Tetrogene
2008
Since the 1960s, Ron Nagle has created imaginative ceramic objects that draw inspiration from painter Giorgio Morandi, traditional Japanese ceramics, and Hot Rod culture. As a student at U.C. Berkley, Nagle studied under ceramicist Peter Voulkos, who encouraged experimentation and was a seminal figure in the contemporary ceramic movement on the West Coast. Another influence was Ken Price, whose deconstructed cup is also on view. Nagle’s abstract sculptures not only reveal the stylistic discoveries he has made throughout his career, but show an endless fascination with glazing techniques—including overlaying pigments with an airbrush—allowing him to achieve visual complexity and depth in his multifaceted surfaces.
Tetrogene vividly conveys Nagle’s expressionistic style, an approach that has become his signature and has put him at the forefront of ceramic artists working today.
Earthenware with over glazes
2 3/4 x 5 1/4 x 3 1/4 in. (7 x 13.3 x 8.3 cm)
Purchased with funds from Virginia and Bagley Wright
2011.11
Provenance: The artist to Rena Bransten Gallery, San Francisco, CA; James Harris Gallery, Seattle, Washington, 2011
Photo: Don Tuttle
