Kecskemét studio

THE best of the works made in the International Ceramics Studio of Kecskemét are exhibited in the Budapest Gallery at the Pest foot of the Erzsébet híd. Artists from Japan to Ireland spent time in the world famous creative studio in Kecskemét and left behind one piece of their artwork upon leaving: these artefacts make up the material that constitutes this marvelous show. The exhibition is linked to the annual meeting of the best known and most prestigious art academy in the trade, the International Academy of Ceramics. The meeting is organized in Kecskemét.

The richness of styles and the extraordinary imagination of the ceramic artists is the most striking element of this exhibition titled In Time - In Space - In Fire.

Eighty-six works of 36 foreign artists from 18 countries, together with 19 Hungarians were selected to introduce the last ten years of the studio, which is a household name among ceramics artists worldwide, but is hardly familiar to locals. Right at the entrance, two human-size gold and silver horned cows, the works of Miroslav Paral from the Czech Republic, welcome the visitor - or rather, a cow and a bull, standing next to each other. The director of the studio, János Probstner, exhibited his Cake for the 21st Century, a basketful of rather hard tea cakes out of china, in the shapes of fish, hearts, stars and clubs. Joe Bova from the US formed the American Monkey, with a gun in the hand and a baseball cap on the head. Don’t miss the customized shoes.

Hungarian artist Pálma Babos created an etheral white construction that looks like shantytown houses on top of each other. The fragility of the about half a meter high statue and the thin pieces of ceramic elements that build it up make this work one of my favorites. Elzbieta Grossseová from the Czech Republic formed an enlarged pine cone and called it a Pyramid; Jim Leedy from the US gave no title to his work that has frighteningly realistic snakes on the top. Leedy’s work shows clay in its natural form: the statue seems to be made up of fluid earth, as opposed to the woodyquality of the Czech artists’ pyramid. The transformation of clay into fragile, almost transparent forms at times, then to massive, china-like statues is the most interesting aspect of this diverse exhibition. Gudrun Klix from Australia is responsible for another remarkable creation: the artist shows raging seas at night with waves. Kimiyo Mishima from Japan is faithful to life in another aspect: the artist formed a lifelike pile of newspapers, bound by wires, out of clay.

American Les Lawrence paid tribute to the applied art of pot making: nevertheless his tea pot would not be an average item in the kitchen. Established in 1975, the International Ceramics Studio of Kecskemét has provided a technically and intellectually inspiring environment to ceramics artists for decades. The studio functions as a dorm and an atelier, with artists from around the world coming for shorter or longer periods of creation.

(this article was taken from thebudapestsun.com)