The shapes of Maxwell Mustardo’s ceramic works evoke ancient amphorae, kraters, and, most recently, kylix—a wide Greek cup with handles—although their surfaces feel distinctly organic. Textured growths cloak the vessels with fungal or lichen-esque forms, albeit in color palettes that are bold and otherworldly. Fluorescent oranges, pinks, and greens appear to glow in even the most mundane settings, firmly planting the pieces at the intersection of historic craft, nature, and the uncanny.
“I am always tweaking chemistry and application methods to push certain surface effects that I like, that feel organic and grown,” Mustardo tells Colossal. “More recent series of work have tried to blur the boundaries of cultural and natural forms (the amphora becomes anthropomorphic, gadrooning reduced to its fruity lineage, and so forth).”
An ornamental design with curved bands, gadrooning is typically relegated to surface decoration. As the artist mentions, though, he prefers to cast these tapered adornments as the central focus, “promptly pushing classical ornament back into their origins in the natural world, from the kingdom of fruits and vegetables.”
Mustardo is based in New Jersey, where he’s the studio manager of the former residence of artist Toshiko Takaezu (1922-2011). Find more of his work on Instagram.
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