Nora Von Achenbach

Torsion and tension are characteristic of the vessels created by the exceptional Japanese ceramicist Shozo Michikawa (b. 1953), whose works are reminiscent of rock strata and lava flows. Michikawa is known for his unique technique, for turning edgy, dynamic sculptures on the potter's wheel. First he cuts and scores a solid block of clay before he carves out the interior hollow through pressing and turning with a rod and his hands. Natural-looking surfaces emerge, just as geological forces formed the earth's surface - an irrepressible energy from the inside out. Michikawa's pots, with their irregular shape, granular texture, and rich earthen hues are so poetic in their appearance that they have been likened to 'haikus in clay'. With a selection of works from the last fifteen years, Shozo Michikawa introduces the first comprehensive insight into his ceramic production, which has attracted attention across the globe. The Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg; LACMA Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology, University of Oxford; National Museum of Wales, Cardiff; Philadelphia Museum of Art; Qinglingsi Temple, Xi'an and Shimada City Museum are among the institutions that have acquired his work. This book accompanies an exhibition, which will tour between venues: Lacoste Gallery, Concord, MA (US), 3 to 24.6.2017; Erskine, Hall & Coe, London (UK), 11.10. to 2.11.2017. The artist is active on facebook, at https://www.facebook.com/shozo.michikawa

Gao Fenghan zahlt innerhalb der chinesischen Malerei zu einer Gruppe individualistischer Kunstler des 18. Jahrhunderts. Als solcher ist er vor allem fur sein wildes linkshandig gemaltes Spatwerk bekannt, das schon zu Gaos Lebzeiten sein Markenzeichen war. Diese Arbeit zielt darauf ab, diese einseitige Kenntnis uber den Kunstler zurechtzurucken. Im Mittelpunkt steht dabei die Analyse seiner Alben in ihrem Zusammenwirken von Malerei, Dichtung und Kalligraphie. Aufgezeigt werden die komplexen Bezuge von Text und Bild sowie Gaos kunstlerische Leistung. Die Alben stellen zugleich ein bekenntnishaftes Lebenszeugnis des Kunstlers dar. Der Anhang enthalt eine Aufstellung der datierten Bilder.