EARTH MEMORY
Vipul proves ceramics isn’t just clay. At Gallery Espace’s show Earth Memory, his work Moonscape looks like a piece of moon rock that talks of the process of memory and its disappearance to geological transformations. Colour design and technical execution are paramount dictates in Vipul’s vocabulary. “I use porcelain glazes and fire at 1350 degrees,” says Vipul who uses a melange of minerals like feldspar, silica, dolomite, iron, cobalt, wollastonite and zinc amongst others. “I rely on chemistry, alchemy and an element of hazard and risk, both in porcelain as well as clay,” states Vipul.
“In my work with porcelain, I am very aware of its sensitive structure, it is very brittle. Clay is solid in a way that an abstract painted form must be individual, ingenious and distinct.
Vipul created his own wood-firing oven and facilities to prepare his own clays or fire in reduction, in which techniques had to be reassessed using prepared stoneware and kiln firings. “The largest wood firing kiln is at Ray Meeker’s studio in Pondicherry,” says Vipul. Adding, “I needed to make one to do my work in the North, so I now fire my works in my own kiln. Firing ceramic work in a kiln using wood as fuel can take several hours or many days, depending on the size of the kiln and the desired temperature to be attained. The wood fires usually take five days of continual stoking and the kiln reaches about 1400 degrees C (2500 degrees F). I generally fire at 1350 degrees for literary allusions to maintain a unique Indianesque aesthetic.
Ceramic lovers in Delhi can see Vipul Kumar’s works at Gallery Espace.
Jawahar Kala Kendra in collaboration with the Contemporary Clay Foundation presents the first Indian Ceramics Triennale: Breaking Ground, from August 31 to November 18, 2018. It will present 35 Indian and 12 international artist projects, and 10 collaborations. Breaking Ground has developed and grown under the advice and experience of Peter Nagy (Director, Nature Morte Gallery), Ray Meeker (Co-founder, Golden Bridge Pottery, Pondicherry, renowned artist and educator) and Pooja Sood (Director General, Jawahar Kala Kendra).