Blechmeki:

Perfect Imperfections





    

June 4 - July 31, 2022

Blechmeki

The artist duo BLECHMEKI (a portmanteau of their last names, Max Blechman and Kazu Umeki) use mass-produced American pottery from the 1930s to 1980s to create photo tableaux of stunning simplicity and beauty.

At first glance, the individual pieces of pottery – such as vases or figurines – appear identical, but closer inspection reveals subtle and captivating variations both in form and color.

Indeed, the Japanese concept of wabi-sabi (appreciating beauty that is imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete in nature) reverberates throughout their pottery. By applying geometric compositions in the photography of these objects, BLECHMEKI’s work compels the viewer to consider the artworks in ways which transcend their commonplace origins.

Wabi-Sabi

If one were to pick a phrase that aptly sums up a traditional Japanese aesthetic sensibility, it might well be wabi-sabi.

A combination of two old words with overlapping definitions, wabi-sabi is aligned with the Buddhist view of the facts of existence:

Both life and art are beautiful not because they are perfect and eternal, but because they are imperfect and fleeting.

Mid-Century American Pottery

Max Blechman started his collection back in 1985, when he moved from New York to San Francisco. Max found his first pieces at the Marin City flea market, collectible/antique stores, garage and yard sales. Once Max discovered eBay, his collection exploded.

There are now over 10,000 pieces in his collection. Max carefully selects pieces: they need to "resemble each other in some way and make a cohesive whole when you look at them en masse" and they can't be too "cute and kitschy".

The collection contains pottery from several different brands — Catalina, West Coast, Camark, Pacific, Shawnee, Metlox, Padre, and others.

Shawnee

In 1937, Shawnee Pottery began operations in the former American Encaustic facility in Zanesville, Ohio. It is best known for producing Corn King pottery and the Pennsylvania Dutch lines of pottery. The Zanesville area was known as the largest pottery-producing region in the country.

Catalina

Catalina Pottery was started in 1927 on Santa Catalina island in California. Red clays found on the island were used for pottery initially, and then eventually mixed with white clay from the United States mainland. Glazes were made with local minerals mined on the Island.

Camark

Founded in 1926, Camden Art Tile and Pottery Company was the third and last producer of Art Pottery in Arkansas. Samuel Jacob “Jack” Carnes, a native of Zanesville, Ohio, and an engineer with knowledge of the pottery business, created the company with several Ohio associates, including businessmen and artists.

Abstract Photography

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Wabi sabi photography. Pottery Photography. by San Francisco gay artists Blechmeki. Mid-century American pottery

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