Bruce Chivers donates vase to Exeter Museum

Internationally-renowned, Devon-based ceramicist Bruce Chivers has donated an exquisite Japanese-inspired vase to the collections at Exeter’s Royal Albert Memorial Museum & Art Gallery (RAMM).

Bruce Chivers’s work is influenced by Japanese art and culture. He is an expert in the ancient Japanese skill of Raku firing. This technique embraces Zen elements of surprise and random pattern-making as the pots are taken from the hot kiln and rapidly cooled.

The donated vase was chosen because it reflects his response to Japanese art and culture perfectly. The vase is an abstracted form based on ‘Ikebana’ or flower arranging. A flower would grace the rim of the vase and taller stems would be supported by the handle. However this handle is also a reflection of the Japanese Gateway form which you find at temples and shrines in Japan. Bruce added: “I have tried to integrate both Japanese and European aesthetics by using fine British porcelain and by stylizing the handle to resemble the imagery of the ‘Japanese Gateway’ found in public places throughout Japan.”

RAMM’s ceramics form part of its diverse decorative arts collection. The collection includes Exeter silver, ceramics, glassware and clocks and watches. The ceramics reflect the history of Devon pottery in both the north and south of the county.