Birgit Kristensen, Fun with your new head, Earthenware figurine (BK162)
28 x 14 cm
You need to see these new Birgit Kristensen, brand new porcelain figures with detacheable heads, 2023 LIVE!
These ceramic works are deceiving. At first they look like traditional ceramic pieces from some indeterminate archaic era. In fact these glazed and lustered earthenware figures evokes a long history of decorative arts – even if their sloppy-looking construction defiantly embraces a more lowly vocabulary.
In ancient times, chinese artists where commissioned to make statues with detachable heads. In fact, if a sculpture (of a hero, eminent person, or ruler) loses its name, honor, or dies, the head is easily removed and replaced by a new hero, better-known person, or a new ruler.
Narrative and the retelling of stories is at the centre of these new works. Studied closely the interchangeable heads on these new figures have intriguing narratives Additional heads illustrate the metamorphosis of the character
