Steven Edwards: Gourmet Delights
Galerie de l’Ancienne Poste, Toucy
July 01 – September 07, 2023

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 Parian porcelain (a type of porcelain developed in the 19th Century, popular for its imitation of marble and named after the marble from the 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.

more. www.galerie-ancienne-poste.com