ArtBreak with Trisha Coates 3/2/11

Trisha Coates, Sprouting Garlic Tea Set

I love Trisha's work--I had actually seen some of her pieces on display at the Community Church in Durham a few years ago and so I was quite excited to see them in the current show at the Museum of Art.  I love the whimsical quality of her pieces and their organic beauty and playfulness.  I had always wondered what the thought process was behind her work and so it was fascinating to hear her speak.  

Trisha Coates, Petite Pepper Teapot

Trisha is inspired by the Chinese tea ceremony and the traditional yixing teapots.  These sorts of pots were made to be more rustic, through use of materials like clay, and would also often resemble a food or plant (though a lot less obviously than hers).  She began her talk with a quote from a poem and said that she often reads poetry and is inspired by a certain line in a poem, many times borrowing lines as titles of pieces.  In her work, she celebrates everyday activities, like cutting vegetables, that can be moments of quiet reflection, contemplation, and realization.  Through her work she emphasizes her observation of the importance of these seemingly mundane moments.  Her appreciation of food and the preparation/eating of a meal as a social occasion are also ideas that factor into her work.  She said that she is fascinated by the idea of "we are what we eat," and the food we eat becoming a part of us, just as we become the food.  Each of her pieces will hold and pour water, but she says their purpose is not to be used as a teapot.      

Trisha Coates, Lemongrass Bundle on Rice Teapot

I really like the appreciation of the everyday and mundane in her work.  I think it is always interesting to bring people's attention to things they normally would not think twice about.  Each of her pieces has so much character--they make me want to cook!