Francois Peyrat (1955)
Francois Peyrat is a highly respected ceramicist living in France. He has devoted his life to the Japanese art of Raku. His mastery of this wilful glaze has enabled him to produce superlative pieces where the 'accident of nature' is preserved in sometimes enormous vessels often exceeding 120cm in height. He is one of the world's greatest artists working in this difficult field. Difficult in the physical demands of creating such huge pieces by hand and alone, and difficult because of the contrariness and unpredictability of the glaze. His pieces are of the very highest quality and are imbued with a gravitas and spirit which is most appealing. The glazes which he is able to achieve are rare and extraordinary in their lavish and thick application. They are the work of a great master in the field.
"My greatest ambition is to express what the earth tells me. Nowadays, the problem in ceramics is that technique makes everything possible. Look, for example, at the gigantic sizes now possible with clay tiles. In such cases, where is the truth to our materials?
On the one hand, modern technicians can create cladding for the space-shuttle; but on the other hand, the artist-ceramicist listens to the earth and respects its spirit. The only thing these two opposites have in common is their extraordinary ability to withstand thermic shock. After all, in raku temperatures reach up to a thousand degrees. Blazing red, it comes out of the
Francois Peyrat is a highly respected ceramicist living in France. He has devoted his life to the Japanese art of Raku. His mastery of this wilful glaze has enabled him to produce superlative pieces where the 'accident of nature' is preserved in sometimes enormous vessels often exceeding 120cm in height. He is one of the world's greatest artists working in this difficult field. Difficult in the physical demands of creating such huge pieces by hand and alone, and difficult because of the contrariness and unpredictability of the glaze. His pieces are of the very highest quality and are imbued with a gravitas and spirit which is most appealing. The glazes which he is able to achieve are rare and extraordinary in their lavish and thick application. They are the work of a great master in the field.
"My greatest ambition is to express what the earth tells me. Nowadays, the problem in ceramics is that technique makes everything possible. Look, for example, at the gigantic sizes now possible with clay tiles. In such cases, where is the truth to our materials?
On the one hand, modern technicians can create cladding for the space-shuttle; but on the other hand, the artist-ceramicist listens to the earth and respects its spirit. The only thing these two opposites have in common is their extraordinary ability to withstand thermic shock. After all, in raku temperatures reach up to a thousand degrees. Blazing red, it comes out of the
oven and is immediately covered with vegetable matter, leaves, straw, wood, most often in an enclosed metallic space. The point is to stop combustion and to reduce the oxygen content around the enamel. This is what makes each and every raku piece a unique object".
(translated from the French)
Francois Peyrat, Gallery exhibitions:
1978 Galerie Melusine, Poitiers
1988 Espace Galerie Credit Agricole
1992 Set Design for Le Temps de Cerises, modern dance, Poitiers
1994 Set Design for Jean Anouilh's play: The Rehearsal
1997 Set Design for Contemporary Dance by Odile Azagury, Oiron
1999 'Solid small emotions', one-man show, Tours
1999 Installation 'Earth and Ash', Chateau d'Harcourt, Chauvigny
1999 Set Design for Lucrezia Borgia, Avignon Festival
2001 Exhibited at the Biennale de Ceramique Contemporain, Saintes
2001 Exhibition in La Rochelle
2002 Exhibition of large Vessels, Poitiers
2002 Exhibition, Brouage
2003 Exhibition Materia Quebec, Quebec, Canada
2003 Design for Museum Exhibition, Presences du Moyen Age, Poitiers
2003 Prix du Departement de la Vienne, recognizing Francois Peyrat's contribution to art and culture.
2005 Exhibition, 'The Boundaries of the Road of Clay', Niort
2005 Set Design, Une autre Andromaque, Avignon
2005 'Terra Mater' exhibition, Chauvigny
2005 'A Moment on Earth', exhibition Loudun
2006 'The Beauty of Imperfection', exhibition in Poitiers and annual exhibitions at Galerie Sainte Croix in Poitiers. France.
