Material and dimensions:
Glazed porcelain and oxides. Unique.
Totem Vase
60 x 45 cm
Totem Face
49 x 41 x 4 cm
Totem Trophy
36 x 26 cm
Courtesy Nilufar Gallery
Year:
2017-2019
Photography by:
Anders Sune Berg
Video by:
Michael Sangkoyo Gramtorp
About the project:
Ancient ceramic containers used in occult rituals are given new and contemporary life in the Totem series. Inspired by prehistoric Mexican terracotta, Danish Bronze Age and German Bartmann ceramics from the 16th and 17th centuries, the result is a manifestation of how old tradition and modern mystique can be combined. Made in collaboration with Royal Copenhagen.
LONG DESCRIPTION:
The Totem ceramics are inspired by prehistoric Mexican terracotta, Danish Bronze Age stoneware and German Bartmann ceramics from the 16th and 17th centuries. In some regions, these ceramic containers were used in occult rituals with the purpose of expelling evil spirits. By playfully adapting this stylistic expression to her own ceramics, Cathrine Raben Davidsen introduces the association to the ghostly and spiritual in her work, juxtaposing the old tradition with a modern mystique. Some of the ceramics are glazed with oxblood, celadon and various oxides. One selected piece has been applied 24 carat gold, while others have undergone salt firings. The Totem ceramics are made in collaboration with Royal Copenhagen from 2017 to 2019 using historical glazes from the Royal Copenhagen archives.
Artist bio:
Cathrine Raben Davidsen
Artist, born 1972
Historical accounts, mythological material and works of fiction form the central impetus for Cathrine Raben Davidsen’s work. Using and juxtaposing references from cultural traditions, ancient histories of craftsmanship, the great masters of European art history as well as the current social and philosophical thinking of our own time, Raben Davidsen explores the essential traits of human nature. The traditional hierarchies among art, craftsmanship and design are channelled into an artistic oeuvre that ranges wide from painting, drawing, print and ceramics to costumes and stage design.
Raben Davidsen is Knight of the Order of Dannebrog, appointed by HM The Queen II of Denmark. She is currently working on a series of very large bronze vessels for the Winter Garden of the Carlsberg Academy. A comprehensive permanent commission for The Carlsberg Academy, in the old villa of Brewer J.C. Jacobsen (1811-87).
EDUCATION:
2006: MFA from the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts
1996: Vrije Academie voor Beeldende Kunsten, The Netherlands
1995: Faculty of Theology, The University of Copenhagen
1992: Istituto Lorenzo de’ Medici, Florence
SELECTED COLLABORATIONS:
2017 – 2019: Artist in residence at the Royal Copenhagen factory in Denmark
2013: Collaboration with Nick Knight and Showstudio in London.
2009: Collaboration with Royal Copenhagen
2016 – 2020: Member of The Charlottenborg Foundation
SELECTED GRANTS AND HONOURS :
2015: Knight of the Order of Dannebrog, Appointed by HM The Queen II of Denmark
2015: Anne Marie Telmányi – The Carl Nielsen Honorary Grant 2014: HH Bruuns Honorary Grant
2009: Niels Wessel Bagge Art Foundation
2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2018: Danish Arts Foundation
SELECTED EXHIBITIONS:
2020: Totem – Cathrine Raben Davidsen, CLAY Museum of Ceramic Art, Denmark
2019: Dark Matter, Horsens Art Museum, Denmark
2019: Mess, curated by Tom Morris and Laura Young, The Future Perfect, LA, SF and NY
2019: Deeper than Text, Female Design Counsel, NYC&Design, 1stdibs Gallery, NY
2018: Furniture by Artists, David Risley Gallery, Copenhagen
2017: Salone del Mobile, collaboration with Nilufar Gallery, Milan
Represented by Nilufar Gallery, Milan and The Future Perfect, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
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