Virginie Pernot

b. Paris, France, 1967

Virginie Pernot is a ceramist whose practice spans functional objects – vases, bottles, and wall lights – as well as abstract forms evoking hybrid creatures. Pernot increasingly departs from an interest in utility, constructing a science fiction universe of composite wheel-thrown sculptures that can be deconstructed and arranged. These zoomorphic and geometric shapes – with an invented anatomy of beak and claw, cog and tool – suggest both fossils and industrial parts and assume the shape of what Pernot terms “archaeological vessels from the future.”

After working in finance for almost thirty years, Pernot sought ceramic training at the Ceramic Art School of Vallauris, near the Madoura workshop in the south of France where Picasso created his entire ceramic oeuvre. The artist draws inspiration from this history – conflating craftsmanship and fine art-making, utilitarian object and intuitive form – as well as the natural hues of Mediterranean terracotta, which informs the palette of her work. Her vessels are fired unglazed and appear matte, absorbing the light of their surroundings and retaining an organic softness.