Clare Twomey

http://www.claretwomey.com/index.html

Clare Twomey, predominately a ceramic artist dose rather large installations as well as site specific installations. Twomey's pieces are small and reparative. They take the form of flowers, birds and home wear objects. The material is often porcelain and in some cases remain white and immerse from random placement on the wall, or commonly on the floor where the view is intended to interact with the pieces. A particularly interesting installation titled Consciousness/Conscience is destroyed. Made from one of the most precious and revered materials, Bone China. 7000 hollow cast bone china tiles were left to be destroyed by walking on them.

This challenges the viewers mental understanding of the material and the distress that comes from destroying it. As well as the very importance of its worth, considering we as humans established its worth and significance. I cant imagine having to make all of the tiles but it shows "balls" to be able to witness the destruction. This destruction is common in Twomey's work similarly she laid small fragile porcelain flowers outside and allowed them to be weathered and slowly decomposed. Twomey's ability to remove her self form the individuality of her work allows her conceptual meaning to immerse. More importantly making her work a more successful social commentary.

While I'm not interested in having my work destroyed by viewers I am interested in the way in which she set up her installations and the way she uses clay, which is very contemporary it takes you a second look at some of her work to understand the exact material. I am also excited by the way she questions the viewer inviting them first into her space and then almost not allowing the to escape from the meaning, and in some cases from the large encompassing space her work inhabits. The feminine fragile softness of her craft is something I hope to work on in my own work.