CONVERSATIONS AT THE POMPIDOU PAVILLION, MUSÉE NATIONAL DE CÉRAMIQUE, PARIS (2016)

Artist Residencies in Museums – A Sustainable Tool of Collaborative Critique?, 6 May 2016

Artists have worked with, and within, museums for a very long time. The popularity and proliferation of the ceramic artist in resident over the last few years prompted a discussion amongst our participants about the nature of these residencies, their sustainability and their potential to help museums engage with communities. Read a transcript of the conversation here.

Thinking Back to Go Forward – The Museum as Hub, 6 May 2016

Museums and other institutions exhibiting art are constantly thinking about how to be relevant to audiences, and how to get audiences engaging with objects, artists and ideas. Here, an international group largely comprising of museum professionals discuss what has worked well and what lessons could be learnt from other public services to enrich the service they provide to the public. Read a transcript of the conversation here.

Feedback on Feedback – Thinking Through Qualitative Tools for Understanding Audiences Today, 6 May 2016

How do professionals evaluate the experience of museum-goers in a meaningful and productive way? In this conversation, participants discuss the role of the information gathered, the form it takes and who decides this? Raising these questions brings up creative ways to attract visitors to museums including the relatively untapped potential of social-media. Read a transcript of the conversation here.

The Enduring Trajectory of Ceramics – How Do We Talk About Clay?, 6 May 2016

In this discussion, participants suggest many ways that clay artworks can be understood within the ideological and critical landscape of manmade things. This stems from the idea that perhaps clay is a constant and enduring material for making things regardless of the categories through which it is seen. The art historian in the room, Glen Brown, reminds us that exposing work to different critical contexts is productive and positive rather than restrictive. Read a transcript of the conversation here.

Documenting The Ephemeral – Collaboration And Interpretative Documentation, 6 May 2016

The question of what kind of documentation is appropriate for ephemeral, time-based works, or temporary exhibition installations is an important one for curators and artists working within an ‘expanded field’ of ceramics. One of the ways artists and curators tackle this question is to introduce another collaborative element to the existing relationship between artist and institution. Here, curators Hyeyoung Cho and Alun Graves have discussed examples of photography and videography that interpret as well as document. The documentation may become another element of the work that, like the collaboration between artist and institution, requires careful thought and involves elements of risk and trust. Read a transcript of the conversation here.

CLAY + CULTURE + SOCIETY

Monument: From Controversy to Care

To mark the dismantling of Monument at the Zuiderzee Museum after ten years, Clare Twomey engaged with the visitors of the museum in a participatory artist project: Monument – the golden thread.  Visitors were given the opportunity to select a historic tile from the sculpture, which were then registered in the name of the new owner and provided with a golden wax seal and authentication by the Zuiderzee Museum.

In a conversation convened by the design historian Tessa Peters with Erik Schilp and Clare Twomey, they reflect on the role of the sculpture and the changes it has witnessed in museology, society and culture. Read a transcript here.

Beyond the Object? A conversation between Clare Twomey and Phoebe Cummings

The following text is an edited transcript from a conversation between Phoebe Cummings and Clare Twomey after the seminar for Beyond the Object held at Uppsala Konstmuseum.  Both artists talk about their individual practice and research during the seminar. Read a transcript of the conversation here.

THEASTER GATES AND SIMON GROOM, AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTMINSTER

Theaster Gates & Simon Groom, 16th July 2014

Theaster Gates talks to Simon Groom (Director of the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art) about his relationship with ceramics and the dynamic between project and object in his work. Available to watch here.