Bottle Green Republic thumbnail 1
Bottle Green Republic thumbnail 2
+5
images
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Ceramics, Room 139, The Curtain Foundation Gallery

Bottle Green Republic

Sculpture
2009 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Richard Deacon (b.1949) is a leading British sculptor and former Turner Prize winner, and has been the subject of a major retrospective at Tate Britain in 2014. Throughout his career, Deacon has employed a range of materials including laminated wood, stell, and glazed ceramic.

Bottle Green Republic belongs to a series of ceramic pieces constructed from cut lengths of clay, assempled in seemingly improbably ways. Each linear section has a precise yet individual geometry, and meets its neighbours through a minimal number of surface contact points. Unified by a single glaze colour, the sculptures recall Suprematist paintings. In their assertion of materiality and their suggestion of something engineered, their greater affinity is perhaps, however, with Constructivism. Their evocation of the Revoluntionary Russian avant-garde is further echoed in the title of the series, Republic.

In common with many of Deacon's sculptures, the works in the Republic series emphasise structure, using component pieces to construct form and to delineate space. The irreversible nature of the ceramic firing process nevertheless makes them distinct from Deacon's work in other materials, where the possibility of disassembly often remains apparent. Bottle Green Republic, a powerful and dynamic work from teh series, holds particular interest for its use of a transparent glaze that has the capacity to emphasise structure by partially revealing the underlying surface. It also complements the architectonic character of the work through its association with architectural ceramics and tiles.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleBottle Green Republic (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Ceramic, glaze, assembled
Brief description
'Bottle Green Republic' glazed ceramic sculpture, Richard Deacon, Germany, 2009.
Physical description
Ceramic sculpture made up of five individually assembled linear sections, each having precise yet individual geometry. Each linear section is attached to its neighbour through a minimal number of points. They look as though they are balancing on top on one another. They have been covered in a bottle green transparent glaze with slight crazing. The glaze runs slightly to gather at its angular edges, and so the clay surface is visible.
Dimensions
  • Length: 34cm (Note: taken from records)
  • Width: 59cm (Note: taken from records)
  • Height: 51.5cm (Note: taken from records)
Credit line
Acquired through the generosity of Gerard and Sarah Griffin
Object history
From Deacon's series Republic.
Displayed at the Lisson Gallery in 2012.
Summary
Richard Deacon (b.1949) is a leading British sculptor and former Turner Prize winner, and has been the subject of a major retrospective at Tate Britain in 2014. Throughout his career, Deacon has employed a range of materials including laminated wood, stell, and glazed ceramic.

Bottle Green Republic belongs to a series of ceramic pieces constructed from cut lengths of clay, assempled in seemingly improbably ways. Each linear section has a precise yet individual geometry, and meets its neighbours through a minimal number of surface contact points. Unified by a single glaze colour, the sculptures recall Suprematist paintings. In their assertion of materiality and their suggestion of something engineered, their greater affinity is perhaps, however, with Constructivism. Their evocation of the Revoluntionary Russian avant-garde is further echoed in the title of the series, Republic.

In common with many of Deacon's sculptures, the works in the Republic series emphasise structure, using component pieces to construct form and to delineate space. The irreversible nature of the ceramic firing process nevertheless makes them distinct from Deacon's work in other materials, where the possibility of disassembly often remains apparent. Bottle Green Republic, a powerful and dynamic work from teh series, holds particular interest for its use of a transparent glaze that has the capacity to emphasise structure by partially revealing the underlying surface. It also complements the architectonic character of the work through its association with architectural ceramics and tiles.
Collection
Accession number
C.75-2014

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Record createdJanuary 13, 2014
Record URL
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