Biography
Lisa
Katzenstein
Born Albuquerque, New Mexico USA 1956
Between 1960-65 lived in Rome Italy
From 1965 resident in UK
Training
1975-1979 BA in Ceramics, Central School of Art, London
1980-1983 MA in Ceramics Royal College of Art London
Awards
1984 Crafts Council Setting-up Grant
1986 Index of Selected makers
2000 Professional member Crafts Potters Association
Articles
Anna Wright 'At your leisure', The Express newspaper, October 2nd
1999
Lisa Katzenstein, 'Being Commercial', Artist's Newsletter magazine,
January 1994
Rosemary Hill, 'The New Look -'80s', Crafts Magazine March/April
1989
Lisa Katzenstein, 'Illuminating Practice', Ceramic Review magazine
November/December 2002 issue (no. 198)
1983-1992
Produced my own range of '50s style tableware which can be viewed on
the Photostore database of selected makers at the Crafts Council in Islington,
London.
1992-2000
Produced and designed bone China tableware for children, which was marketed
through Giftware Trade Shows such as Top Drawer in London, in New York, San
Francisco and Frankfurt. This range can also be viewed at the Crafts Council
website.
Since 2000
I have been making one-off ceramic vases dishes, etc for the contemporary
interior
and my work can be bought either at selected Crafts and Ceramic shows such
as the Chelsea Crafts fair in London and a number of Galleries mostly in London
and the SE of England (See Exhibitions
and Sales page).
A
Word About My Work
For the potters amongst you my pieces are slip-cast or press moulded white
earthenware with hand painted 'tin-glaze' decoration. In this technique you
paint on top of the glaze prior to firing. This has a long history in Europe,
originally it was developed to imitate Chinese porcelain, and the ware was
called by different names depending on where it was made. It was known as
Majolica (or Maolica) in Spain and Italy, Faience in France and Deft in Holland.
Where my work differs from traditional Majolica is in the way I use it as
a medium for painting in its own right. I use wax resist and 'Scraffitto'
techniques that inlay the colours of the lines of my design, as in etching.
I see my pots as paintings which also happen to be functional vases.
My influences vary widely, so I've listed them below in no particular order:
Post war British abstract art,
Aerial photography
Modern African printed textiles
The art work and iconography of science fiction
Graffiti
City scapes
Weathering on stone
Italian Design of the 50s and 60s
The landscape of northern Italy.
I leave you to reach your own conclusions!