|
|
Harlequin Gallery |
||||
|
New Stoneware and Porcelain |
|||||
|
Sunday 8th to |
|||||
|
|
|
||||
|
|
|||||
|
|
|
||||
|
It's a warm welcome back to Ursula Mommens
for this exhibition that had originally been planned for April 2002. This had
to be rescheduled due to a fall that Ursula suffered towards the end of last
year. Although not too serious she was unable to stand for long periods and
was unhappy with the pots she was able to throw. Forever the professional,
Ursula has returned to work and having just celebrated her 94th birthday
remains the oldest active professional potter in this country by several
years. Ursula's dedication
to pottery is probably best illustrated by a story she told me about
regretting not going to visit Lucie Rie in her studio when she was invited.
Ursula had been wandering around the Royal College of Art many years ago and
was trying out some chairs included in a graduation show. These she remarked
were as uncomfortable as they looked but as she was sitting there she noticed
a petite female laughing at her. This was Lucie Rie, who was laughing because
she had tested out the same chairs earlier and came to the same conclusion.
They got chatting and Lucie invited Ursula to visit her in Albion Mews the
next time she was up in town. Ursula never contacted Lucie because she said
she had heard that Lucie made her visitors delicious cakes and she felt that
Lucie shouldn't waste time she could spend potting in cake making. Since
Ursula's last exhibition at the Harlequin two years ago, she has been working
on new shapes and designs and it is hoped that examples of this work will be
available in the exhibition. I say hoped because when I went down to see
Ursula at the end of June many pots were awaiting firing and it is always
difficult to predict how these will turn out after the final firing process.
However it is amazing that someone who trained under William Staite Murray at the RCA in the late 1920's and worked
with Michael Cardew over 60 years ago is still wishing to develop her work
and experiment. Being a descendent of Josiah Wedgwood may of course have
something to do with it. Ursula will
be present at the Private View on 8th September. |
|||||
|
Click Previous to see |
|||||
|
|
|
|
|
||
