Sarah Villeneau
Ceramicist
Doncaster, United Kingdom
Guided by the shape of clay
- Sarah’s sculptural pieces are influenced by physiology, organic forms and abstract concepts
- The clay itself, along with found objects, guides her approach to form
- She has developed her own techniques that create an organic appearance
Early in her exploration of clay, Sarah Villeneau dropped a still-soft terracotta coil pot. Far from being upset, she was fascinated by the new shape it took on, and found herself intrigued as to how clay acts on its own. “You have to go with clay, rather than try to control it all the time,” she says. This admiration for the unpredictable is integral to Sarah’s practice today, which often features found objects and discarded materials. She first discovered clay at a pottery evening class in her mid-20s and later found her voice via a masters in studio ceramics. Awarded an Arts Council England grant to explore texture, Sarah has developed pieces that provoke and suggest through abstract form, avoiding easy definitions, with the clay and materials themselves acting as her artistic guide.
INTERVIEW
I grew up in upstate New York, where I spent my childhood roaming free in the countryside. The loss when this came to an unceremonious end is still palpable. In my practice, I draw from the experience of how the body embodies emotion beyond words.
The world makes sense with clay in my hands. It speaks of our connection with the earth, of mythic stories of our creation and, in its visceral conjuring of ideas of the body, it holds us. The non-ceramic objects I collect are another way to make sense of the everyday.
I am inspired by abstract expressionist work, particularly the pieces of Gillian Lowndes. I love its spontaneous use of materials and its emotional heft. Gillian Lowndes’ work has always represented a kind of artistic freedom and courage that I aspire to.
I use coiling, pinching, slabbing and extruding. I have developed methods to make pieces look organic, as if they might actually be alive or dug up from somewhere. I want viewers to stop, think, question and maybe look at the world differently.
