Jane Reumert
Encyclopedia
Jane Reumert was born in Denmark in 1942. Married to :da:Bo Bonfils. Reumert has spent more than 40 years as a professional studio ceramic artist. She is one of Denmark’s most respected artists, and has gained much international recognition. Reumert’s work has many influences, but nature and calligraphy are "deep-rooted sources of inspiration". In an interview she stated that as a child she was captivated with nature, and with birds, their nests, feathers and eggs. This acute observation of nature, especially of birds, is shown clearly in some of her more contemporary works that mimic eggs and feathers of birds. She has also mastered the art of calligraphy, using lettering styles from the East to the West.
In the late 1980s she began working in porcelain. She began making paper-thin vessels, salt glazed, and fired to 1330 degrees Celsius (above 2300 F). In the early 1990s she began experimenting with the addition of fiberglass and other fibers to her clay body, which enabled her to construct even thinner forms. She often displays her work on wire tripods, so the vessels appear to be floating above their shadows. Reumert’s work is seen as a great metaphor of the fragility of our existence.
She has shown internationally, and has been awarded prizes for her work. Among these, in 1994, she was awarded Scandinavia’s most prestigious design prize: the Torsten and Wanja Soderberg Nordic Design Prize. Just this past summer she took part in the Nordic Woodfire Marathon, and was a guest artist at the International Ceramic Research Centre in Denmark.
Reumert has published writings and books on ceramic techniques, as well as on her own work. She writes in Danish, but some of her books have been translated into other languages. Examples of these are her two books, Transparency and Contemporary Pottery. Lately Jane Reumert has moved away from the island of Bornholm
and her beloved gas-fired kiln where she for years did her salt-glazed pieces. She currently lives and works close to Copenhagen and is now using a wood-fired kiln and has replaced salt with soda which demands 100% physical and mental attention during the 24 hours of firing. This new way of firing is wilder and more unpredictable. The fire, ashes, smoke and soda fumes are forces which are underlining the expressions Jane Reumert is searching for.
In the late 1980s she began working in porcelain. She began making paper-thin vessels, salt glazed, and fired to 1330 degrees Celsius (above 2300 F). In the early 1990s she began experimenting with the addition of fiberglass and other fibers to her clay body, which enabled her to construct even thinner forms. She often displays her work on wire tripods, so the vessels appear to be floating above their shadows. Reumert’s work is seen as a great metaphor of the fragility of our existence.
She has shown internationally, and has been awarded prizes for her work. Among these, in 1994, she was awarded Scandinavia’s most prestigious design prize: the Torsten and Wanja Soderberg Nordic Design Prize. Just this past summer she took part in the Nordic Woodfire Marathon, and was a guest artist at the International Ceramic Research Centre in Denmark.
Reumert has published writings and books on ceramic techniques, as well as on her own work. She writes in Danish, but some of her books have been translated into other languages. Examples of these are her two books, Transparency and Contemporary Pottery. Lately Jane Reumert has moved away from the island of Bornholm
Bornholm
Bornholm is a Danish island in the Baltic Sea located to the east of the rest of Denmark, the south of Sweden, and the north of Poland. The main industries on the island include fishing, arts and crafts like glass making and pottery using locally worked clay, and dairy farming. Tourism is...
and her beloved gas-fired kiln where she for years did her salt-glazed pieces. She currently lives and works close to Copenhagen and is now using a wood-fired kiln and has replaced salt with soda which demands 100% physical and mental attention during the 24 hours of firing. This new way of firing is wilder and more unpredictable. The fire, ashes, smoke and soda fumes are forces which are underlining the expressions Jane Reumert is searching for.
Publications
- Transparency, Jane Reumert studio ceramist, ISBN 8774072846
- Strandstræde keramik - Værkstedsfællesskab i 40 år, Nyt Nordisk Forlag, ISBN 9788717037588
External links
- http://www.carlakoch.nl/
- http://www.ceramic.dk/
- Strandstræde Keramik - http://www.strandstraedekeramik.dk/janeoversigt.html
- Bonfils Ildsted - http://bobonfils.com