Mud, mud, glorious mud
The premise behind the Marl Hole project, curated by Neil Brownsword, was relatively straightforward: take four internationally renowned artists, remove their familiar tools, and let them loose for five days in a clay pit owned by Ibstock Brick at Newcastle-under-Lyme. Then ask filmmaker Johnny Magee to shoot the whole process and show the results at the up-coming British Ceramic Biennial at Stoke-on-Trent in October.
In an environment best described as imposing, the artists – Brownsword, Torbjorn Kvasbo, Alexandra Engelfriet, and Pekka Paikkari – arrived with very different working methods and expectations. Here’s what they got up to…
At the top of the pit staring down at the work going on below. Big isn’t it? And vaguely reminiscent of one of those early Dr Who sets.
Neil Brownsword was interested in the contrast of materials you could find in the pit and made a series of interventions. Here’s one.
Alexandra Engelfriet was keen to use a slope in her work. She comes from Holland and doesn’t get to see many seemingly.
Torbjorn Kvasbo started by playing around with pieces on a micro-scale before alighting on the idea of using the dumper truck to create this piece.
This is a detail from Pekka Paikkari’s ‘painting’. While the others arrived with the intention of improvising with what they found, Paikkari came with a plan to build a huge 25m x 25m ‘canvas’ from the floor of the pit and then inscribe letters on it.
The tools each artist was allowed to use were kind of basic.
Kvasbo with his finished work.
And this is Engelfriet.
Neil Brownsword.
Paikkari taking a short break from drawing.
This is Cheryl Maddox who was initially asked to help the artists but ended up creating her own piece too.
And finally John, the foreman. He was always on hand with his dumper truck and seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the whole exercise.
Watch Johnny Magee’s film here.
Neil Brownsword: Marl Hole, AirSpace Gallery, 4 Broad Street, ST1 4HL
3 – 31 October, Tuesday – Saturday, 10.00am – 5.00pm
www.stokeceramicsfestival.co.uk
