Our downstairs gallery at GGrippo art+design, regularly features the work of local and international artists.
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now on view:
POUR
Teapots by American Contemporary Artists
Curated with Mark Mohler
Summer 2024
Joel Diepenbrock
Terita Heath-Wlaz
Cooper Jeppesen
Hiroki Lory
Marcine Miller
Mark Mohler
Jonathan Steele
Will Talbot
This exhibition is an exploration into the vast landscape of teaware art, a glimpse into an ancient practice of teapot making
and the continuation of our own fascination with well-made and well-functioning brewing vessels.
Following our CUP&MUG exhibition from last year, artist Mark Mohler offered to put together a show about teapots,
he suggested a short-list of American artists that we immediately embraced and sent out the invitation to them.
We hope you appreciate and enjoy the various points of view and expressions reflected in the selection of teapots we present
in the exhibition and can personally relate to some of the pieces and the artist’s world that shows through their work
Joel Diepenbrock
“Fire, smoke, and melted wood ash; these are some elements that paint the ceramic
surfaces of my pots and tell stories of their transformation from clay to stone. I look to
rocks for inspiration, their colors and textures, ancient and weathered by uncounted
seasons, hold a humble beauty and wisdom that seems a fitting companion for tea.
They are old friends, tea and stone, clay and water, leaf and sun. As a clay worker I
explore the relationship between these elements to create vessels made of honest,
earthen materials that hold space for the quiet wonders of tea.
The pots themselves are made of clay and sand gathered from the land and rivers
where I live on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington state, the ancestral lands of the
S’Klallam and Chemakum peoples. The pots are fired with wood from trees that grew
and lived on that land, drinking from those same waters and collecting energy from the
sun and minerals of the earth. That energy, released and gathered within the kiln during
the firing process is now bestowed upon them as a blessing for their journey in
service.”
Terita Heath-Wlaz
“I have been working in clay with a focus on teaware since 2019, inspired by a decadeslong
love for Japanese green teas and the traditional Japanese yokode kyusu 横手 急須
(side-handle teapot) form.
I aim to craft pots that evoke a sense of naturalness, warmth, cuteness, and refinement.
An obsessive focus on functionality spurs me to continually tweak the formal elements
of my pots in service of an ideal final piece that is a joy to look at, hold, and use at
every step.
My studio process involves wheel-throwing, hand-assembly, the use of traditional
glazes, and reduction-firing in a gas kiln. The body, spout, lid, and handle are made
from a single mound of stoneware clay on the wheel. I hand-build and attach a clay
filter inside each pot with tiny holes suitable for straining out the fine leaf matter of
deeply steamed teas (fukamushicha.) I hope that my pots can inspire others to enjoy
Japanese green teas and to seek moments of simplicity, stillness, and play through tea.
Cooper Jeppesen
“Teapots are an embodiment of the community and connection that I encounter while
gathered around the hearth of a kiln. Inspiration for my work comes from the natural
landscapes of the Pacific Northwest and traditional Chinese Yixing teapots. The work
that emerges from the kiln is a monument to the labor and experiences had at the kiln
site and provides me with an opportunity to share this with the collector.”
Hiroki Lory
"I am a Chicago-based potter who loves to make kyusu. As I work on rebuilding and
expanding my wood kiln, I have continued to make work through Penguin Foot
Pottery, where I teach wheel-throwing. I love clay, I love tea, and I love teaching.
The potters in this show are all potters I have drawn inspiration from since the first day
I've ever touched clay. It's an absolute honor and pleasure for my work to be included
with theirs."
Marcine Miller
“Informed by the connecting histories of tea culture and pottery as a craft, I make
teaware intended for everyday use during life’s quiet moments. With translucent
porcelain, my work explores the delicacy and strength of the material through the
purity of traditional forms. The pieces included in this show are inspired by time spent
along the coast of Maine and feature a blue shino glaze, carbon trapping, and blushing.
Each piece is handcrafted on the wheel in Ridgewood, Queens and reduction-fired in a
gas kiln in Brooklyn.”
Mark Mohler
“Making teaware is intimate. I have the privilege of making objects that people put to
their lips, that they make a part of their daily rituals. I make work that melts into the
gap between the aesthetic, and bodily experience of drinking tea. When a vessel is
designed with use in mind, such that it is effortless, it creates a seamless flow from
hand, to clay, to tea.”
Jonathan Steele
“My audience may sit to a pot of tea prepared to notice the simple beauty of leaves
floating, steam rising, or water flowing. They may be prepared to focus on the ritual of
areful steeping or the nuance of flavor and terroir. Or perhaps they are primed to
consider the intentional handcraft of the vessels that faithfully serve the moment. In its
essence this work is about momentarily shedding the pressures of frenetic culture and
briefly choosing a nourishing tenderness. It is a committed acknowledgment of the
ever-present and foundational beauties of existence through raw and gently crafted
earthen material. It is about what it is, namely dirt and rock, leaf and water, wind and
mountain. And it’s just a cup of tea—it need not be more.”
Will Talbot
“2024 is a year of teapot experimentation. I am trying to find a balance between form
and function that suits my personal preferences. The idea of a round teapot is a dying
ideal in my mind and as such I wanted to showcase a more “generic” form alongside a
stylistic progression. It is not that I don't find round teapots attractive but more to the
end of why are we not pushing the boundaries on form? These teapots show the
progression from March to May and are just the start of a long year.
These teapots are from two separate kilns. One a gas/soda kiln we fire for 28 hours.
The other two are from a wood kiln I designed and built in 2019. After 5 firings where I
repeatedly tweaked the kiln I managed to get the time from 35 hours to cone 10 to 11
hours to cone 11. I split all of my own wood by hand and am firing both of these kilns
every 5 weeks from March to January. “
Previous Exhibitions:
2011
5 De Mayo: Anna-Lisa Marjak paintings and Elliot Pomar Editores books.
2012
GGrippo 2.0 / Latin-American Contemporary Art and Design: Yvonne Gonzalez sculptures, Manuela Viera-Gallo sculptures,
Nelson Villareal photography, Cecilia Biagini paintings and sculpture, Ignacio Gurruchaga photography, Marcela Paolantonio fashion.
Super Modern: Luciana Levinton paintings and Hannah Parr furniture.
2013
Not Far From The Tree: Rafael Bueno paintings and Lorenzo Bueno sculptures.
Sonic Boom: Richard Timperio paintings.
2014
Alien Bloom: Eteri and Gocha Chkadua Studio sculptures and fashion.
2015
Avant-Jungle: Miki Katagiri milliner sculptures.
2016
Octavio Amado Design from Paris: installation of a lighted ceiling.
Jaleh Fazel: pottery and ceramics from the artist's personal collection.
Dreamtribe: a collection of upcycled clothing from world-sourced hand-made textiles.
2017
Lightworks: metal work and lighting by Facundo Newbery.
Weaving the Clouds: the work of Peruvian weavers from Pitumarca.
Teaware from the Czech Republic by Petr Novak, Miroslava Randova and Ondrej Sedlak
2018
Tinted: Exhibition on natural dyes with Beaugon, Poliana Danila, Atsushi Fatutsuya, Sri Threads, Lea Thomas, trash-à-porter, Samantha Verrone and Marie-Ella Vivaldi .
Portals by MQuan: Retrospective exhibition of Michele Quan's iconic ceramic work.
2019
Boothworldwide exhibition and participative workshop on up-cycling clothes and accessories.
blue: Ondi McMaster and Teresa Misagal two artists working with indigo dye, repcreating Japanese and Indian traditions.
2020
IKI: Debra Smith textile paintings and Japanese vintage pottery from a private collection.
Water: Oliver Halsman-Rosenberg and Bryan Gursky-Cardo, works on paper.
2021
Bouquets: new works from textile artist Elodie Blanchard.
Pop-Up art+design Market: works from Mitsugu Sasaki, Steve Keister, Adriana Kielder, Teresa Misagal, Atsushi Futatsuya, Petr Sklenicka, Miroslava Randova, Peter Kuo, Andrej Bero, Ondi McMaster, Studio Yinchen, Jaleh Fazel, Barbara Stone and GGrippo.
2022
A Sea of Tea: GGrippo's new textile and clay work exhibited after the installation at ADS/DAS Gallery in Newburgh, NY
Tea is the muse / air, fire and wood: new stoneware and photography works from artists Petr Novak and Raneta Kulakova.
2023
Made You Look: Maria Cox / Street Photography.
Jardines Encantados: Lula Aldunate Atelier, mixed-media paintings.
CUP&MUG: pottery group show, featuring Mark Mohler, Miroslava Randova, Barbara Stone, Petr Sklenicka, Jiri Ducek, Carol Pilecki, and many others.
2024
Raices Gushu: textile art installation notes for GGrippo's Xtant exhibition in Palma de Majorca.
POUR Teapots by American Contemporary Artists: Joel Diepenbrock, Terita Heath-Wlaz, Cooper Jeppesen, Hiroki Lory, Marcine Miller, Mark Mohler, Jonathan Steele and Will Talbot.
5 De Mayo: Anna-Lisa Marjak paintings and Elliot Pomar Editores books.
2012
GGrippo 2.0 / Latin-American Contemporary Art and Design: Yvonne Gonzalez sculptures, Manuela Viera-Gallo sculptures,
Nelson Villareal photography, Cecilia Biagini paintings and sculpture, Ignacio Gurruchaga photography, Marcela Paolantonio fashion.
Super Modern: Luciana Levinton paintings and Hannah Parr furniture.
2013
Not Far From The Tree: Rafael Bueno paintings and Lorenzo Bueno sculptures.
Sonic Boom: Richard Timperio paintings.
2014
Alien Bloom: Eteri and Gocha Chkadua Studio sculptures and fashion.
2015
Avant-Jungle: Miki Katagiri milliner sculptures.
2016
Octavio Amado Design from Paris: installation of a lighted ceiling.
Jaleh Fazel: pottery and ceramics from the artist's personal collection.
Dreamtribe: a collection of upcycled clothing from world-sourced hand-made textiles.
2017
Lightworks: metal work and lighting by Facundo Newbery.
Weaving the Clouds: the work of Peruvian weavers from Pitumarca.
Teaware from the Czech Republic by Petr Novak, Miroslava Randova and Ondrej Sedlak
2018
Tinted: Exhibition on natural dyes with Beaugon, Poliana Danila, Atsushi Fatutsuya, Sri Threads, Lea Thomas, trash-à-porter, Samantha Verrone and Marie-Ella Vivaldi .
Portals by MQuan: Retrospective exhibition of Michele Quan's iconic ceramic work.
2019
Boothworldwide exhibition and participative workshop on up-cycling clothes and accessories.
blue: Ondi McMaster and Teresa Misagal two artists working with indigo dye, repcreating Japanese and Indian traditions.
2020
IKI: Debra Smith textile paintings and Japanese vintage pottery from a private collection.
Water: Oliver Halsman-Rosenberg and Bryan Gursky-Cardo, works on paper.
2021
Bouquets: new works from textile artist Elodie Blanchard.
Pop-Up art+design Market: works from Mitsugu Sasaki, Steve Keister, Adriana Kielder, Teresa Misagal, Atsushi Futatsuya, Petr Sklenicka, Miroslava Randova, Peter Kuo, Andrej Bero, Ondi McMaster, Studio Yinchen, Jaleh Fazel, Barbara Stone and GGrippo.
2022
A Sea of Tea: GGrippo's new textile and clay work exhibited after the installation at ADS/DAS Gallery in Newburgh, NY
Tea is the muse / air, fire and wood: new stoneware and photography works from artists Petr Novak and Raneta Kulakova.
2023
Made You Look: Maria Cox / Street Photography.
Jardines Encantados: Lula Aldunate Atelier, mixed-media paintings.
CUP&MUG: pottery group show, featuring Mark Mohler, Miroslava Randova, Barbara Stone, Petr Sklenicka, Jiri Ducek, Carol Pilecki, and many others.
2024
Raices Gushu: textile art installation notes for GGrippo's Xtant exhibition in Palma de Majorca.
POUR Teapots by American Contemporary Artists: Joel Diepenbrock, Terita Heath-Wlaz, Cooper Jeppesen, Hiroki Lory, Marcine Miller, Mark Mohler, Jonathan Steele and Will Talbot.