Form

Bryan Newman uses the traditional and delicate hand-building technique of pinching (see also 50791). He has hollowed out a single piece of clay to create this strange and otherworldly vessel. The thinness of the pinched clay can be seen on the shard-like rim and protruding middle section. The earthy rust coloured surface and matt glaze give it the appearance of an archaeological artefact. The perforated holes made with a ballpoint pen add to the sense of decay.

Newman studied and taught at Camberwell College of Art. His work is associated with the wider sculptural studio ceramic movement of the 1960s and the work of ceramicists including Dan Arbeid, Ian Auld and Gordon Baldwin. However, unlike them, alongside his abstract and figurative sculptural works he made an extensive range of standardware at the Aller Pottery in Somerset, which he established in 1966 with his wife, Julia Newman.

Sim Panaser, July 2020