Picking

up a piece of sculptural art created by Csongvay Blackwood feels like holding nature in your hands. The gritty granular texture, the earthen hues, and the free-flowing form tricks the eye into thinking the artist has somehow stilled the movement and shape of sand into a singular moment. It is a physical incongruity. The sculpture is both rough and graceful, delicate but weighty, austere yet sublime. If honesty could be expressed in a physical form, then this is it. Yet the simple beauty of this stoneware belies the extraordinary skill to create it.

Csongvay Blackwood is a collaboration between local artists Csilla Csongvay and Matt Blackwood, who continue the long tradition of ceramicists living and working in Nillumbik’s artisan hills. Each piece begins with a drawing of an original form, which has been refined and shortlisted from hundreds of designs drawn by Matt over a period of months. Csilla then painstakingly creates the final piece by hand using a slab-building method with multiple layers of clay, truly remarkable given its highly refined geometric design. The sculptures reflect a balance of solid and void and the meeting of the curve and straight. Their designs are so precise they are often asked if the sculptures are made with moulds or 3D printers. There have even been times when Csilla has remade a complete sculpture from scratch because it wasn’t achieving the desired angles.

Csongvay Blackwood pieces appear both ancient and futuristic, and this timeless quality gives their sculptures a sense of weight and history. The pieces in their current series have the texture of coarse sand, glistening with flecks of iron. The tactile randomness of the clay body contrasts with the highly considered geometric lines within each design. And whilst all the pieces are fixed in space, the intention of every piece is to evoke a dynamic sense of movement.

Csongvay Blackwood clay creations are highly architectural. In fact, Csilla and Matt believe that architecture at its best can offer sculptures to be lived in. They are particularly inspired by Brutalist and Mid-Century design, which foregrounds and showcases the construction materials in a building: bricks are often unrendered, wooden beams unpainted, and concrete walls left bare. For Csongvay Blackwood, the ceramic forms they create continue this direct connection with their chosen material. Creating unglazed sculptures allows people to see the beauty in the clay bodies they use, as well as showcasing the refined detail that goes into every piece they create.

Csongvay Blackwood sculptures look beautiful displayed as signature pieces on a table, bookshelf or plinth. This is how their pieces were displayed for the NGV’s “Art of Dining” exhibition, and for their solo exhibition for Melbourne Design Week. Although Csilla and Matt consider all their pieces as sculptures, some also function as dry bud vases.

Csongvay Blackwood’s current focus is on their next ceramic sculptural series which will be ready to launch in late 2023. Several pieces from their previous series can be purchased via their website: