Artwork: Plated blade pinnacle 2000
Artist: Alan Watt
Medium: blackfired earthenware with terra sigillata and copper soda fuming
Dimensions: 72 x 21 x 11cm
Acquisition: An acquisition of the ACT Legislative Assembly Art Advisory Committee, 2001
Asset no: OLA001956
About the Work
Alan Watt, founding Head of Ceramics at the Canberra School of Art, is well known as a sculptor using the ceramic medium. Plated blade pinnacle is one of several works from this period, of sentinel-like proportions. Watt draws his inspiration from the rawness exposed through interventions into the landscape such as mining, road construction and erosion. Watt’s deep understanding of the processes that transform clay to ceramic inform his work. Many of the effects Watt has mastered had their origins hundreds of years ago in traditional firing techniques. Watt reclaims them for a contemporary practice, utilised for symbolic effect.
About the Artist
Alan Watt has been described as one of the most influential figures in his field in Australia. Watt's forms respond to environmental concerns, the demands of contemporary life and its consumption of resources through mining and sprawling urban development. His exhibition work and
commitment to teaching have influenced numerous generations. Watt was Head of Ceramics at the ANU School of Art from 1979- 1998