Katrina Chaytor's New Teapot arrives in London

It is totally fitting that while Brian is away in Calgary, actually he is on his way back from Red Deer as I type, that a teapot from the indomitable Katrina Chaytor should arrive. Actually yesterday Brian was with Katrina yesterday. The transplanted to Calgary Newfoundlander is up in Red Deer doing a residency.

Katrina Chaytor teapot on trivet

For anyone unfamiliar with her work I can tell you right now: It is fantastic. One of the difficulties of just giving something a cursory glance is that you miss the actual intricacy of what goes into making a piece. Teapots by Katrina are no exception. Actually there is a fantastic article in Ceramic Review, the British publication, by Barbara Tipton, noted Calgary ceramic artist, that outlines the step by step process of a Katrina Chaytor teapot. There are photos and everything you need to understand the process.

Katrina Chaytor teapot with trivet

Actually if you are interested in acquiring a copy of the magazine go to this link: http://www.ceramicreview.com/article.asp?p_article=27907
If you are interested in acquiring the teapot then contact me! We currently have a nice selection of Katrina's work.

Now that you have the source for the authoritative article by Barbara I can give you my layman's view. Essentially Katrina treats the clay like fabric. She cuts and seams until she has a beautifully constructed work that is then intricately decorated. I love Katrina's decoration. The beauty of the decoration with its exquisite colouring is so lush that it is only with prior knowledge that one realises that Katrina is interpreting the visuals of computer circuitry and translating it to the canvas that is her ceramic work. It wasn't until I read about the imagery that I actually realised what it really was that I was looking at.

I think it it takes a special artist to think of melding the technique of a fabric artist with the knowledge of a computer engineer with the skills of a ceramic artist to create one-off works of art. Kristina's teapots are works of art. They are radiant with colour imbued with a quiet strength and at the same time functional. Katrina's employment at the Alberta College of Art means that her wonderfully equipped studio located in her backyard in Calgary does see her spending as much time there as she would like.

If you are interested in seeing more of Katrina's work just shoot me an email jonathon@jonathons.ca and I'll will send you some pictures.