Artist of the Month, August 2013: Andrew Granger

Text by Melanie Bernier. Photographs by Melanie Bernier and River Cortes.

Canoe, 2011. Earthenware with underglaze.

Handbuilding with earthenware connects an artist to the natural world. This may be part of the allure for Andrew Granger, an Eagle Scout and avid camper.

The plasticity of the medium allows him to create representations of what might be found on a walk in nature. Seemingly crude at first, these sculpted rocks (above) are textured with lacerations which suggest fissures, and have been treated with a gunmetal underglaze. The results very specifically convey mudstone or shale. A rearing cobra and coiled rattlesnake are more energetic examples of Granger’s natural theme.

Rearing cobra, earthenware and underglaze.

Coiled rattlesnake, earthenware and underglaze. 

These architectural sculptures (below) are both straight-forward and whimsical, as they lead us to imagine ancient ruins uncovered in a remote and tropical landscape. The obtusely angled, pocked building blocks again portray natural stones which have been collected to raise a miniature civilization.    

Granger’s pottery has the same hand-worked quality of his sculptures, and his designs are often completed with a painted natural spiral. The high contrast underglaze finishes make these functional pieces really pop. 

Andrew Granger’s work can be found in our craft store in Brookline, MA. Learn more about Granger and his work on our website.