FAQ
Each of Birch’s artworks have been made through the singular use of a felled tree. The supple curves, hollows and prongs of each work have come into being without the traditional assistance of assemblage or joinery. His mode of making requires an alert, limber hand. Relinquishing pre-determined or prescriptive form, Birch acquiesces to what each piece of timber asks of him. “It’s about exploring the different shapes the wood can yield – pushing the boundary of what the material can hold,” he shares. “It’s a process of refinement rather than making.”
Each of Birch’s artworks have been made through the singular use of a felled tree. The supple curves, hollows and prongs of each work have come into being without the traditional assistance of assemblage or joinery. His mode of making requires an alert, limber hand. Relinquishing pre-determined or prescriptive form, Birch acquiesces to what each piece of timber asks of him. “It’s about exploring the different shapes the wood can yield – pushing the boundary of what the material can hold,” he shares. “It’s a process of refinement rather than making.”
Each of Birch’s artworks have been made through the singular use of a felled tree. The supple curves, hollows and prongs of each work have come into being without the traditional assistance of assemblage or joinery. His mode of making requires an alert, limber hand. Relinquishing pre-determined or prescriptive form, Birch acquiesces to what each piece of timber asks of him. “It’s about exploring the different shapes the wood can yield – pushing the boundary of what the material can hold,” he shares. “It’s a process of refinement rather than making.”
Each of Birch’s artworks have been made through the singular use of a felled tree. The supple curves, hollows and prongs of each work have come into being without the traditional assistance of assemblage or joinery. His mode of making requires an alert, limber hand. Relinquishing pre-determined or prescriptive form, Birch acquiesces to what each piece of timber asks of him. “It’s about exploring the different shapes the wood can yield – pushing the boundary of what the material can hold,” he shares. “It’s a process of refinement rather than making.”
Each of Birch’s artworks have been made through the singular use of a felled tree. The supple curves, hollows and prongs of each work have come into being without the traditional assistance of assemblage or joinery. His mode of making requires an alert, limber hand. Relinquishing pre-determined or prescriptive form, Birch acquiesces to what each piece of timber asks of him. “It’s about exploring the different shapes the wood can yield – pushing the boundary of what the material can hold,” he shares. “It’s a process of refinement rather than making.”
Each of Birch’s artworks have been made through the singular use of a felled tree. The supple curves, hollows and prongs of each work have come into being without the traditional assistance of assemblage or joinery. His mode of making requires an alert, limber hand. Relinquishing pre-determined or prescriptive form, Birch acquiesces to what each piece of timber asks of him. “It’s about exploring the different shapes the wood can yield – pushing the boundary of what the material can hold,” he shares. “It’s a process of refinement rather than making.”
Each of Birch’s artworks have been made through the singular use of a felled tree. The supple curves, hollows and prongs of each work have come into being without the traditional assistance of assemblage or joinery. His mode of making requires an alert, limber hand. Relinquishing pre-determined or prescriptive form, Birch acquiesces to what each piece of timber asks of him. “It’s about exploring the different shapes the wood can yield – pushing the boundary of what the material can hold,” he shares. “It’s a process of refinement rather than making.”
Delivery
Known for his distinctive vocabulary of shape, texture and colour, Houndekpinkou’s work revels in unexpected hybridities, the product of a diasporic world-view that resists cultural borders. He has developed an explorative practice that blends tradition and ancient spirituality with modern techniques, drawing heavily from Japanese and West African culture.
Born in Montreuil, France to Beninese parents in 1987, Houndekpinkou grew up in the suburbs of Paris. His adolescence was shaped by his discovery of Japanese pop culture, anime and video games. A trip to Japan in 2012 awakened an interest in the country’s ancestral pottery, whose ceremonial approach to craft and Shintoism resonated strongly with the animism of Beninese Voudou
Houndekpinkou’s guiding philosophy, the interdependence and divine nature inherent in all aspects of life, is evidenced in his approach to this body of work. Through alchemical processes of clay-making and new forms of magic, sacred geometries meet fractals from the future. He juxtaposes smooth against rough, matt against gloss, rounded shapes against angular forms, spikes that repel next to tentacles that reach out and attract. That draw in as they rebuff.
Houndekpinkou’s work reflects a creolisation of multiple knowledge systems and influences known as syncretism – the fusion of different traditions, beliefs or practices into a new, cohesive whole. It often occurs when diverse cultural or religious systems come into contact and interact, leading to the integration of elements from each tradition.
His use of texture is masterful and unexpected. He self-theorises his work in the same manner that he theorises mythical realms for his sculptures. “What really gives life to a piece is its texture. The texture makes the colour come alive. I want to make pieces that look like they’re living, moving, and breathing.” Clay forms are curved into smooth precision, only to be disrupted by shocks of colour, sharp stalks, and crackling glazes. He scrapes into levelled surfaces, making carvings and incisions. Tiny, coral-like fingers reach out of the cavernous body of a large vessel of royal, marbled blues. Glazes and tints are made to specific, customised formulations. Potions to activate and energise.
Delivery
Known for his distinctive vocabulary of shape, texture and colour, Houndekpinkou’s work revels in unexpected hybridities, the product of a diasporic world-view that resists cultural borders. He has developed an explorative practice that blends tradition and ancient spirituality with modern techniques, drawing heavily from Japanese and West African culture.
Born in Montreuil, France to Beninese parents in 1987, Houndekpinkou grew up in the suburbs of Paris. His adolescence was shaped by his discovery of Japanese pop culture, anime and video games. A trip to Japan in 2012 awakened an interest in the country’s ancestral pottery, whose ceremonial approach to craft and Shintoism resonated strongly with the animism of Beninese Voudou
As a self-taught artist, I have been honing my craft for years. My passion for watercolor art started with wanting to express the world around me in my own unique way.
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