Rare Earth - at O’Connell Gallery, Clonakilty is the carefully considered title of this exhibition. It points to both the rarity of the reduced pigment lustre technique and the rarity of the life forms in the painted imagery.  Fragility is also an important aspect of both the process and the painted subjects. 

Reduced pigment lustre is a process of mystical alchemy that begets the iridescent lustrous surface qualities of each piece.  Since its first emergence in 9th century Mesopotamia lustre has been the prized and elusive effect sought after by generations of potters, some to the point of madness and desperation. Mark’s exploration of the process is informed by potters ancient and of more recent times, from Persia and southern Europe to, more recently, Aldermaston Pottery in the UK (1955 – 2005) where his father Edgar Campden worked. Reduced Pigment Lustre is a precarious process that has always intrigued Mark and, since 2012, ultimately compelled him to seek to master.

Mark’s life and creative energy are ever nourished by the natural world. From growing up in a small English village in the 1960s to living in rural County Kilkenny since 1990, daily contact with and observation of nature are essential to Mark’s life and wellbeing.  He is acutely aware of the vulnerability of all forms of plant and wildlife. The enthralling beauty of these plants and animals forms the well of inspiration he draws upon for the imagery masterfully painted onto the surface of each piece. The apparently simple motifs on a finished piece often evoke a sense of enduring timelessness and simultaneously reflect the immediate concerns for the natural world.

The shimmering red and golden painted decoration on this work is created from a palette of essentially two elements, Silver and Copper. In the tightly controlled reduced atmosphere of the wood-fired kiln Silver takes on glistening golden hues and Copper rich radiant reds. The rush of flame and heat through the kiln, volatilising these metals, often leaves a comet like trail of iridescence on the unpainted areas of a piece.