THE MAKER'S LUNCH MARCH 2020 RUTH GIBSON

Last month I welcomed a maker new to Bevere Gallery - Sharon Griffin - and this month we are delighted to have yet another fine maker who is new to this Gallery – Ruth Gibson, who we were pleased to invite to join us for our Makers Lunch. Her impressively constructed and decorated work undoubtedly helps to maintain Bevere's reputation for diversity, originality and quality

Ruth is an experienced and skilled maker in porcelain, combining a love of photography, printmaking and ceramics, to evoke a sense of place; in particular the Shropshire landscape, Welsh coast and mountains. She certainly does just that and her imagery and the overall design of her work is striking.  

I first saw her pieces at the Oxford Ceramic Fair last year and her distinctive black on white decoration immediately drew me in. Once again, we are seeing the two major elements in art and craft – undoubted quality and skill combined with an original voice.

Ruth gave many insights during the two hours spent talking with her about the way her creativity has developed over her years as an artist maker and the constant desire to take her work forward. Apart from the work on display in the Gallery, Ruth also produces large outdoor pieces  - mostly on commission – and her enthusiasm for the grand scale was self evident.

Clearly, her black on white – often porcelain produces striking  - indeed memorable – pieces. Her description of the way in which screen printing – one her major techniques – has to be approached to avoid spoilt outcomes made it clear that printing was no straightforward decorative choice.

It became increasingly evident during our time with her that her creative energy demanded the range of skills which she has in photography printmaking and working with clay in different modes.

A significant number of her pieces are mounted and everyone acknowledged that her landscapes particularly involving winter trees, which she loves and swooping murmurations of birds benefited from the perspectives gained from wall hanging. Having said that her bowls and platters demanded to be picked up and studied at length.

Whilst black and white dominates it also emerged that Ruth has a strong desire to use colour – albeit sensitively to enhance her imagery. Whatever direction her work takes, we were left in no doubt that the distinctive Ruth Gibson voice will remain.

Thank you Ruth for a stimulating and enjoyable event.

Stuart Dickens

Ceramic Curator

March 2020