Thomas Bohle

'Working with clay is an erotic process, not knowing where it will lead me I cannot help but roll with the tide. The ever-changing soft material keeps changing, reacting to every movement of mine, subtle as it may be and reflects my inner mood. After firing it lures me into feeling its surface. The attraction remains forever.' Thomas Bohle

After working for several years in the field of medicine Thomas Bohle became a ceramicist in 1991. His technical interest lies in double-walled vessels in which the strongly differing exterior and interior shapes form a deliberate contrast, in form and colour. Fired in an open reduction flame, the oxblood and celadon glazes reveal their true beauty. The artist will also often use a scalpel, a reminder of his formal profession, to shape the worked edges of the inwardly descending form. The silhouette shows the dynamic sequence of the curve and the counter–curve, where the outer surface is often glazed matt black, only to flow downwards on the inside in the irridesent blood red glaze. The overall appearance often makes one forget just how much technical expertise is concealed behind the design; these pieces are fired at an amazing 1280 degrees centigrade. Ultimately his mastery of stoneware clay, his years of experience understanding the laws of glazing and firing are the distinguishing features of Bohle's work. Such technical perfection with a willingness to take risks gives the work its intensity, sculptured finesse and monumentality. His feel for reductionism and composition allow him to view the strictly precise as a possibility for artistic expressive power. Finally the work has a structural quality that places him firmly in the high level ranks of contemporary international ceramic art.