Chuck McGee
I am drawn to functional art- ceramic vessels that serve a purpose in everyday life while carrying the weight of intention, history and material truth. My work centers around familiar forms: bowls, plates and cups- objects we eat and drink from, touch daily and often take for granted. Yet in their user, these vessels become personal, intimate and deeply human.
I am interested in the tension between function and artfulness. I like to question what makes an object “functional” and how that function interacts with its aesthetic and material presence. Through this inquiry, I explore how materials- once raw earth, clays and stones- are transformed by fire into something enduring. The ceramic surface becomes a record of process and place. The flame, the atmosphere and even the specific spot within the kiln leave their permanent mark, just as the origin of the materials leaves its story in the clay and glaze.
In the end, my work is about the connection between process and product, material and maker, object and user.
