Portal
Mathew Wheeler
Area: Ceramics
Mathew Wheeler
Thesis Statement
Using the abstracted vessel my work explores form and texture. Rooted in pottery, my ideas reference prototypical pottery forms such as Korean Moon Jars, traditional cooking vessels, Greek Amphoras, and Meiping vases. I think of these persistent vessels as a starting place for my own creative endeavors to begin. I elaborate on the anthropomorphic language ascribed to pots (foot, belly, shoulder, lip) by exaggerating certain figurative effects. The gesture within the forms further the relationship to the body and the flesh-like qualities of clay. I display these pieces in groups to create a sense of interpersonal and communal relationships between the vessels. This body of work creates empathetic relationships through the personified movements of the vessels and the way they interact with each other and the viewer.
By cutting openings into the structures, I reinforce and reveal their hollow interior. These openings expose their "potness" but leave more hidden than revealed. This serves as a portal for the viewer, and provides access into the dark interior space of these hollow forms. The glaze, and its interaction with the wood firing process, creates a surface that wraps fluidly around the forms and highlights their softness. The subtle variations in their surface allow the viewer a continued investigation of the minutia they contain. This body of work walks the line between pervasive pottery forms and steps beyond their common utilitarian scope. By engaging with both pottery forms and the physiological attributes of the body, this work explores the relationship between vessels and the psyche.