Lisi Binder and Stefanie Gravanis show in their show “Pas de deux” charming ceramics, still lifes and sketches
The “Pas de deux”, the dance for two, is usually the highlight of a performance in classical ballet. “A dance of a brush and a potter’s wheel in summery colors and flowing forms” is said to be the common exhibition of Lisi’s “Pas de deux” Binder and Stefanie Gravanis in the Seeresidenz Alte Post in Seeshaupt, which lasts until mid-September.
The joint appearance of the two artists, however, ends after the “Entrée”: In the entrance hall and on the invitation card, the large ceramic bowl entitled “Nuages Bleus” by Stefanie Gravanis appears in front of the abstract composition “A Stormy Day” in acrylic Canvas shown by Lisi Binder. Both works correspond due to the blue tones used. Above all, the rest of the exhibition demonstrates how far apart the positions of the painter and the ceramist are.
The whole world under control: the ceramist Stefanie Gravanis, who has her studio in the Gautinger rice mill, with her object “Le Monde”.
(Photo: Georgine Treybal)
Stefanie Gravanis is a trained interior designer. For some time she has her studio in the Gautinger rice mill, where mainly vessels and objects made of stoneware and porcelain porcelain. For her highly idiosyncratic expression, she found work stays with various ceramists in England, France and Hong Kong. In Seeshaupt she shows a colorful “globe”, for which she pushes the limits of the material to the utmost, a series of large-scale bowls with intricately designed surfaces and different colored glazes.
The more exciting work, however, is their irregularly shaped vase objects made of dark or light stoneware. Their soft curves and, as it were, smooth bulges contrast with their rough surfaces.
In the borderland between vessel and sculpture, these objects captivate with their restrained beauty. The same applies to the small cups and bowls, for which Gravanis combines artfully black and white porcelain. These hands-on vessels, from which one could also eat or drink, rock gently on the table and, with their gently frayed edges and the nuanced play of colors on the subtly structured surfaces, make the process of their creation visibly attractive.
A dance with the brush in summery colors: Lisi Binder and her painting “Glade”, which can be seen in Seeshaupt.
(Photo: Georgine Treybal)
Lisi Binder attended numerous painting and printing techniques courses and for some years ran a shop in Possenhofen where she sold her own artifacts and those of other artists as well as artfully designed home accessories. So probably the cheerful-pleasing mood of their pictures can be explained. In addition to some non-representational color compositions in acrylic on canvas, she shows a number of smaller paper works. Here, too, there are color pictures inspired by flower meadows and nature scenes, but also a multitude of sketchy narrative motifs: a teapot and a cup in front of a blue background form the “Blue Hour”, a still life with labeled storage jars is called “Fine Fruit”. There is a small scene “At the edge of the forest”, a few boathouses on the shore or colorful splashes of color, that sometimes become a “garden party” and sometimes a “glade”. The painter knows how to create decorative picture worlds with generous gestures, whereby she masters small formats much more confidently than large ones.
The exhibition by Lisi Binder and Stefanie Gravanis is still open until the 15th . September in the foyers and in the gallery gallery in the basement of the Seeresidenz Alte Post in Seeshaupt .
Read the full article in Süddeutsche Zeitung