my heritage, these dialogues feed my creative process through the combination of craftsmanship tradition, sustainability, and innovative material exploration. Going on site to find materials—whether in their raw natural state or waste from surrounding industries—creates a bond amongst myself and the environment. Getting familiar with a new place and making it into a home, whether in Colombia, England or Bornholm, allows me to take ownership of my dialogue with that geographic area. In this project, I challenged myself to understand clay as a material through the making and experimenting process. My approach, in this body of work, explores an ancestral coiling method learned in Colombia, whilst being inspired by preColumbian artefacts that informed me in developing my own form language. My curiosity for the chemical reaction of materials that come into contact with clay, combined with techniques that show the forming methods, is vital to keep pushing the boundaries of ceramics and to tell new stories. Orígenes is a line of coiled sculptural vessels that can be seen as individual autonomous craft objects, as well as part of a group of works. They are the result of investigating the dialogues between my heritage, the materials found in my surroundings, and ceramic craftsmanship traditions.
10
jessicariosgomezstudio.com riosgomez.studio@gmail.com @jessicariosgomez.studio
13
15
Beyond Beauty and Ugliness
17
Maja Højgaard
Using the sphere as canvas, I have examined the sand on Bornholm and its details. As sand consists largely of quartz, its melting point is very high, making it possible to work with the sand, both in its natural form, and in a more or less melted substance, where it approaches a ceramic quality. I am fascinated by the imperfect, inaccurate, and organic nature, which has formed the basis of my sand-study. Intriguing textures, features, and nuances. As nature is beyond beauty and ugliness one can simply be. As the sand is not cleansed, an element of unpredictability is added to my works. Sea glass that melts, pebbles that bubble up, and leaves that burn away. Also in the glaze, these elements add an extra dimension. In this way, each sphere becomes a narrative of the exact places from which the sand is taken. I experience nature looking at every little detail, and I hope that you will find as much joy in the details of my works as I do.
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www.hojgaardceramics.com hojgaardceramics@gmail.com +45 41 17 48 08 @hojgaard.ceramics
22
Regal
Imagery
25
Alexander Kirkeby
I work in the field of crafts, creating both functional and sculptural pieces in glass. My work revolves around the stories objects can tell; about values connected to skills and what role the craftsperson has in society. I want to pass on stories about connections between the sacred and the ordinary as manifestations in translucency and optics. Regal Imagery is an interpretation of the treasures of the Danish monarchy. The great halls of Rosenborg castle are filled with masterpieces. In every detail of these absurdly time-consuming objects, there is a story about the masters, who spend their lives making these. Most of the pieces are referring to some sort of function, such as a cup or a table, but what is their use? It seems as if the function and the use has become each other’s poles. Thereby the objects distance themselves from us. I am drawn by the sheer time and effort that objects like these are loaded with, but I can’t touch and by any means use them. The body of work consists of 5 glass objects each representing a fragment of regal ornamentation and function.
26
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kirkebyalexander@gmail.com +45 53 34 07 14 @Alexanderkirkeby
31
Interrelated and in motion
33
A S B S
ya imone Ìkhøj chmidt
I am working with the dynamics of ceramic materials, exploring how they can become alive in their form and in the way we perceive them. Looking into the way the object is presented, and how this affects our perception of it. I have worked with the interrelation between the presenting and the presented object. I am interested in why and when we give objects anthropomorphic qualities and what purpose this serves in our understanding of them in a given environment. This desire to give life and intention to our surroundings. Why is it, that we as humans want to humanize the space we inhabit, and the objects inhabiting this space together with us? I often find myself wanting to relate to what I surround myself with. The result of this exploration is a series of playful and vibrant objects. They amplify and present each other, in pairs and as a group.
34
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aya.ceramics@gmail.com +45 50 49 20 19 @aya.ceramics
38
Appreciation of Kyoto
41
Lærke Møller Hansen
During a study trip to Japan, I fell in love with the Japanese ceramics and culture. Working with the harmony in contrasts, Appreciation of Kyoto is a Nordic interpretation of the items used in the Japanese tea ceremony with its gratitude of the vessels and material. I am captivated by the way a piece of ceramic is a frozen moment in the process of its creation - how a fired thrown piece of clay can show the nature of the material. My interests are functionality, glazes, surfaces, and textures. My hands and the potter’s wheel are my main tools in exploring the material and techniques. I enjoy handcrafted products, where you can see and feel the time spent making them and the skills behind their creation. “The objects used in everyday life influence the quality of life of their user” - Bernard Leach As the British potter Bernard Leach expresses, I also believe that the quality of the things surrounding us affect our lives. I see myself taking part in this influence within functional ceramics in the field of crafts.
42
danishclaydesign@gmail.com +45 29 88 90 58 @danish_clay_design
45
47
Fluid
Feeling
49
Isabel Schiller Buus
The bond between ceramics and I is like the bond between a scientist and nature. I have my expectations, observations, and predictions, but I will never have complete control of the process and of the life of the natural material. I’m in constant dialogue with my inner child’s curiosity, my knowledge of craft, and the possibilities that emerge at 1260 degrees Celsius. Ceramics is always challenging me – and I’m challenging it right back. We’re constantly competing, yet collaborating, in finding a midway between what is chemically possible, and what I artistically want to make possible. I aim for my ceramic work to be a vivid, wild, and stimulating experience to observe Ugliness and beauty, satisfaction and movement. My project ‘fluid feeling’ has been an exploration of how glaze can be more than just surface decoration and be used as a tool for setting a mood and triggering a sensory experience – by for example looking tasty, joyful, or repulsive. I hope my work catches your attention, makes you eager to touch the colorful details, and makes you wonder how it was created, and where the running glaze is coming from.
50
isabel.buus@gmail.com + 45 61 41 94 43 @isabelschillerceramics
52
55
Despite the exhortation
57
Johanne Marie Jensen
My work is driven by a desire to create ceramic universes that challenge our perception of stereotypes and the privileges stereotypes have. There is nothing wrong with being all that they are, despite the exhortations. I am curious about how we constantly change and modify our bodies, and how these modifications can change our perception of the identity of a person. This body of work originates from this thesis. I play with how much adorning objects can be transformed and still be recognizable. I have explored the contrast between an artificial plastic style and the raw ceramic surface in glaze and ceramic form. What can we in reality call natural? In this, occurs a space in which the individual has the freedom and power to choose for all that they are.
58
johannemariejensen@gmail.com +45 60 55 75 47 @Johannemariejensen
61
63
Through The Scope
65
Balazs Telegdi
Throughout the past years, my interest got caught on the material qualities of glass. Diving deeper and deeper into the potentials of it, rather than polishing particular skills and techniques. Therefore I have been looking for expressions, where the material can show its raw nature. ‘Through The Scope’ is a project that intends to illustrate the impact of technology on our perception of our realm. With technology, new realities emerged, it shrank the world and expanded the universe, affected most of the aspects of our lives, may it be for the better or for the worse. With my work, I aim to highlight how technology, simple or advanced, is able to turn our experience upside-down. Hence, I decided to create a series of artworks which main quality is imperceptible for the naked eyes. Only examined through assigned technology, they may reveal their hidden reality.
66
telegdi.balazs.ta@gmail.com @telegdibb
69
71
FIRN
73
Anna Reimers Overbeck
As an inventor type of maker, I am always on the search for something new. The era of digitalization makes it possible for me to combine all kinds of unconventional solutions with the methods of making in traditional craft. The discovery of combining digitalization with craft, has opened a whole new aspect and possibility to connect traditional craft with technological tooling. In this project, I explore the field of tension between art and design. By interconnecting my glass objects to light, I want to create a blend of artistic expression and function. The objects are inspired by the theme - a theme that has been my main inspiration throughout this project. ’Firn’ is the layers of new fallen snow creating glaciers over time. The object’s name connects fragility, creation, and life. While introducing the connection to ice with a narrative background from the making, the idea for creating the ’Firn’ series was to lighten up the subject of the consequences caused by the melting glaciers, such as sea level rising, as well as being an experimental attempt to combine a traditional craft, like glass, with a digital tool, such as 3D-printing. Printing technologies have a long way to go. It has been in the field of craft for some years, but for now it is still experimental, and it does not have the same practical value compared to traditional craft. I believe, this will change soon and give us a different viewpoint of understanding digital craft.
74
annaoverbeck@gmail.com +45 41 25 50 30 @aroaro_design
76
79
Thrown Landscapes
81
Cecilie Romanini Zwergius
I am interested in the traces we leave behind, and the stories told by the maker’s hand. In this project, I have been working at the throwing wheel in search of my own traces in thrown landscapes. The shape and traces of the cylinders are inspired by the many landscapes I have moved through and remember as a part of me. The soft fields and lines of the horizon embrace each other, which gives a feeling of belonging, of being home. I have used local clay from my childhood home as part of painting a landscape of the earth around me. The local clay has been processed from the ground of one landscape and transformed into another. My memories and experiences of these have affected the rhythm of my hands while throwing, and the way I work with the material. Thrown Landscapes is a line of unique thrown cylinders, representing my interpretation of the landscapes that surround us.
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romanini@live.dk +45 31 24 90 82 @romanini.ceramics
86
THE TALE OF HAVKJÆTTAN Retold by Maria Mai Paulsen
89
Maria Mai Paulsen
An extract: “The cliffs on Bornholm hold a secret. If you discover what they hide, it is too late. When the Baltic Sea roars, and the wind sends chills down your spine and freeze your bones. When wave upon wave forcefully crashes against the solid cliffs. When you feel the sea spitting its cold, wet body of salt on your face, you should be aware. For in this moment Havkjættan is born.” Havkjættan is, according to local folklore on Bornholm, a fearful creature of the sea meant to scare children into staying safe, if they play too dangerously by the cliffs. By combining two deeply rooted traditions on Bornholm, folklore and ceramics; and by spending time in the elements of sea, rock, storytelling and magic by Nexø coast, I created a platform for Havkjættan to re-rise from. In addition to the narrational and sculptural ceramic piece meant to be discovered inside, I have hidden one hundred small ceramic Havkjættars outside by Nexø coast. In the spirit of folklore, which is retelling stories over and over again - and as a different way to discover Nexø - you are free to try and find them and take them with you to continue their journey. Keep the stories alive.
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mariamaipaulsen.com contact@mariamaipaulsen.com @mariamaipaulsen
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Capturing Nothingness
97
Maja Ejby
In our day-to-day life, we frequently encounter laws of physics, often overlooking how they might influence material behavior in our immediate surroundings. Although often minor, these phenomena contain a plethora of mesmerizing little everyday spectacles. I am motivated by a desire to explore these spectacles in the world around us, physical phenomena shaping our everyday and our view of it - our perception of objects and material, of light and reflection, and of phenomena such as gravity and surface tension. Making visible the invisible in our everyday, I am exploring how to capture nothingness and the intangible phenomena. In this project, I am investigating the intangible phenomena, the phase changes of water, liquid, steam, and condensation, through an experimental approach. Translating these into material qualities, sculptural abstractions, or generating setups that capture the phenomena in its purest form.  Working mainly with porcelain and reaction glazes, I create porcelain shapes facilitating a material and chemical reaction to take place within the kiln, enabling the final pieces to be formed in synergy, between hands, forces, and chemistry. The kiln becomes a key player and where the process requires control, repetition, and technical skill, the firing generates form on its own, adding a twist of fate.
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majaejby@hotmail.com +45 22 19 89 14 @maja.ejby
102
Earth is singing
105
Sophie Louise Pedersen
Be soft, watery homebodies of clay feel how you are held by the earth Be watery, be part of a movement back to earth earth is singing of homebodies of the home-carriers My work is watery and cyclical: a wish for a change in perspective of how and what we are in this world. We are never separate but groups of organisms holding on to roots and pathways that lead nutrients of thoughts, material, and structure. Let your thoughts dissolve and let your mind’s water nurture ways of being a vessel of generosity, while you are still here Listen, earth is singing Clay was never my own. I borrowed it and created forms of bodies, not to leave a legacy but to enjoy its existence for a while and then let it compost into the bigger body of work, the earth. My work is not my own, it is inspired by artists and writers like Astrida Neimanis, Nai Palm, Belinda Blignaut, and Robin Wall Kimmerer as well as conversations with friends. “As watery, we experience ourselves less as isolated entities, and more as oceanic eddies..” - Astrida Neimanis
106
sophielp@outlook.dk +45 60 29 48 77 @sophielouisepedersen
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Art Direction and Graphic Design: Rasmus Kvist Media Photography: Kirstine Autzen Print: Vestergaards Bogtrykkeri Copyright 2020 KADK KADK Bornholm Stenbrudsvej 43 DK-3730 Nexø Bornholm – Denmark https://kadk.dk/en