Steven Edwards
Gourmet delights
1 July – 7 September 2023
Opening Saturday 1st July 2023 from 6PM with the artist
Striped Fold IV, 2023, parian porcelaine, Steven Edwards. h.36 x 25 x 25 cm. Analogous Convex Fold II, 2023, parian porcelaine, h. 34 x 30 x 30 cm.
Galerie de l’Ancienne Poste presents British artist Steven Edwards’ first French solo show. Through twenty pieces specially created for the exhibition and emblematic of the series entitled “Fold”, the ceramic artist takes us into his experimental world where forms embody his passion for manipulating clay. Like a narrative medium of the making process, clay is used for the purpose of exploring its materiality, physicality and attractiveness.
Steven Edwards’ creative practice begins by deliberately placing the material under pressure to reveal the natural tension and movement in its surface and form. He uses a Parian porcelain (a type of porcelain developed in the 19th Century, popular for its imitation of marble and named after the marble from Greek island Paros). The artist pushes, pulls, compresses and slices the material to cause a reaction. The final forms are a combination of these steps, manifesting a duality in their appearance – the contrast of visual distortion and precision, of stillness and movement in the form and the illusion of a surface between synthetic and natural.
“Colour plays a fundamental part. The pieces can be very understated black or white monochromes. Others offer subtle gradations of light green, pale blue or pink. Even more complex are the multicoloured sculptures, whose perfectly parallel lines make up new rainbows. They are ribbed, notched or veined, inevitably bringing confectioneries to mind. Some pieces’ tetrahedron shapes resemble mint twists; others evoke the texture of marshmallows whose sweet scent one can almost smell.”
Guillaume Morel,
journalist, art critic,
extract from the exhibition catalogue.
Born in 1976, Steven Edwards first discovered ceramics at the Royal Forest of Dean College (1994). He then studied applied arts at the University of Derby and graphic design at Sheffield College. The latter earned him a distinction and a very successful graphic career, but the appeal of clay has remained the strongest, prompting Edwards to complete his masters in ceramics in 2018 at the renowned University for the Creative Arts (UCA) in Farnham. A guest at the prestigious Homo Faber Event during the 2022 contemporary art Venice Biennale, Steven Edwards has gained international recognition and his works are now present in prestigious private collections, including the famous Devonshire collection in the UK.
