House Gods and Angels
Published April 11, 2011
I have been thinking about how our human Gods are made. It seems to begin with a thought or concept that stick in the mind, creating a momentum of its own through constant reinforcement.
I’m thinking about how the power of thought appear in crowd situations. If you watch a demonstration, for instance, it is interesting to see how a group can create an atmosphere so intense that some are compelled to acts of violence and random destruction they would never normally dream of . I’m thinking about the recent student fee demonstration in London, for example, when a young guy dropped a fire extinguisher onto a crowd many feet below. The collective mind takes over in those situations. It is almost as though people become bigger, stronger and bolder when bolstered by the group dynamic. But then the demonstration is over and the mood deflates.
The same must be true when Gods are created. Except in this case we have a continuity in the group when led in worship by a priest/ess or guru. A God/ess is created to explain the primal force of creation, for instance – or thunder, rain or spring. The worship of these deities is upheld through ceremonies and rituals over centuries, and the power of these collected thoughts create a momentum of its own. Over the years the myths change; Inannas young husband, Dimuzu, destined to die and then rise again for the good of the land, gives way to a new myth about the virgin born King. And so on. But behind it all lies a need to personify and communicate with our creator, I think.
So, I have been busy creating some ceramic House Gods on my own ! I was inspired by the Roman Gods Lares and Penates. In Rome, each family had their own set of personal Gods to safe guard against house fire, ill health, redundancy and bad luck.
My House God sculptures are altogether more frivolous. They are made of smoke fired and glazed ceramics and they’re between 7-10” tall.
And here is the moment some of them are born out of a smoke firing bin
Hostings Hot Houses – show starts today!
Published April 3, 2010
Up early to empty the smoke firing bins; it is a bit like christmas; will the fire and smoke have delivered goodies, or is it all cracked and destroyed?
This is Herne, the Hunter.
And this is another blue sculpture; she is not smoke fired, but has little flecks of gold amongst the blue glaze.
You’ll find a wonderful display of Easter presents; smoke fired ceramics, life size cattle portraits, enigmatic paintings,
stylish knitwear alongside exquisite hand-made jewellery – all for sale at attractive prices.
And, with every purchase, you will be entered into our free raffle to win an original art work.
Opening times during Easter 2010
April 3rd, 10th, 11th Open 11am – 5pm
April 4th, 5th Open 11am – 4pm
To see more please go to the Hot House website at www.hastingshothouses.co.uk .
New Website
Published December 15, 2009
Please check out my new website at www.annakeiller.com where you can find this Angel of Storm Clouds, ceramic torsos, smoke fired Fat Birds, House Gods and many other strange and wonderful things!
Angels
Published July 20, 2009
Angels are everywhere. In the air, water, stone; you can even see them rising like fiery sparks from a bonfire. This is an angel of storm clouds…She is made from smoke fired ceramics and will be on show during my Hastings Hot House Open Studio 1-9th of August.
House Gods
Published June 15, 2009
This particular House God is keen on remote controls of all kinds. Charge him up with good intent and you will never loose your control behind the sofa again. Smoke fired ceramics.
Please scroll down the page to see more Gods, torsos, mood critters and other delights.
Fortune Cookies
Published May 28, 2009
This is a smoke fired ceramic sculpture with bits of scrap metal and nails inserted into the clay.
It is 30 cm. high.
I made it because I had heard enough about ‘military operations’ and ‘collateral damage’ and couldn’t sleep. I first called them ‘Blair’s Babes’ but then thought about how random the whole thing is – you drink your coffee in a sunny street cafe in Baghdad, Mumbai or London – and suddenly the world around you is blown to smithereens - are you feeling lucky?
I exhibited a few of the cookies at the Air Gallery in London, and funnily enough they were snapped up – by Japanese tourists.
Fire and Earth, part two.
Published April 28, 2009With smoke firing you never know what end result you are going to get.
There are so many variables. For example, saw dust burns a lot slower than wood shavings. It matters what size holes you have drilled in the side of your smoke chamber ( in my case, dustbin).
This torso
was glazed with the same glaze and oxides as this one…
and this one. The one difference is the amount of soot I added to the saw dust and the way I packed the wood shavings and saw dust around the torso. I have found that copper oxide will turn bright red under very strong reduction so I try to starve the atmosphere inside the smoke chambers of oxygen. To learn more about smoke firing, and get a chance to experiment and play, you are welcome to join my ceramic and smokefiring workshops in Hastings.
Please scroll down the page to see more posts on smoke firing, body casting and other ceramic techniques.
Smoke firing;Fire and Earth
Published April 27, 2009I spent the weekend smoke firing, or barrelling my ceramic torsos.
This is a bisque fired and glazed torso. 
Which I placed in a galvanized dustbin and covered with dry leaves, straw and sawdust. You can see some of my dead headed hydrangeas in there, too!
Then comes the fun bit!
And the next morning the bins are cool enough to open…
Two very differnt creatures emerge…
And this is one of the torsos, cleaned up and ready to go. I am still shocked by its transformation.
If you like to join a smoke firing workshop, please contact me via my website www.annakeiller.co.uk. or email me.
To see earlier posts on life casting and clay workshops please scroll down the page.
The abduction…
Published April 22, 2009
I made this piece with the old Swedish fairy tale ‘The Abduction’ in mind. The story goes that a young girl went to the woods to gather fir cones. Feeling tired she sat down next to a hill and as she leant against the rock it opened up and she was invited inside by the king of the mountain. All night she danced and feasted with the beautiful people, but in the morning she woke up outside the hill with her basket of fir cones.
‘I must have been dreaming’, she told herself and walked home. But a new family now lived in her old house and she didn’t recognise anyone in the village. Nobody knew her. Finally an old man said he had heard stories about an old couple who had lost their daughter in the woods many years ago when he was a child.
The main piece is smoke fired ceramics on top of a reclaimed british oak beam held together by a recycled gas pipe
Sculpture by Anna Keiller, poem by Abraham Gibson
The Abduction
A kiss is a weapon
it can strike you
Or stand guard… about your world
Loneliness is not bitter
if there is
… sun light in your soul
We do not care for summer
the birds chatter too loudly
the branches
… steal light
from the sky
Music is not ours
if we cannot hear its heart beat
love is not content
if we…
cannot hear its sigh
He found her sensuality
beautiful / disturbing
it reached him…
through her breath
over miles
and
across streams
The sun filtered
through the trees
like ribbons
The deeper he ventured
into the forest
the tighter
the ribbons
wrapped around his veins!
Be my soldier
Be my king
Hold me while I sleep
Be my soldier
Be my king!
Madness is a holding fast
and a letting go
His melancholy a dance with pain
that aches with hope
How do you keep a song quiet
that entices your every mood
if he could hear this music…
Who else could?
Their meeting place
was stained
ram shackled
danced over
And she has never been seen again
half of his mind…
still waits for her
half of his mind!
half of his mind
is being chased by the grief
Be my soldier
be my king
Be my soldier
be my king!
‘I must have been dreaming’, she told herself and walked home. But a new family now lived in her old house and she didn’t recognise anyone in the village. Nobody knew her. Finally an old man said he had heard stories about an old couple who had lost their daughter in the woods many years ago when he was a child.
Their meeting place
Another workshop finished…
Published April 17, 2009Setting fire to the smoke bins… 
And collecting the finished pieces…
Another ceramic workshop comes to an end.
New workshops start every month at my studio in Hastings. To join one please contact me by email here or go to www.ANNAKEILLER.co.uk to read more about my workshops.
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