Practical Magic: Colin Radcliffe
Colin Radcliffe, Taking a Butt Pic, 2019, ceramic, glaze, 11 x 4 x 7 in
Practical Magic is an online interview series with early and mid-career creatives. Through a selection of prompts we spotlight each person’s practice and (hopefully) prove art world creatives are the real influencers of today.
interview with: COLIN RADCLIFFE
artist
We’ve had the pleasure of curating some of Colin Radcliffe’s ceramic creatures in a group show at our Bushwick Ave location back in 2018. Titled Dimensions of Alterity, the show looked at the grotesque, chimeric and carnivalesque from early art history to today. The chimeras and monsters that Colin sculpts are cute and silly, but are dual-y serious and contorted - they constrict, swallow each other, swallow themselves eternally. A bit more about Colin:
Colin Radcliffe graduated from Bard College in 2016 with a B.A. in Studio Arts, and has since been living and working in NYC as a ceramic sculptor. His work explores the dynamics of Queer relationships today through his own intimate experiences in navigating relationships, technology, and chronic illness. Prior to the Covid-19 Pandemic, he exhibited work in a 2-person booth at SPRING/BREAK Art Show 2020, and was set to show his work internationally for the first time at Villa Noailles in Hyères, France.
We caught up with Colin mid-way through the pandemic, for a chance to reconnect and for him to share his responses to a few of our creative practice prompts. Queue the vis-a-vis:
PP: Where do you live and how does it affect your practice/career? What's the creative community like there?
CR: I’ve lived in NYC for 4 years and was quite tentative about moving here. It seemed like an unsustainable city for young artists. I was most apprehensive about potentially paying high rent for both a studio and an apartment, and about the competitiveness of the NYC art world. What I found was that there are affordable places to live and work in NYC, and that there’s an abundance of opportunities. The experiences and people I’ve met here have made me feel accepted in making the sort of confessional work I make, and have only helped me grow into myself as an artist and Queer person, so I feel fortunate to be here. The creative community in NYC is wonderfully supportive, engaged, and eclectic.
PP: Did you receive a formal education for the work you do currently? Either way, do you think it has supported/informed the outcome of your career and your future goals?
CR: I went to Bard College for undergrad and felt supported to experiment with a variety of disparate ideas and mediums. My education at Bard bolstered and affirmed many of my goals, gave me a solid foundation, and shaped my identity as an artist. Bard was all about critical thinking and a commitment to making your work regardless of your circumstances, and being able to defend the work you were making. Outside of that structured environment, I’ve held on to those values in my studio. I learned most of the basics of ceramics through Lisa Sanditz at Bard, but much of my understanding of ceramics has been self taught through experimenting and looking at the works of other ceramic artists.
PP: What's your favorite article of clothing to wear and why?
CR: Either these cuffed wide leg, high-waisted, light sage-green satin pants. Or this airy open-neck, silvery steel-blue collared blouse with an attached white satin bow-ribbon under the collar, and with a double breast of buttons similar to a classic chef coat. Clothing is a form of communication; it’s an opportunity to express your ideas as an artist, and is an extension of your identity, values, and aesthetic tastes. For me, I feel most comfortable and powerfully me while wearing those clothes.
Colin among a collection of his sculptures
PP: What are you listening to in your studio or when you work?
CR: I actually don’t usually listen to anything in the studio. My ceramic studio is a shared space with a warm, social atmosphere so I like to be able to engage with everyone there. Whenever I’m walking to the studio or working on sketches for new ceramic work I usually throw on some mindless background music, like Mort Garson’s Plantasia or Raymond Scott’s Soothing Sounds for Baby.
PP: If you had to pick a film that you feel inspires your practice in some way, which would it be and why?
CR: Stephen Dunn’s Closet Monster from 2015. It’s this Queer coming-of-age indie film about a creative teenager about to graduate high school and start the next chapter of his life, but all while grappling with trauma and identity and having to navigate family, friends, career, death, and love and desire. I resonate a lot with the main character’s journey and feelings, and a lot of those related feelings and experiences make their way into my ceramic work.
Party Size!, 2019. ceramic, glaze, 7 x 9 x 5.5 in
His Love No Longer Wanted Him, 2019. ceramic, glaze, 3 x 11 x 5 in
PP: What is a typical day in the life for you as a creative? How do you structure your day/week to manage your practice?
CR: Flexible! My work comes from my lived experiences, so as long as I’m still living I’ll have plenty of content to pull from. I go to the ceramic studio 3+ times a week and work all day once I’m there. I don’t like to stop & start, so I sculpt each piece in a sitting if I can. What day I go to the studio can be dependent on how quickly wet work dries. If clay dries too quickly it can crack or warp, so it’s a tender dance of wrapping and unwrapping work until it’s ready to be baked. I typically work on several pieces at once, all in different stages of completion. Outside of the studio I keep busy with my garden, studying French, cooking and baking, seeing friends, and going out on dates.
PP: And to close things out, current fave meme??
CR: [see left]
To learn more about Colin’s practice or follow him online, check out:
Practical Magic interviews post every Tuesday and Thursday - check back weekly to see who we’re chatting with next.