Juliette Clovis: Endless series, 2019-2022
Starting at the beginning of 2019, one year before the whole world heard about this animal for other catastrophic reasons, my series Endless draws its inspiration from a small mammal in a voice of extinction; the pangolin. Like the animal, thousands of porcelain scales, whose shapes reproduce those of the pangolin, interlock into each other and form a carapace that covers the surface of my sculptures entirely. The final shape draws an abstract line, invasive and sinuous, almost looking like snake curves.
Like a Gordian knot, the sculptures of this series have neither a beginning nor an end. A hybrid, endless and reptilian creature with an immaculate beauty born from intertwined and sprawling forms.
The course of events seems then reversed. The cycle of life takes another turn and instead of disappearing, a new living being emerges from the pangolin’s scales. A powerful new form springs out of fragile porcelain shards. The impression of strength and invasion is palpable, but the delicacy and fragility of porcelain softens this tension. Strength and fragility are balanced to give life to a new form of harmony.
Photo captions
- Amaltheus, 2021, porcelain and metal oxides, H.44 x L.43 x D.28 cm, credits Juliette Clovis
- Ananta, 2019, Porcelain, enamel, metal oxides and mix media, H.72 x L.57 x D.62 cm, credits Juliette Clovis
- Blue Velvet, 2021, Porcelain, enamel, metal oxides and mix media, H.41 x L.50 x D.49 cm, credits Juliette Clovis
- Green Ammonite, 2021, Porcelain, enamel, metal oxides and mix media, H.44 x L.43 x D.28 cm, credits Juliette Clovis
- Green Knot, 2020, Porcelain, enamel, metal oxides and mix media, H.50 x L.46 x D.46 cm, credits Juliette Clovis
- Magic Blue, 2022, Porcelain, enamel, metal oxides, copper and mix media, H.43 x L.41 x D.41 cm, credits Juliette Clovis
- Manis Tetradactyla, 2019, Porcelain, enamel and mix media, H.130 x L.100 x D.85 cm, credits Juan Lozano
- Molorus, 2022, Porcelain, enamel, metal oxides and mix media, H.47 x L.55 x D.47 cm, credits Juliette Clovis
- Royal Knot, 2022, Porcelain, enamel, metal oxides, and platinum on mix media, H.36 x L.41 x D.41 cm, credits Juliette Clovis
- Samsara, 2020, Porcelain, enamel, gold and mix media, H.50 x H.45 x H.45 cm, credits Juliette Clovis
