RUTH GIBSON CERAMICS

Working in porcelain, Ruth Gibson combines a love of photography, printmaking and ceramics, to evoke a sense of place; in particular the Shropshire landscape and the Welsh coast and mountains. Inspired by many walks on the rugged Stiperstones, or the Long Mynd, imagery includes winter trees, textures in nature, birds in flight, the rocks beneath the surface, and the inclusion of sections on map, rooting the work to the place it is inspired by. Ancient standing stones found scattered across the Shropshire and Welsh hills are echoed in the shapes of the ceramic pieces.

 

'Utilising photography and ceramic printing techniques allows for photo realism to be combined with more abstract mark making to build up layers of images. Once screen-printed the clay can be stretched over molds, the print can be distorted, or small sections can be added or removed to create abstract patterns. The work is enhanced by the addition of glazes used in a painterly style. Through this ceramic artwork, I am interested in conveying the peace and contemplative qualities which one can experience when immersed in the natural environment. I seek to enhance the qualities of porcelain and to reflect nature; the whiteness of a perfectly round pebble, the seemingly scratched patterns found in stones and the smoothness of sea-worn shells inform the design and surface quality.’

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- Ruth Gibson