Mr. Maarten Kolk

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Waddenzee

Waddenzee is a series of porcelain plates and cups inspired by the sea that lies in the north of the Netherlands, Germany and west of Denmark. The sea forms a shallow body of water with tidal flats and wetlands. The porcelain series portrays this unique nature area as well as it imitates its behavior.

“To portray the Wadden Sea, we thought that imitating it could help us to find its character. The unique thing about this area is that the tide gives the landscape a complete different appearance. In six hours a complete sea seems to disappear. The landscape goes from water to mud. This tidal behavior we tried to imitate and turn into a ceramic production technique. The Eb (low tide) plates have a cobalt glaze in their mold. Every time the liquid porcelain is poured in, some of this glaze attaches to the plate. The first plate that is produced in the mold is fully glazed, the second one will be a bit lighter, and so on.”

“The Mud cups are inspired by our boots after visiting the Wadden Sea this summer. It’s such a muddy and raw area that it’s impossible to stay clean. This feeling of dirt gave us the idea for the Mud cups. The cups are decorated by colored porcelain dust made with various oxides. Every time a new cup is made, some powder is added and leaving some behind with every pour.”

“Walking along the coast and through the mud we found dead sea life. Drifting seaweeds and declining fish. It is sometimes chocking to see, but also intriguing, it shows instability of life in the purest way. In the end all will flow and disappear in the sea again. The aesthetics of instability is what we wanted to show in the Vloed (high tide) plates. The plates have different types of pigments and glaze, such as copper and cobalt. They show very detailed images of fish, but by treating them with water the fish starts to flow on the surface.”

Skills