Robert Arneson, 1985. Photograph by M.A. Majewski, courtesy of George Adams Gallery, New York.
In the 1960s Robert Arneson started out as the bad boy of West Coast craft and retained that aura of transgression throughout his career. Arriving onto the ceramic scene in the wake of Peter Voulkos’s dramatic breakthrough, he initially felt intimidated, unable to work convincingly in the avant-garde style that was suddenly the discipline’s leading edge. He got through by going low. Adapting ideas from Pop art, Arneson mined the vernacular associations of his material: bricks, toilets, and flowerpots. Rather than attempting to elevate ceramics as an art form, he positively wallowed in its marginality; riffing on the theme of suburban amateurism, he created a series based on his own modest home on Alice Street, in Davis, California.
Ironically—and Arneson was nothing if not ironic—this proved to be a more effective road to art-world recognition than Voulkos’s vigorous, but increasingly dated, Expressionism. In the 1970s, Arneson achieved widespread acclaim for his subversive early work, as well as for an extended series of psychologically intense self-portrait busts. For many artists working in ceramics, both then and now, his witty, funky, and satirical objects are essential points of reference.
Alice Street Tray in ceramic. Made by Robert Arneson, USA, 1966.
13" L x 17" W x 3.5" H
33 cm L x 43.2cm W x 8.9cm H
SC874
Courtesy of George Adams Gallery
Model of Alice House in glazed ceramic. Made by Robert Arneson, USA, 1966.
10.5” L x 8.25” W x 3” H
26.7cm L x 21cm W x 7.6cm H
SC875
Private Collection, courtesy of George Adams Gallery.