Professor's work showcased at Ceramics Biennial

MANCHESTER SCHOOl of Art’s Professor Stephen Dixon features in the British Ceramics Biennial, which will be open in Stoke-on-Trent until November 8.

The work, titled Resonate: Remembering the lost soldiers of North Staffordshire, is a multi-media installation bringing together ceramics, sound and public participation to commemorate the soldiers of the North Staffordshire Regiment in the Great War. It takes place at the original Spode factory site, which was 

The exhibition space is physically dominated by a monumental clay head by Prof Dixon. Made using a ton of red earthenware clay sourced from the WW1 battlefield sites of Passchendaele, the sculpture is based on the Victory Medal of 1919. However, the classical form of the original winged victory figure is challenged by the industrial aesthetic of the supporting structure, which adopts the functionalism and brutal materiality of trench architecture.

Prof Dixon’s research explores contemporary narratives in ceramics. He is also Crafts Research Group Leader for MIRIAD, the School of Art’s research centre. 

Dramatic orchestration

The installation space is further animated by a complementary sound sculpture by another School of Art lecturer, Johnny Magee, which dramatically orchestrates the familiar and incidental sounds, poignant songs and popular music of the period.

Visitors are encouraged to contribute to the project by attaching ceramic flowers to the supporting structure of the artwork. They are also invited to attach their own personal family tributes, and to document their individual stories of WWI as part of the installation.

For more information about the exhibition, visit the British Ceramics Biennial website. To find out more about studying at Manchester School of Art, visit www.art.mmu.ac.uk.