PETER PINCUS: NEW CERAMIC LUXURY

All Images Courtesy of Peter Pincus.

I kinda did a triple take when I first saw these vases. Peter Pincus is pushing traditional ceramics to their limits with his vessels and objects that border on functional craft and fine art. But I feel these objects certainly are luxurious in how they are so finely crafted. Each piece utilizes as many different processes as possible to push the forms outside of what is possible on the wheel alone. At first glance, his work didn’t even look like they could be ceramic. But they are. Peter often starts on the wheel, creating more classical pottery shapes, but then he’ll cut it up, put it back together, make molds from certain sections, then attach those to the original objects to achieve those interesting forms he’s become known for.

And the colors! No earthy-toned glazes here. Pincus pulls his palette of bright glossy colors from the pages of fashion magazines to bring the works into our contemporary lives. To do this, he has developed a careful glazing process that involves pouring plaster and casting slip over the final objects, then adding mason stain (which comes in all those bright amazing colors!), before carefully slicing away sections with his Exacto knife to create the geometric surface designs.

The shapes he works with are significant too. He uses traditional high society objects, like whisky decanters, jewelry boxes, and perfume bottles, as well as cups and vases, to reference the aristocratic notion of luxury. But he wants to bring that luxury to contemporary households, focusing on finely made objects, rather than fancy brand name items.

I just love his ethos around new luxury – that it should be about finely crafted goods, not flashy or expensive ticket items. As always, handmade is the best made, but it’s also about thoughtful, and innovative design – and Peter’s almost sculptural objects cover all these bases! I am smitten. I bet you all are now, too!