We don’t have an image of this object online yet. V&A Images may have a photograph that we can’t show online, but it may be possible to supply one to you. Email us at vaimages@vam.ac.uk for guidance about fees and timescales, quoting the accession number: C.16:1 to 14-2010
Find out about our images

Not currently on display at the V&A

Kinder Trail

Installation
2010 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Australian artist Gwyn Hanssen Pigott is a pioneer of ceramic still life and installation art, and her work has had considerable influence. Like many of Hanssen Pigott's linear groups, 'Kinder trail' makes a gentle allusion to a procession of figures. Its title refers to the artist's perception of the pieces as vulnerable, like child refugees moving in a column.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 14 parts.

  • Bowl
  • Bowl
  • Beaker
  • Beaker
  • Beaker
  • Bowl
  • Beaker
  • Beaker
  • Beaker
  • Beaker
  • Beaker
  • Beaker
  • Beaker
  • Bowl
TitleKinder Trail (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Glazed porcelain
Brief description
Installation of glazed porcelain beakers and bowls, 'Kinder Trail', by Gwyn Hanssen Pigott, Australia, 2010.
Physical description
Installation piece comprising ten beakers and four bowls in glazed porcelain, arranged in a linear fashion with precisely defined internal groupings.
Dimensions
  • Installed work length: 128cm
  • Greatest height height: 16cm
  • Installed work depth: 18cm
Overall dimensions of installation as specified by artist: l. 128cm, h. 16cm, d. 18cm.
Credit line
Acquired through the generosity of Gerard and Sarah Griffin
Object history
Shown in the exhibition Gwyn Hanssen Pigott at Galerie Besson, London, 9 June - 8 July 2010, handlist no. 4.

In common with other related works, this piece makes an allusion to a procession of figures. The artist indicated that the title had been chosen because she felt the pieces to be vulnerable, like child refugees moving in a column.

In an interview with Craft Australia in 2011, Hanssen Pigott explains this idea further:

Craft Australia:
A review in 1995 described your vessels as an assembly of 'characters', each group a family and each exhibition a 'village'. What leads you to constructing this sense of character and narrative with pots when you present your exhibitions?

Gwyn Hanssen Pigott:
I suppose they are like families. I give names to my groupings of pots based on how they look and feel to me. For example, a group of pots that are small and looking vulnerable, I might call 'Exodus'. This is because it reminds me of a group or trail of children who are refugees. Or, another group, I might call 'Waiting' and it might suggest a group of people waiting at a gate, waiting to get in. I don't design the groups beforehand. I make the pots and after the firing, I see how they might relate.

[Source: www.craftaustralia.org.au/library/interview.php?id=gwyn-hanssen-pigott-pottery-and-presence]

Subjects depicted
Summary
Australian artist Gwyn Hanssen Pigott is a pioneer of ceramic still life and installation art, and her work has had considerable influence. Like many of Hanssen Pigott's linear groups, 'Kinder trail' makes a gentle allusion to a procession of figures. Its title refers to the artist's perception of the pieces as vulnerable, like child refugees moving in a column.
Bibliographic references
  • Gwyn Hanssen Pigott. Exhibition pamphlet. London: Galerie Besson, 9 June - 8 July 2010.
  • Wells, Kathryn. Gwyn Hanssen Pigott, Pottery and presence. Craft Australia. Interview. 24 June 2011. [Source: www.craftaustralia.org.au/library/interview.php?id=gwyn-hanssen-pigott-pottery-and-presence. Accessed: 22 August 2011]
  • Adamson, Glenn, Martina Droth and Simon Olding (ed.s) Things of Beauty Growing British Studio Pottery. New Haven, London, 2017 p. 366, 367
Collection
Accession number
C.16:1 to 14-2010

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdJuly 12, 2011
Record URL
Download as: JSON