Mother of Many Nations
Stoneware clay and glazes
1290 x 730 mm
About the artwork
Made from four different South African stoneware clay bodies combined with the Japanese ceramic technique known as nerikomi, Brand was inspired by the mother and primitive female forms. The artwork’s shape refers to primitive representations of the female or mother. What began as a large slab of clay turned into various segments that, together, signify a whole. Brand explores ideas of unity in diversity and draws upon abstract expressionism. Complex glazes in a painterly fashion tie the different segments together.
Daniel Brand was born in Evanston IL but grew up in sunny South Africa where his parents relocated in the 1970s.
For anyone who lives for their passion, inspiration can usually be traced back to childhood. For Daniel, the acclaimed Pretoria-based ceramicist working in porcelain and stoneware, it started in early childhood. Growing up on the floor of his mother’s studio, where he was involved with clay from an early age.
Initially Daniel’s life took a rather different turn. He worked in the IT and finance sectors for most of his career until health complications led to a much-needed lifestyle change in 2012. At first, this took the form of graphic design, but when he took up his mother’s art of ceramics as a form of therapy, he never looked back.
Since 2017, Daniel has been a full time ceramic artist, selling and exhibiting his award-winning work.