Out of China: Monumental Porcelain

Working collaboratively with teams of local craftsmen in a Chinese manufactory in Jingdezhen, Aylieff has explored how technologies can be adapted to produce appropriate, original and unique contemporary sculptural expressions. Her research has resulted in artworks using an extreme scale not typically associated with porcelain. During a series of residencies in Jingdezhen, Aylieff investigated local traditional ‘blue and white’ ceramic techniques, including glaze application, decorative brushwork and firing methods. This body of research was primarily presented through four exhibitions, two with associated texts. ‘Out of China: Monumental Porcelain’ was an Arts Council-funded solo exhibition of work by Aylieff. During 2008–9, the exhibition toured to three venues: Barn Gallery, West Dean; Gallery Oldham, Manchester; and Lightbox Gallery, Woking. An associated book was published with text by Aylieff and an essay by Professor Emmanuel Cooper. ‘Contemporary Craft Comes to No.10’ was a joint exhibition of work shown at No.10 Downing Street in 2011. Aylieff was one of eight leading makers whose work was selected to be shown. Porcelain City Jingdezhen, a joint exhibition by Felicity Aylieff, Roger Law, Ah Xian, and Takeshi Yasuda was shown at the V&A Museum (2011-12). The exhibition focused on the rich language and history of Chinese porcelain and present-day life in Jingdezhen through contemporary ceramic production. The publication Porcelain City Jingdezhen, which accompanied the exhibition, included an essay by Aylieff: ‘Scooters, Buddhas and water lilies’. ‘China’s White Gold’, an exhibition held at the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge (2012-13), featured eight of Aylieff’s pieces, including four monumental works. Pieces from the exhibitions were acquired by public institutions and for major international collections including the V&A; Shipley Art Gallery; York Museum, and Chatsworth House. During her residency at Jingdezhen, Aylieff was interviewed for the BBC4 television documentary Treasures of Chinese Porcelain (2011)

Working to Scale

‘Working to Scale’ explored how techniques traditional to Chinese ceramic manufacture could inform contemporary work. Aylieff focused on the decorative technique of Famille Rose enamel painting: Fencai. Aylieff’s research into Fencai included studying historical sources and object collections to understand the origins and development of this decorative technique, and the structure of imagery and patterns associated with its use. She also undertook practical investigations into the traditional means of applying and firing the enamels. This research underpinned the contemporary pieces Aylieff produced, which referenced traditional forms and surface patterns of Fencai techniques in their surface decoration. The use of Fencai had traditionally been restricted to modestly sized vessels. Owing to its firing requirements, it was not previously thought possible to deploy it on a larger scale. Aylieff chose to innovate in this direction, a decision that entailed her having to master the demands of large-scale porcelain production. She also developed ways of applying extensive areas of enamel and complex firing cycles to accommodate the scale of the works and the multiple firings Fencai requires. Aylieff undertook the research, practical testing and manufacturing of the vessels in ceramic workshops in Jingdezhen, China. The resulting pieces were technically innovative and also created a new relationship with the viewer owing to their overall monumental quality and the extent of the ‘ceramic canvas’ each work displayed. The research culminated in a solo exhibition of six monumental and six small vessels at Contemporary Applied Arts (CAA), London, between October and November 2009. A catalogue of Aylieff’s oeuvre was published to coincide with the CAA exhibition, funded by the Arts Council and with an essay by Ann Elliott. As a further development, two new works using this process of Fencai were acquired by the Cheltenham Museum (supported by the Art Fund, 2013)

Porcelain City Jingdezhen

Working collaboratively with teams of local craftsmen in a Chinese manufactory in Jingdezhen, Aylieff has explored how technologies can be adapted to produce appropriate, original and unique contemporary sculptural expressions. Her research has resulted in artworks using an extreme scale not typically associated with porcelain. During a series of residencies in Jingdezhen, Aylieff investigated local traditional ‘blue and white’ ceramic techniques, including glaze application, decorative brushwork and firing methods. This body of research was presented primarily through exhibitions. Aylieff was one of eight leading makers whose work was selected to be shown in 2011-12 for ‘Porcelain City Jingdezhen’, a joint exhibition by Felicity Aylieff, Roger Law, Ah Xian, and Takeshi Yasuda at the V&A Museum. The exhibition focused on the rich language and history of Chinese porcelain and present-day life in Jingdezhen through contemporary ceramic production. The publication Porcelain City Jingdezhen, which accompanied the exhibition, included an essay by Aylieff: ‘Scooters, Buddhas and water lilies’. Aylieff also contributed work to ‘Contemporary Craft Comes to No.10’, a joint exhibition shown at No.10 Downing Street in 2011. Reflecting on the exhibition, Culture Minister Ed Vaizey said: ‘Contemporary craft doesn’t necessarily have the same profile as contemporary art, but it is no less important in terms of creativity or its ability to enrich people’s lives’ (News Release, DCMS, July 2011). ‘China’s White Gold’, an exhibition held at the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge (2012-13), also featured eight of Aylieff’s pieces, including four monumental works. Pieces from the exhibitions were acquired by public institutions and for major international collections including the Museum of Wales; V&A; Shipley Art Gallery; York Museum, and Chatsworth House. During her residency at Jingdezhen, Aylieff was interviewed for the BBC4 television documentary Treasures of Chinese Porcelain (2011)

Contemporary Craft comes to Number 10

Number 10 Downing Street hosted for the first time, an exhibition of 8 leading makers. I was one of the selected exhibitors,the others were, Edmund de Waal, Simon Hasan,Rob Kesseler, Kate McBride, Deborah Thomas, Gareth Neal and Studio Glithero The exhhibition was organised and curated by Janice Blackburn to enable visitors to the Prime Minister’s official residence will be able to see a diverse range of works by established and up-and-coming contemporary craftspeople. The display was a showcase for the UK’s vibrant craft sector, which contributes £3bn a year to the UK economy and employs more than 80,000 people. Minister of Culture, Ed Vaisey said of the exhibition: “Since taking office I have been keen to do what I can to redress the balance and for the past year have had a display of work on loan from the Crafts Council in my Ministerial office. This new display in Downing Street will showcase work by some of the UK’s finest craftspeople to the many thousands of people who visit Downing Street each year.” The Exhibition opened on Wednesday 21st September 2011, with a reception at Number 10 Downing street. It was part of the celebration event for London Design Festival. The exhibition will remain until spring 2012. 2 blue and white vases, painted in New Ming Cobalt blue 52cms ht

Out of Delft/Out of China

Aylieff’s residency at the Royal Delft Factory in the Netherlands led to two major outcomes: an exhibition at the Factory Museum and a solo show at Galerie Terra Delft, the city’s premier contemporary ceramics gallery. The residency at Royal Delft during December 2010 provided Aylieff with the opportunity to use the factory’s archive and object collections to research the development of Delft Blue and White painting and the traditional imagery used on delftware produced by the company. This research informed new surface-pattern designs developed by Aylieff, which made use of a range of techniques available at the factory that were new to her experience. Her contemporary, personal response to the traditional imagery of Delft ceramics led to the creation of a diverse range of decorated pieces for the exhibitions and an edition of artist’s design stoneware plates produced by the factory and sold under the Royal Delft label. Aylieff’s solo exhibition at Galerie Terra Delft in 2011 presented the results of the Royal Delft residency alongside work produced during a residency at Jingdezhen. The show explored the connections between the two bodies of work and the relevance and importance to the artist of a cross-cultural experience in conceiving and making ceramics. These exhibitions were described in the exhibition catalogue Brandpunt Terra (2011), and in Crafts Magazine (2011) and Klei Keramisch (2011). The residency and both exhibitions formed a significant event within the citywide ‘Delft Ceramics Festival’ (‘Brandpunt Terra’) and helped stimulate contact between the twinned cities of Delft and Jingdezhen. A professional video was commissioned by Galerie Terra to archive the museum exhibition experience. Exposure of the work in the UK was through a COLLECT satellite exhibition, ‘Terra in China – China in Terra’ (London, 2013). Images of Aylieff’s work were used for the private view invitation

Treasures of Chinese Porcelain - BBC 4

In a partnership between the V&A and BBC4 a yearlong season of programmes were produced exploring the decorative arts in Britain. Ceramics: a fragile history, was part of this series and 'Treasures of Chinese Porcelain was made as an accompanying documentary about the European obsession with Chinese porcelain between the 16th century to the height of its mania in the 18th century. I was interviewed with clips of my working methods and my studio in Jingdezhen, as an illustration of an artist working collaboratively today,in China and as an example of cultural exchange with this historic capital of porcelain production

Explorations in Blue

This entirely new collection of 14 works in Porcelain is an exploration of Blue and White painting onto large scale ceramic forms, an ongoing concern in Aylieff’s work. Working in Jingdezhen, the historic home of Chinese porcelain, she developed a strong relationship with porcelain factories; the knowledge and expertise gained from this cultural exchange enabled her to work in an unprecedented way. Taking up opportunities for reinterpreting traditional Chinese production techniques, she improved former designs for stacking techniques using wheel thrown sections, that gave the potential to create works monumental in scale (the tallest being 4.6m). The introduction of simple lidded forms, uninterupted in outline affords the pieces contemporary sensibilities, whilst also referencing aspects of traditional Chinese ceramic form. Whilst a number of works represent a bridge between earlier and newer approaches to the painted surface, through their establishment of technique, others explore innovation in surface treatments. These extended Aylieff’s vocabulary of painting and mark making using a range of ‘blue’ tones, achieved through the layering of marks made using specific dilutions of oxide applied with a long split bamboo or ‘whip brush’ designed by the artist. This ‘brush’ dictated that marks must be made at speed, with its length giving limited control to the painting, generating a reactive approach to mark making. The overall result sees the development of a personal expressive language in ceramic painting/drawing, giving an animation to the surface and an energy to the work. The artist was invited by LINLEY, internationally known for creating furniture, accessories and interiors of high quality craftsmanship, to hold the inaugural exhibition in the newly created gallery space within its Pimlico store, London. Seeking to reach beyond the familiar art gallery audience, it was a new departure for Aylieff that saw artwork sited within the context of the domestic interior

Qatar installation

Aylieff’s research aim for this commissioned project was to create innovative ceramic work that referenced the historic trade in cobalt (used as a blue pigment in ceramic decoration) between the Middle East, South East Asia and Europe, as well as the evolution of regionally specific decorative ceramic motifs that used this material. A series of three monumental ceramic sculptures were subsequently designed and produced by Aylieff for the atrium of the Tornado Tower (QIPCO Tower) in Doha, Qatar. The works, installed in 2013, are a permanent exhibit and focal point in the building’s central public space. Each sculpture was intended to have a distinct identity but also to be seen as part of a coherent group that would retain an aura of monumentality within the vast architectural space of the atrium of Tornado Tower. The project required Aylieff to investigate the decorative language of Islamic pattern, which she did through research using the collections of the Islamic Museum, Qatar and the British Museum, London. Aylieff also conducted exhaustive testing to create a contemporary equivalent of the Islamic cobalt blue colouring. The tallest piece was 4.5 metres in height, necessitating extensive technical testing and prototyping to identify the most feasible processes for constructing and firing the pieces and assembling the internal supporting structures necessary for safe installation in a public space. Undertaking the commission also required Aylieff to develop appropriate means of communicating her response to the brief; this included developing new digital and analogue means of presenting her initial ideas and work in progress to the commissioning team. The work was realised through an international partnership that mirrored the expectations of the commissioning team. The ceramic sculptures were designed in the UK, manufactured in China and installed in Qatar