Presented by British potter Phil Rogers and writer/art critic David Whiting, this video contains archive footage of Japanese potter Ken Matsuzaki signing boxes at his pottery in Japan as well as a demonstration of him tying ribbons around finished boxes during his Goldmark exhibition.

Click here or the image below to view all Ken Matsuzaki work currently available >

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Ken Matsuzaki

Ken Matsuzaki was born in 1950 in Tokyo. It was an artistic family – his father was a Nihonga painter and his brother went on to become a...

If you visit my studio you might get a notion of the method in my madness by looking at my shelves, in my drawing books and all the other bits and pieces lying around. I have made a principle out of out of untidiness. From the mass of material, visual, literary and musical it is possible to construct hybrid forms that reflect, comment and prophesy. As well as the studio cornucopia, there is an extensive attic in my head from where I can retrieve the memory of items. Nevertheless, there are plans chest drawers full of topographical studies from my travels and many books of life drawing. What does all this add up to? Why do I do it? The short answer is I can’t stop myself. From an early age I have indulged in the habit of re-constructing and de-constructing the world. This is what I am like.

I started making prints in my twenties and discovered the power of the multiple and that a medium like etching extended and enhanced my drawing, opening up new possibilities. Lithography was a slow starter for me, but after a difficult apprenticeship I began to revel in its freedom. Recently silkscreen and digital have begun to play a part. Printmaking is a way of taking my thoughts into a published public domain. The relationship between printmaking and books is very strong. The print is like a page and in much of my printed output there is a hidden text. I invite people to ‘read’ my work as well as to look at it. Printmaking chimed in perfectly with my studio methodology and when I had established my own workshop I became an eager experimenter with the technical potential that printing offered. I saw myself as an alchemist working with base materials to make gold. The basic physical nature of the print processes within the usual canon of original printmaking ‘allows one full control of the output. From the conception of an idea and the making of plates to their refinement through proofing and the printing of the edition, I was fully in control. It suited my one-man-band approach. I identified strongly with William Blake: being married to Catherine, having the press in the house, publishing and distributing the results. My homage to Blake also takes in his capacity as an inventor. In pursuit of my own poetic vision I have discovered, or re-discovered, printing processes such as counter-proofing and relief printing that can serve to liberate creativity.

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Chris Orr

Born in 1943, Chris Orr, Royal Academician and Professor Emeritus, is a painter, draughtsman and printmaker. In 2008 he was awarded an MBE...

Student at the Royal College of Art 1964- 67 Elected Royal Academician 1995 Appointed Professor of Printmaking Royal College of Art 1998
Orr was awarded an MBE in 2008

Chris Orr has had numerous exhibitions throughout the world which include; 1976 The Complete Chris Orr, Whitechapel Gallery and Museum of Modern Art Oxford. 1990 Many Mansions, a travelling circus of the work of Chris Orr, Royal Festival Hall London, Crawford Gallery Cork and Jill George Gallery London. Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition. Six Royal Academicians in China shown in Beijing Shanghai and London.

His work is in major public collections including; Arts Council of Great Britain, The British Council, The British Museum, The Government Art Collection, Museum of London, National Portrait Gallery, Royal Academy of Arts, Science Museum, Tate Gallery, The Ruskin Library Lancaster University and Victoria and Albert Museum.

Chris Orr has published books about his work that include; Many Mansions, a travelling Circus of the work of Chris Orr 1990, The Small Titanic 1994, Happy Days 1999, Semi-antics 2001, The Disguise Factory 2003, Cities Of Holy Dreams 2007, The Multitude Diaries 2008.

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Chris Orr

Born in 1943, Chris Orr, Royal Academician and Professor Emeritus, is a painter, draughtsman and printmaker. In 2008 he was awarded an MBE...

This is the Kit is Kate Stables playing banjo, guitar and a voice of unaffected clarity accompanied by her Wild Band creating primal and electric textures onto songs of unpretentious beauty.

“Absolutely gorgeous, like an aural bath with the warm water lapping over you” Cerys Matthews

“Just one of the best things I’ve heard all year… wonderful wonderful stuff” Guy Garvey

Contributors include Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, Gillian Clarke, National Poet of Wales and art critic Richard Cork. Original music by Edward White.

Film made by the David Jones Society.

Click below for a closer look at David Jones’s work >
 

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David Jones

A painter, engraver, poet and author, Jones was born in Kent. He studied at Camberwell School of Art...

Extract from the BBC’s series – Framing Wales: Art in the 20th Century, Episode 2

Click below for a closer look at David Jones’s work >
 

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David Jones

A painter, engraver, poet and author, Jones was born in Kent. He studied at Camberwell School of Art...

Click below for a closer look at David Jones’ work >

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David Jones

A painter, engraver, poet and author, Jones was born in Kent. He studied at Camberwell School of Art...

Jean-Nicolas describes himself as an artisan craftsman who, above all, wants his pottery to be used and enjoyed. His work ranges from small mugs, bowls, plates and dishes to large jars and press moulded platters. All are decorated with slip and many with sgraffito and finger marks. He takes the tradition of European slipware and infuses it with elements from modern painting, medieval earthenware and Japanese pottery. In the film we watch him throwing, glazing and decorating and explore the influences that nature and his surrounding landscape have on his pottery.

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Jean-Nicolas Gérard

Jean-Nicolas Gérard was born in Brazzaville (Congo) in 1954 and returned to France in 1961. He makes domestic slipware or terre vernissée...