Wayne Ngan (1937-2020)
Glazed Stoneware Vessel with Hakeme Brushwork and Calligraphic Bird Motif
Circa 1970s–1990s (Mature Hornby Island Period)
Glazed stoneware with white hakeme slip, dark oxide lip, and iron/pigment brushwork
9.5 in H × 8 in Dia
Stamped by the artist on the base
Excellent vintage condition
This stoneware vessel exemplifies the expressive mastery and earth-bound philosophy of celebrated Canadian ceramist Wayne Ngan. Rooted in his lifelong commitment to "maximum participation", a creative ethos where art, studio architecture, and raw environment seamlessly merged on Hornby Island, this piece captures Ngan at the height of his mature practice.
The vessel showcases dynamic, sweeping hakeme brushwork, a traditional coarse-brush application of creamy white slip across a dark stoneware body, creating rich tactile grooves and visual momentum around the vessel's swelling circumference. Over this textured, atmospheric surface, Ngan rendered a single calligraphic bird in flight using swift, decisive iron-brush strokes near the base. The piece is crowned by a short collar finished in a glossy, dark blue-grey glaze that pools neatly at the rim.
Drawing deeply on Song Dynasty aesthetics, Korean buncheong slip techniques, and Japanese studio pottery, this piece bridges ancient East Asian ceramic traditions with modern West Coast studio craft. Intimate yet substantial in presence, it represents a quintessential acquisition for collectors of contemporary Canadian studio pottery.
Wayne Ngan (1937-2020)
Glazed Stoneware Vessel with Hakeme Brushwork and Calligraphic Bird Motif
Circa 1970s–1990s (Mature Hornby Island Period)
Glazed stoneware with white hakeme slip, dark oxide lip, and iron/pigment brushwork
9.5 in H × 8 in Dia
Stamped by the artist on the base
Excellent vintage condition
This stoneware vessel exemplifies the expressive mastery and earth-bound philosophy of celebrated Canadian ceramist Wayne Ngan. Rooted in his lifelong commitment to "maximum participation", a creative ethos where art, studio architecture, and raw environment seamlessly merged on Hornby Island, this piece captures Ngan at the height of his mature practice.
The vessel showcases dynamic, sweeping hakeme brushwork, a traditional coarse-brush application of creamy white slip across a dark stoneware body, creating rich tactile grooves and visual momentum around the vessel's swelling circumference. Over this textured, atmospheric surface, Ngan rendered a single calligraphic bird in flight using swift, decisive iron-brush strokes near the base. The piece is crowned by a short collar finished in a glossy, dark blue-grey glaze that pools neatly at the rim.
Drawing deeply on Song Dynasty aesthetics, Korean buncheong slip techniques, and Japanese studio pottery, this piece bridges ancient East Asian ceramic traditions with modern West Coast studio craft. Intimate yet substantial in presence, it represents a quintessential acquisition for collectors of contemporary Canadian studio pottery.
