Alison Shelton Brown*
Alison Shelton Brown | Ceramics | Devon
Making with meaning is fundamental to Alison, exploring the consequences of the human touch on our world. As a multi-disciplinary artist her butterfly brain and bowerbird eye intuitively play with those fluttering thoughts through ceramics, metal and textiles, encouraging a tactile curiosity.
She loves the malleability of clay; to prod, tear and embed surfaces with the foraged and found, inviting a reciprocal interaction. Porcelain has a reputation for fragility, yet its fineness is its strength. Appearances can be deceptive. Featherweight components with an underlying process of playfulness and a light touch are often inspired by ethnographic collections, such as scrimshaw and amulets.
Alison makes objects that adorn and ornament the body or a place; sculptural ceramics which can be hung, worn and stroked. By distilling an idea and eliminating the unnecessary, the essence of a form is divined; a simple joy revealed.
There is a circularity in life; forgotten themes re-emerge from a chrysalis, while tangible mark making and our impact on the natural world weave and cast shadows.