TOTALLY TUBULAR

A short film shot in 2013 shows Norwegian ceramic artist Torbjorn Kvasbo working in his studio in Venabygd, a hilly region in the village of Ringebu, nearly 200 kilometers north of the capital, Oslo. He pulls clay tubes out of molding machines, piles them together, and readjusts the formations or extends their openings. From time to time, he groans as he exerts all his strength to shape the tubes to his satisfaction. Sometimes he utters a sound of discontent when the tubes fall apart after drying.

The works are fired in kilns situated outside the studio, and Kvasbo and his crew work in shifts over a period of days. He says in the film that he enjoys the firings, which come with surprises — some works are completed to perfection, while others are not done well — and the process produces "new knowledge (for him) to take the next step forward".

The film is being screened at Kvasbo's debut exhibition in China at the Art Museum of Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing. Titled Bundles of Energy, the show is scheduled to run until Friday. On display are 23 of the 69-year-old artist's tube sculptures, reviewing his experimental endeavors in ceramic art over the past decade. It is hoped that the film will help engage the viewers with the environment in which Kvasbo works and lives, as the artist isn't able to travel to China for the exhibition's opening and meet with local art lovers.

Kvasbo is one of the most internationally renowned artists in Norway. He has been working with clay and ceramic, developing techniques to explore the reformative presentation of ceramics. His routine work, as the film shows, often involves intense physical labor on a daily basis, through which he addresses topics such as the existence of humankind, collective memories and identity seeking.

His works have been exhibited worldwide and he is currently president of the International Academy of Ceramics, an official partner of UNESCO, a role which he accepted in 2018 and will occupy until 2024.

In his creation, Kvasbo views tubes as a basic unit to support the lives of people. He says that veins are the tubes that transport blood and oxygen all around the body. Meanwhile, daily life and production activities, such as cooking, laundry, agricultural irrigation and the supply of industrial fuels, largely depend on the proper function of tubes.

His work presents a "contest" between human strength and the energies of matter: He presses, stretches and sculpts the clay again and again, carefully reaching a point of balance whereby the tubes are piled to various angles, but stand firm. He is fascinated that a tube has two openings, from which the tubes' inner forces can explode, and he wants to present that energy or pressure to the viewers.

Kvasbo preserves the traditional method of firing using wood. He traveled to Japan in the mid-1980s where he learned about the construction of the ancient anagama kiln. This type of pottery kiln was brought from China around the fifth century, and was built on slopes to resemble a climbing dragon, earning it the nickname "dragon kiln" in China.

Kvasbo later built the first anagama kiln in Norway, outside his studio. Now, some of the works fired using the kiln are being shown in Beijing, the country where the dragon kiln was born.

In a video speech at the exhibition's opening, Kvasbo said it took him 47 years from when he began creating ceramic art, to "walk" from a village in Norway to China and the CAFA museum.

He said there are roughly 300 people living in Venabygd, his hometown, and his job is to "tell the stories of their lives, their culture and the rhythm of their bodies between work and rest in a severely cold environment, as well as depict the aging process and passage of time".

He said that working with clay has exposed him to a lot of pressure, and it has helped him understand that the clay and fire possess certain energies out of his control or calculation.

Qiu Zhijie, vice-president of CAFA, says Kvasbo lives in a very old village, and he keeps antiquated items of furniture at home; they are quite strong and have inspired him to think about the meaning of persistence and inheritance of traditions in a creative way.

Lyu Pinjing, a professor of CAFA and vice-president of Jingdezhen Ceramic University, in Jiangxi province, worked with Kvasbo to curate an international ceramic art biennial in Jingdezhen in 2021. Lyu says that, since the 1970s, Kvasbo has always believed that clay is a material full of emotions, cultural meaning and unique qualities, and his works show how he faces up to the challenges this material and his work have raised. "Clay is the embodiment of his thought. His works show a balance between the possible and the impossible."

Kvasbo's works will travel to the Taoxichuan Art Museum in Jingdezhen in early 2023, where he stayed briefly for a residence four years ago.