Stainless Steel Meets Ikebana in Peter Shire Show

Before post-modernism was degraded by certain buildings and products into silliness (AT & T Building, anyone?) it was a spirited antidote to a dour brand of Modernism. One designer/artist/maker/ceramicist who…

Before post-modernism was degraded by certain buildings and products into silliness (AT & T Building, anyone?) it was a spirited antidote to a dour brand of Modernism.

One designer/artist/maker/ceramicist who has long embodied that uncynical joy in color and — sometimes goofy — shape is a friend of mine, Peter Shire.

Opening with a party Saturday — at the Pete and Susan Barrett Art Gallery at the Broad Stage in Santa Monica — is a show of works he made on an extended visit to Hokkaido Japan, back in 1992. They are described here by his gallerist, Frank Lloyd:

“It’s a long distance between Echo Park and Hokkaido, but back in 1992 Peter Shire bridged that oceanic gap. Not just by his travel, but in his sculpture. In a fantastic series of teapots, Peter melded stainless steel and ikebana, and mixed bolts with bamboo. As always, a post-modern constructivist sensibility was lightened by a sense of humor. This series of work, made in Japan in 1992, takes the familiar domestic object into the zany and bizarre world of Shire’s mechanical fantasy.”

Bear in mind, Saturday night is also when KCRW kicks up the traces with its now annual Masquerade. So Saturday could be a busy evening!

HOKKAIDO STORY

Tue, November 2 – Sat, December 4

Come take an up-close-and-personal look at a stunning selection of California Ikebana steel sculptures in teapot form. Opening reception on Saturday, October 30, from 6 to 8 pm.