Cultural preservation through clay
- Matthew is influenced by East Asian folk pottery and 20th century American Regionalism
- His practice comments on the preservation of vanishing environments
- He is deeply inspired by his environment and upbringing in rural Minnesota
Matthew Krousey’s pieces offer subtle reminders of the natural world and bear a strong connection to a sense of place. They blend Asian aesthetics, his connection to rural Minnesota, and the local salt firing techniques of his paternal German heritage. Matthew’s studies in East Asian art history, along with his deployment in the military, opened his eyes to diverse and often challenging environments. His ceramic pieces express memories he brought home of people working to preserve their way of life despite the destruction going on around them. Matthew sources local rocks and minerals to create his artworks, adapting his work to suit their innate characteristics. “I seek to create pieces that balance durability and functionality, while remaining aesthetically pleasing,” he says.
INTERVIEW
As a child, I would often find pottery shards while working on a neighbouring cattle farm. I was convinced they were from an ancient Native American civilisation. I later learned it was high-temperature stoneware pottery, not something most indigenous populations were making, and in fact, the shards belonged to my ceramics mentor, whose house I now live in.
I studied East Asian art history at university and I have spent time in China and Japan. Their cultures really seem to treasure and put emphasis on the handmade, and influence me aesthetically and conceptually. Locally, Minnesota’s tradition in stoneware, for example the German origin salt fired ceramics techniques I use, act as a link to my father’s heritage.
I grew up in a rural area and played in the woods through my whole childhood. We lived off the land and stayed in an old train caboose. Everything we had was handmade and functional. There were always old pots around, and they piqued my interest.
Minnesota is a rocky state with an abundance of different minerals available because of the glaciers. About half of the glazed surfaces I use, which I develop and refine myself, are sourced from local rocks and minerals, along with natural materials such as wood ash.
