Last month, Interchange focused on Tori Kaspareit Pelz's public art works. This month's feature spotlights an artist whose work will change your personal space in a different way -- and it's available in Dallas! Jonathan Cross is a Dallas native, and he is currently working on his MFA at Arizona State University. I knew him first as a painter and printmaker, but a few years ago, Jonathan began making very sculptural pieces. You can see his art in person in the gift shop at the Nasher Sculpture Center. (Interview by Lisa Renz)
LR: Would you talk a little bit about your process in terms of how you begin pieces? Do you plan pieces before your start them or is it more of an intuitive process?
JC: I typically begin with a block of clay which I carve out during the various states of drying. I do draw a lot but the works that I carve are the products of a more intuitive process.
LR: What is the firing and finishing process? How much is chance a part of the work as far as how much control you have over the glaze and chemicals you use to treat the clay?
JC: After some of the pieces are dry I spray them with metallic oxides which will give them directional color variations. Most of my work is then fired in a salt kiln or wood kiln to approximately 2500 degrees fahrenheit. Recently I have been experimenting with refiring works in both the salt and wood kilns to create layers of color, and surface texture. With these two firing methods there is the element of chance, but like most art, all of the conditions through which chance happens are controlled: clay, oxides, position in the kiln, etc.
LR: Your forms are really structured, architectural, solid, heavy. What inspires your forms? How do you look at your own work when thinking about the history of ceramics and sculpture? How do you think of your work in terms of contemporary ceramics and sculpture?
JC: After making work for a couple of years and reflecting on the types of inspiration I draw on, I have noticed many of my other interests showing traces in my works. Some of these are geology, architecture- modern and ancient, minimalism, science fiction, and japanese pottery (specifically wood-fired ceramics).
LR: It seems, in looking at the pieces, that you put a lot of thought into what plant goes into what pot. Do you see the plants as finishing each piece?
JC: I used to think a lot about the plants and pots together making a complete design. This concern sprang mainly from my desire to make containers for my own plant collection. Now that all of my plants are happily situated in planters of my own make and design I find myself very much less concerned with the practical aspects of a planter and more concerned with the formal sculptural issues of my work.
LR: You used to work quite a bit on paper, making drawings and prints, but even your prints had a sculptural aspect to them -- ink standing up on the page, holes torn through the paper. Then there was a shift towards making three dimensional work. Do you see your work continuing to be mainly three dimensional, or do you also continue to make two dimensional works?
JC: Yes, the printed works I made 10 years ago were very much about the object aspects of paper and ink. With our current understanding of physical objects even paper can be perceived in three dimensions however faint. Creating textures, embossments and holes in the paper emphasized the paper's qualities as an object not an image. I have not made any two dimensional works for about 4-5 years now. There are similarities between the two kinds of work- color pallet, negative space, and texture are a few. For now, I see myself continuing to explore the sculptural concepts in my ceramic work.
LR: What is next for you?
JC: More work.
Check out Jonathan's work on his website, http://jcrosscactus.wordpress.com/ or go see it in person at the Nasher Sculpture Center. While you're at it, check out the stunning Tony Cragg exhibit, which runs through January 8, 2012. Thanks Jonathan! Truly beautiful work.
Check out Jonathan's work on his website, http://jcrosscactus.wordpress.com/ or go see it in person at the Nasher Sculpture Center. While you're at it, check out the stunning Tony Cragg exhibit, which runs through January 8, 2012. Thanks Jonathan! Truly beautiful work.
