Making or Unmaking? The Contexts of Contemporary Ceramics

The opposition between studio and industrial ceramics that has had such a central place in the self-understanding of studio ceramicists, no longer seems meaningful. A shift from production to reproduction has taken place. Images and patterns from different sources are appropriated and manipulated. Mass-produced objects, often characterized by disuse, disruption and damage, have come to be increasingly used as raw materials. The relationship between artist and artisan has also changed. The conference focusses on the way in which these changes influence contemporary making, and how they contribute to the unmaking of conventional understanding of ceramics and craft practises in general.

Speakers
With Glenn Adamson, Barnaby Barford, Marek Cecula, Monica Gaspar, Tanya Harrod, Ben Highmore, Gitte Jungersen, Søren Kjørup, Carol McNicoll, Kevin Murrey, Andrew Livingstone, Michael Petry, Mike Press, Paul Scott, Ezra Shales, Richard Slee, Caroline Slotte, Linda Sormin, Hans Stofer, Clare Twomey, Jorunn Veiteberg, Anne Britt Ylvisåker.

Dates: 27-29 October 2011.

Programme and Registration

The exhibition:Thing Tang Trash. Upcycling in Contemporary Ceramics
The exhibition Thing Tang Trash. Upcycling in Contemporary Ceramics at Permanenten Vestlandske Kunstindustrimuseum, curated by Heidi Bjørgan, will be mounted in all the museum's gallery rooms. 28 artists will show objects, installations and videos. This international exhibition will present works which use industrial waste products and ceramic materials as starting points for new creation. Upcycling is the process of converting useless objects and waste materials into new products of greater value.
Exhibition period: 17 September 2011- 8 January 2012

Other exhibitions
- Hordaland Art Centre: "Shot: Textiles and Photography" curated by Glenn Adamson (read more: Hordaland Art Centre)
- Rom 8: solo show by Kjell Rylander, Research Fellow at Bergen National Academy of the Arts
- Galleri Format
- Galleri Fisk

About Art Value
Art Value is a research project on trash and readymades, art and ceramics. It is a collaboration between Bergen National Academy of the Arts (KHiB) and Permanenten Vestlandske Kunstindustrimuseum, and is part of the KULVER programme at the Research Council of Norway. Professor Jorunn Veiteberg KHiB is the Project Leader in collaboration with R&D Advisor Søren Kjørup. Two of KHiB's Research Fellows, Caroline Slotte and Kjell Rylander, also participate.