Christmas Exhibition to feature New Work in Ceramic, by Artist Andrew Ludick

The show opens on Friday, 11 December at 7.30 pm and continues into the New Year.

Andrew Ludick graduated with a major in illustration from the Columbus College of Art ,Ohio in 2000. He has worked in many graphic arts fields, from editorial illustrator to mural painting, as well as fine arts painting. He is originally from the USA but has been a resident in Ireland for the past six years. During that time, he has pursued painting and drawing and has had several exhibitions of his work in Kilkenny and Dublin. For the past four years he has been focusing his craftsmanship on ceramics. This is his first Irish solo show, which focuses specifically on his work in ceramic. 
 
 
Ludick hand builds his pieces using white earthenware clay, which are then decorated with coloured slips. He uses several hand building techniques to create a blank canvas to which he applies patterns and decoration before coating with a glossy clear glaze, thus ensuring that each piece is a unique work of art in both its shape and decoration.
 
There is a pleasing contrast between the unrefined hand-made object, and the execution of articulate design in the colourfully painted compositions in his work. Strong displays of form and line waver from abstraction to a more figurative language wherein a symbiotic relationship lies between. The vases, each one unique, elude to the movement of a figure, a dancer perhaps, from some exotic place, while also epitomizing at large, ideational evocations of the organic form. From his ‘Bean Pods’ to his ‘Fish’, the artist’s appreciation for the graphical in nature is ever present in his charming wall pieces.
 
Andrew's main influences are the arts and designs from indigenous cultures of Africa and the Americas, work by artists such as Paul Klee and Joan Miro and the music of Thelonious Monk and Eric Dolphy.
 
‘New work by Andrew Ludick’ completes the Waterfront Gallery’s Exhibition series for 2009. Commenting, Peter Brennan, Gallery Director, said:  “We are delighted with the response we are getting so far in the gallery which we opened in July of this year.  We sincerely thank everyone for their continued support. Andrew Ludick’s show was specifically chosen for the Christmas show, not only because it emanates joy and beauty, but also with prices from €40, his pieces make for very affordable gifts without compromising the standard of work accustomed to the gallery. In addition to Andrew's exhibition, we will also have a selection of original prints and paintings on display in the backroom by highly esteemed artists.”