Arkadiusz Szwed: Selected works, 2016-2022
Bumps 2.0, 2019
A set of ceramic objects that were created as a result of an experiment with a new, personal technique of porcelain casting. As part of the process, plastic balls are pushed under an elastic fabric, which is pulled over a plaster model, allowing the balls to be moved around freely – this intervention randomly shapes the form. This technique allows the formation of molds using a method similar to that provided by 3D printing tools, however fully analog.
The balls that played an important role in shaping the vessel are nothing more than waste from deodorant bottles that the artist’s friend had accumulated for years for no reason.
In retrospect, they were waiting for their moment in history. Ultimately, they became a driving force for action, but above all, a new tool for work in the process, which is the signature of the artist’s work.
Guts, 2021
A porcelain set of objects that are a continuation of the experiment with form and structure. As in the case of BUMPS 2.0, the artist used non-obvious everyday items to create the models. This time, the things of interest were balloons, cables and wood sticks. As a result of the process, he achieved objects that look like undefined living organisms.
Brick Factory, 2022
The idea to create this set came from the desire to return to playing with the artist’s favorite childhood toy, Lego bricks- treated as a decoration, a kind of jewelry for these specific porcelain objects.
The Human Trace, 2016
‘The Human Trace’ tableware has been manufactured as part of the project’ People from the porcelain factory’ project, carried out in one of the oldest ceramic factories in Poland, Ćmielów, established in 1790 and active in fine porcelain production since 1838.
The porcelain set was produced on a factory production line by workers wearing gloves whose fingertips were dipped in cobalt salts. The traces of their touch remain almost invisible until firing, when they appear on the porcelain body, as the cobalt turns dark blue. In this way, the porcelain tableware keeps the touch of the workers’ hands, revealing the role of the ‘human factor’ in industrial manufacturing.
The project combines anthropological research with critical design, with the team consisting of an anthropologist, Ewa Klekot, and a ceramist, Arkadiusz Szwed. It is a project in progress, financed by the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education within the framework of the National Programme of Development in Humanities.
Captions
- Bumps 2.0, 2019, porcelain 30x14x14cm, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Bumps 2.0, 2019, porcelain, 14x14x20cm, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Bumps 2.0 model, 2019, plastic balls stockings, 20x20x24, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Bumps 2.0, 2019, porcelain, 16x16x20cm, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Bumps 2.0, 2019, porcelain, 18x18x10, photo Arkadiusz Szwed - Guts 1, 2021, porcelain, 16x16x33cm, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Guts 2, 2021, porcelain, 15x15x39cm, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Guts 3, 2021, porcelain, 17x14x31cm, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Guts 4, 2021, porcelain, 14x14x34cm, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Guts model 1, 2021, stockings ballons, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Guts model 2, 2021, stockings ballons, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Guts model 3, 2021, stockings cables, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Guts model 4, 2021, stockings wood stick, photo Arkadiusz Szwed - Brick factory (all set), 2022, porcelain lego bricks, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Brick factory, 2022, 12x12x27cm, porcelain lego bricks, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Brick factory, 2022, 21x6x14cm, porcelain lego bricks, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
Brick factory, 2022, 27x3x3cm, porcelain lego bricks, photo Arkadiusz Szwed - Human trace x people from the porcelain factory, 2016, porcelain, photo Arkadiusz Szwed
