WATER Exhibition Featuring Artist: David Roon

David Roon:

"Liquid Interface" - David Roon

David Roon learned the basics of ceramics through coursework at the University of Minnesota and the University of Idaho. He was heavily influenced by a series of courses taken with Minnesota artist Steven Hemmingway, who works with a similar mosaic-style approach to Raku. He has been refining his own unique vision and technique part time since 1994, opening his own private studio in 2010.  David works with a technique called ‘Raku mosaic’. All of his work is wheel-thrown, but most of his wares (such as water features and lanterns) are assembled from multiple elements. He etches stylized natural and mythological designs into his wheel-thrown greenware- the carved lines are sealed with wax, and the interstitial spaces are hand-painted with various Raku glazes. Each piece is kiln fired and plunged into a closed chamber filled with combustible materials, where the carved lines are smoked black, and the glazed sections take on metallic flashings, crackle patterns, and other organic-looking textures. The resultant surfaces evoke living stained-glass windows. 

His Statement: 

"In 'Liquid Interface', I want to challenge the viewer to consider the consequences of replacing 'water as a public good' with 'water as a commodity'. I'm also interested in plastic bottles, and the way they reflect our collective ideas about permanence, worth, and transience. Objectively, these objects display a beauty and environmental persistence that rivals ceramics (the main medium for these works). and yet we treat them like garbage. 

This installation is interactive. If you brought bottled water to the exhibition, and if you finish your bottle water over the course of of your visit, I encourage you to add your bottle to the collection."

Come check out his work at Hera! WATER Exhibit ends May 9th.