The collaboration between Studio Gild and Caroline Blackburn Ceramics

Thank you Instagram, for introducing us to a fabulous collaboration between the Chicago and Los Angeles-based interior design firm Studio Gild and the Los Angeles-based ceramicist Caroline Blackburn of Caroline Blackburn Ceramics. The initial connection between the two occurred when Caroline messaged Melissa Benham, a partner at Studio Gild, and asked her to look at her work.

Benham was instantly hooked… drawn to the unique nature of Blackburn’s ceramics. She told Luxe Source, “Caroline’s work stood out to us as being very different; there’s a painterly quality to it.”

Almost immediately, Gild Studio began offering Blackburn’s pieces on their highly curated online store; they also began to place her pieces in client homes. An initial offering was a shallow bowl made on a wheel prior to being hand-built and glazed.

The studio wondered if it was possible to change the bowls’ dimensions to create sconces. The prototypes that followed became part of a small initial offering. The sconces’ success has led to conversations about plans for a collection of customized lights. Benham says, “We don’t want to repeat anything, but we can show a customer an idea and personalize it.”

The abstract sconces were described by Blackburn as (courtesy of Modern Luxury) “textural painterly forms created for today’s contemporary interior and they push the expectation of what a wall sconce can be and where you might find a ceramic art piece.”

With no two pieces identical, it is easy to view them more as works-of-art than as lighting fixtures. In client residences, the studio has placed two similar sconces on either side of a mirror, or a cluster of sconces for a more artistic and bohemian vibe.

Blackburn was trained as a painter and began her sculptural ceramic work as an outlet; her work is unique in its approach to form, texture, and color. Some pieces are created on a potter’s wheel, while others are hand-built, and some ceramics are made as a combination of both techniques.

Blackburn is adept at interpreting glazes and she is a master in creating an “active surface” within each piece. She uses a number of different materials including oxide, glaze, ceramic pencil, and slip to create (courtesy of the artist’s website) “a sublime effect, reflecting phenomenon found in nature. Color plays a significant role in the work. When she glazes a work she approaches it as a canvas.”

The award-winning ceramicist is inspired by abstract paintings, fashion, nature, and architecture. Blackburn’s work shows an ongoing interest in form and (courtesy of Spense & Lyda) “her work depicts a constant shift between surface treatment and the object.”

With each creation, Blackburn contrasts color and texture to create a unique canvas that is further aided by the wide range of glazes that she uses to achieve her desired effect. The result is exactly what was intended… a look that was informed by the formations found in nature.