ben medansky infuses industrial aesthetics into carefully-crafted ceramic wares

ben medansky infuses industrial aesthetics into carefully-crafted ceramic wares
all images courtesy of ben medansky

informed by the natural landscapes of his native arizona, his studies in the city of chicago, and the architecture of his current home in LA, ben medansky amasses his far-reaching artistic influences into the design of his carefully crafted ceramic pieces. these varied environments — rich in both natural and manmade artifacts — form the foundation of medansky’s creative inclination.

‘astra II’ vessel 

especially drawn to brutalism, modern architecture, mechanics, industrial aesthetics and the diverse cityscape of downtown LA, medansky remixes these aspects of his environment into sculptural objects and limited-edition wares. these bold pieces made from earthen materials explore geometric variations of grids and symmetrical spaces, while adopting a selective color palette of grey, black, beige and blue. otherwise overlooked industrial aspects of everyday life — such as construction scaffold, vents and pipes — become important motifs that form a common thread throughout the pieces. 

bright blue legs complete the design of ‘astra II’ vessel 

medansky has been named one of six ‘rising talents‘ at the second edition of maison&object americas 2016 — a global showcase held in miami from may 10-13. hosted within a specially-curated space at the fair, medansky has presented a collection of vessels and sculptural objects that integrate industrial and structural motifs in their design. rendered in a subdued selection of black, grey and speckled beige with bold bursts of bright blue, the pieces build on medansky’s existing work while serving as a point of departure for new geometries and tonal palettes.

the ‘vent’ sculptural object mixes grey, blue and beige hues 

‘vent’ viewed from the top 

the ‘cis vent bowl’ features a black and blue top, with a speckled beige base 

from the top of the ‘cis vent bowl’, a diagonal grid of blue lines can be seen 

the ‘ahm vessel’ 

view of ‘ahm vessel’ turned on its side 

industrial details like pipes have informed the design of the ‘tumbling tube vessel’

‘tumbling tube vessel’ features layers of stacked cylinders 

the ‘post vessel’ comes in a palette of speckled beige and bright blue 

‘mug #1’ from the medansky mug society — read more about the members only club here

the ‘rfs vessel’ features vertical ‘arms’ that wrap the circumference of the volume

maison et objet americas 2016 runs from may 10 to may 13, 2016. the event brings the interior design and home decoration communities from north and south america to the vibrant city of miami. this second edition takes over two halls at the miami beach convention center, with an outreach of events, exhibitions and activities planned for across the city throughout the week. 

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