The Journal of Australian Ceramics Vol 52 No 1 April 2013
Create successful ePaper yourself
Turn your PDF publications into a flip-book with our unique Google optimized e-Paper software.
Parker's production defies easy classification. Few have so audaciously departed from New Zealand's<br />
last great ceramic moment (the 1970s heyday <strong>of</strong> utilitarian ware). Parker's fugitive forms look to<br />
capture inquisitive attention through a defiance <strong>of</strong> predictability. His decorative glaze schemes appear<br />
like purposefully ill-fitting sets <strong>of</strong> clothes, worn loosely to unsettle any sense <strong>of</strong> monumental sobriety.<br />
Parker's ideal is not a classical pursuit <strong>of</strong> purity but a productive entanglement with uncertainty. What<br />
he pursues is a deep sensory appreciation, analogous to the infinite variety that can be found within the<br />
natural world.<br />
<strong>The</strong> customary seal <strong>of</strong> approval that comes from acknowledging demonstrable exercise <strong>of</strong> skill and<br />
technique will be forever contested in the appreciation <strong>of</strong> Parker's craft. Parker is unperturbed and<br />
continues his singular quest for that elusive quality in form and decoration .<br />
Richard Fahey is a Senior l ecturer in the Department <strong>of</strong> Design and Visual Arts,<br />
Unitec, Auckland.<br />
www.form.co.nz/artisls/richard_parker.htm<br />
THE JOURNAL OF AUSTRALIAN CERAMICS APRil <strong>2013</strong> 75
Change language