Annette Hansen:



Artist Statement

Since graduating with honours from Denmark's Kolding Design School in the 1970s, I have worked with clay in a variety of ways and locations over 30 years.

While most post-grad potters tend to settle into a permanent studio environment, I opted for a somewhat nomadic ceramic career -- producing functional pottery where I lived - first in Nova Scotia, then later in Manitoba, Greece and in Ontario. Whether running my own production studio or working for someone else, I honed my throwing skills with earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. Living in these different communities and working with the available pottery materials gave me a wealth of experience and the ability to adapt to new environments.

From my student days in Denmark, there persisted an interest in architecture and in working with building materials. Now in my Toronto studio, my work has come full circle; I now create sculpture out of clay, rebar, cement, glass, found metal and natural materials. Pieces are designed as either wall- or free-standing installations. Thrown or hand-built clay forms are cast or embedded into cement, with other materials incorporated for structural support or for pure aesthetics.

I work with hard, durable materials, which can be literally and figuratively inserted into man-made or natural spaces. Pieces are designed to have a presence, as if to say, "Look at me"; they serve as markers or signposts of sorts. Their weight and 'permanence' contradict all that is nomadic, portable or ephemeral in life. They compel the viewer to stop, observe and investigate.