Arek Nowicki is a ceramic artist who is breaking onto the British art scene with his unique and fantastical ceramic sculptures and vessels. Originally from Poland where he developed his craft through numerous apprenticeships, he now works from his studio in Bournemouth. Coastal Gallery feels enormously privileged to display some of his works at the gallery in Lymington and to support his growing reputation and recognition as one of the most unusual and experimental ceramic artists working in Britain today.
While Arek still uses the concept of a ‘jug’, ‘platter’ or ‘bowl’ to anchor his work in a recognisable form, the result is always art for art’s sake. Rough stoneware clay provides the material strength from which he can create his large scale organic shapes and structures. All Arek’s work is hand built and his large-scale vessels are feats of impressive ceramic engineering. To balance the solidity and rough texture of the stoneware clay, Arek is a master at applying beautifully delicate and intricate crystalline glazes which shimmer on the surface of his works. From delicate blues and soft greens to earthy sienna with golden highlights, the range of colour afforded by his careful mixing of glazes give his work an ethereal quality.
“(…) Jugs become sculptures;
The border between the two is crossed only when the glazed jug is viewed by different eyes, when the details, decorations and the glazes are observed as the art and the vessel as the canvas upon which they are described (…)”. Arek Nowicki
Coastal Gallery has a range of Arek’s work on display, from his beautifully glazed smaller ‘bowls’ starting at around £75.00 to his large ceramic sculptures which can fetch up to £3,500.00. A good selection of his large vessels (pictured in this article) can be seen at Coastal Gallery and are normally priced around £1,800.00. Arek’s sculptures are extremely striking and draw the eye wherever they sit.
