FRANÇOIS GRENIER CERAMICS

I am an emerging artist working with ceramics based in Chatham, ON. 

My path is not a typical one. My interest with clay first began with the study of surface treatment. From there, I progressed to hand building as a mean to create a canvas for the dry glazes - 'crusts'. A large portion of my practice continues to focus on developing dry crusts for clay shapes designed to give life to the materials enrobing them.

 

My steady research into surface treatment has been transferred into a technical book for the ceramic students, offering a method that demystifies the nature of glazes and allows the learner to work and research raw material independently.

​

My current focus is an examination of the relationship between texture and form, and also how dry glazes can be extended to large figurative installations, mostly exploring aesthetics; visual art is a refuge away from undesirable human behaviour. Beauty in all senses of the word augments our discerning senses, and makes a mind calmer thus more open to deeper thought processes.

​

The appreciation I have for clay/ceramic is such that I prefer putting forward its many elemental qualities avoiding surface treatment which conceals the clay and the ceramic materials. I create vessels and sculptures with dry, matte, and often crusty surfaces so my forms show depth and are inviting to the touch. All this can be seen in my Cabossés vessels.