at the Oxford Ceramics Gallery.
'I have tried to be true to my vision of ceramics as an art form. I make with intention, to make clear an idea'.
During a career that spans 50 years Mo Jupp has developed an unmistakable idiosyncratic style. The clay helmets of the 1970s were superseded by elongated human figures, pared back to their very essence.
While he was studying at Camberwell, Jupp encountered archaic figurative forms, such as the Cycladic figurines admired by his tutor Hans Coper and ancient Cypriot statuettes in London's museums. These influenced his work: 'My aim is to be able to make a figure as powerful as the Cycladic form. One that looks as important'.
You can see more of his work here
Terracotta figure seated in armchair
Black figure seated on low plinth, white base
Leant over cross legged terracotta figure
Terracotta figure on stool, white base
Black figure lying down on black base
Terracotta figure in black chair, white base
Kneeling terracotta figure, white base
Seated terracotta figure, black base
Terracotta helmets
Black figure sat on box
Peach figure sat on terracotta base
a different view.
Not sure he is rivalling the Cyclades figures yet, further to go perhaps! I dislike the plinths and chairs these figures are on, seem clumsy and out of proportion. But a interesting man and a boundary pusher.
ReplyDeleteA bit like Edmund de Waal's vitrines? Even though I normally don't like plinths at all, I quite like these and feel that they complement the figures well. As for the Cycladic figures, I totally agree with you Avril, he has a very long way to go. Giacometti is another influence, and again, there is no comparison. But, I do like his work and it keeps growing on me.
DeleteI am and have been intrigued by Mo Jupp's figures, and attracted although with mixed feelings. I am always suspicious of men who make obviously female forms as objects - especially in this case without heads and arms. However, that aside (although it is quite a large something to push aside) I am very attracted to these. Their positions and disportments are delightful, and I think that the chairs and other supports are very much part of each whole.
ReplyDeleteLike you Olga, I am tired of men who objectify women in their art and this feeling is getting stronger with time. And of course, such images are everywhere in museums and galleries. But, I do like Jupp's work, and I could see a real development since the exhibition I saw a few years ago, which is very pleasing.
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