Cutting Edge – New works by Johannes Nagel

Cutting edge is not just the proposition of showing a very contemporary take on interpreting the tradition of the vase.
The works transcend the idea of the vessel in being intensely sculptural. Nevertheless the dynamic volumes point to a canon of form that is deeply rooted in cultural history. It is the language of representation that has produced objects that have always been representative rather than functional. The work in the show is taking this tradition into the 21st century and into the realm of sculpture.
But more specificaly Cutting edge is a literal description of the process with this body of work. Besides hands that produce soft edged tunnels with an organic language the saw is an important tool. Opening up volumes and turning them inside out through dedicated cuts. Contrasting hard edged objects come from a process that is rather deconstruction than shaping.

The volumes are glazed in a range from strongly painterly gestures to a contemporary take on ornamentation and pattern. Volumes and painting merge into a kind of sculptural interpretation of the vessel.
I follow the vase but I hardly ever think of flowers.