Ruan Hoffmann

LIJNWERK

B. 1971, SOUTH AFRICA 

RUAN HOFFMANN is an internationally recognized ceramic artist who specializes in forms with attitude. The South African native currently resides in The Netherlands. His mis-shaped, irregular pieces reference numerous historical art movements, from the oriental ceramics of the seventeenth century, to neo-classical works, to the paintings of Francis Bacon. Themes of surprise and control are in constant opposition within his vases and deconstructed forms.

ABOUT HIS WORK

HOFFMANN sees his ceramic vessels as spherical canvases on which he memorializes passing moments. The surfaces capture his existence, the highs and lows of the everyday. The plates and vessels function as a diary of impressions, operating in a state of constant flux.

The writing and passages painted on HOFFMANN's works are brutally frank, rude and politically confrontational. Frequently he fuses the critique of contemporary art into his own aesthetic. HOFFMANN studied art at the University of Pretonia in South Africa, where he began working with clay as a medium. HOFFMANN found himself ‘side-tracked’ by the possibilities of ceramics, “you never know exactly what to expect”.

Every plate and vessel is made completely by hand. Pieces begin with a ball of clay that is thrown at an angle onto a canvas. The clay is applied and spread until it is thin and relatively even. At this point the fabric like sheet of clay is draped over a plaster mold. After drying the mold is removed and the remaining form is fired to bisque temperatures, allowing HOFFMANN to begin painting the piece. The work is re-fired and then, in its final stage, ornamented with decals.

These vessels and plates which have been described as ‘cheeky’, ‘dark’ and full of personality, are highly regarded. HOFFMANN has exhibited internationally, and his works are included in permanent collections across the globe. Politics, literature and the expressions of rage, love, and sex, all find themselves in HOFFMANN’s world of works. The consistency of palette, the ever-changing mood, and the fragility of the medium and life, are all encompassed in the forms created by RUAN HOFFMANN.