Style NOV (05.11.16)

34 Style | arts
John Parker: CErAMIC ArTIsT,
CrAFTsMAN & ArTIsT
Anne Hudson explores the fantastic art installation of
new Zealand’s contemporary artist John Parker.
John Parker, one of New Zealand’s leading
ceramic artists, has been making pottery
for 50 years. A theatre set designer, too,
he often stages his exhibitions theatrically.
Te Uru Gallery in Titirangi, Auckland,
recently held an impressive retrospective
of his work that included and exciting new
installation Cause and Effect. Of grooved
cone shapes precariously jutting out from
the wall, glazed in his signature white,
his latest work takes on several new
dimensions when lit. The colours change,
as do the shadows, and the forms seem
to alter as well.
Like his previous installation Gravity, the
work is displayed on a wall. Collectors
can purchase the work in components
and create their own installation. This
large wall work is a testament to Parker’s
artistic flare, his design skills and his
craftsmanship.
All Parker’s work is hand-made on a
pottery wheel. He carefully trims or carves
grooves into the clay, thus enhancing the
form reflecting light and creating shadow
adding another dimension. You only have
to have watched The Great Pottery Throw
Down on TV or tried the craft yourself to
know the time this skill takes to perfect.
Parker is a master of glaze technology.
You won’t see him stoking the wood kiln
or throwing salt into the mix. His glazes
are carefully designed to produce the
desired effect and are the result of careful
testing and trialling. Much of his work
has a modernist quality influenced by the
European styles of Bauhaus rather than
the more oriental approach of Bernard
Leach. The lines are clean and almost
geometric. Glazing is often simply black
or white, but he does play with crackled
surfaces and volcanic glazes. However, the
simple base form does not compete but
rather compliments.
Parker’s work is very collectable. It is
not functional in the domestic sense, but
a group of his vases, or shapes either
on a shelf or arranged on a wall serve
as a source of pleasure. The shapes are
pleasing and catch the eye. His work
lends itself to contemporary interiors.
This potter has definitely crossed any
perceived craft/art boundaries.
Parker’s work takes time to make;
his mark is evident in each stage of the
process. It is within this risky enterprise full
of unexpected outcomes that his works
produce consistently pleasing aesthetic
forms. French poet Paul Valéry said the
artist “takes his body with him”. I am sure
Parker would agree with this.
John Parker is represented in galleries
throughout the country including
Form Gallery, Christchurch. His Gravity
installation was also included in the Barn
Gallery at Art in a Garden last month.
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