Price, Ken | Hermit Crab Cup, 1972 — available on Composition Gallery

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// Hermit Crab Cup by Ken Price is a 1972 silkscreen print that combines playful abstraction with elements of surrealism. The composition features a stylized hermit crab positioned near a large, cup-like form against a backdrop of angular green shapes, evoking a sense of an abstracted landscape. Price, known for his whimsical and experimental approach to form, uses flat colors and simplified shapes to create a vivid, almost cartoonish environment. The bold interplay of green, purple, and earthy tones, along with the fragmented ground, imbues the scene with a sense of movement and depth. This print exemplifies Price's exploration of natural forms in a fantastical, imaginative context, inviting viewers into a world where ordinary creatures and objects take on an otherworldly quality.

Ken Price (USA, 1935–2012) was a celebrated sculptor and ceramicist renowned for his vibrant, biomorphic forms. Blurring the boundaries between fine art and craft, his works often featured richly textured surfaces and vivid colors. Price’s pioneering approach to ceramics transformed perceptions of the medium and influenced generations of artists.

Ken Price

Hermit Crab Cup, 1972

Name: Hermit Crab Cup, 1972
SKU: 4005

Form

Limited Edition Print

Limited Edition PrintA limited edition print is one of a number of prints made at the same time from one printmaking plate. A fixed number are made and signed by the artist, indicating the printing order, using the format 1/10, meaning first of ten prints.

Medium

Silkscreen

Silkscreen Silkscreen is a printmaking method that uses a screen made of silk or other mesh fabric. The screen is treated with a substance that blocks ink in certain areas, allowing ink to pass through only in the desired sections. Each color in the print requires a separate screen.

Edition

Edition of 60

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I was always making art in one way or another. I wanted to be an artist as far back as I can remember.
- Ken Price

Recognised for his abstract ceramic works, Ken Price was an artist inspired by Mexican folk-art and geology - a lot of his ceramics resemble sliced geodes and biomorphic blobs, featuring sloping edges and plump forms. Foregoing the popular method of glazing, Price would paint his works with bright acrylics and finish by sanding them down to reveal the rich colours beneath, as exhibited in works such as Jewel of the Rim and Variant. Studying in Japan, Price was influenced by the works of Japanese ceramicists and his earliest sculptures were small-scale, yet exquisite pieces; towards the end of his career, his sculptures began to take a larger, more bulbous form while retaining a quirky, abstract finish. Asides from his ceramics, Price created extensively through the form of watercolour paintings – as with his ceramics, his paintings depicted nature-inspired forms in acidic colour against flat landscapes – Hot Bottoms is perhaps his most notable painting.

Artwork by Miles Aldridge

What is contemporary art?

Contemporary art refers to avant-garde or innovative art created in the recent past or present day. The exact starting point of contemporary art varies depending on the institution, often tied to the founding year of museums or galleries that showcase the style. Contemporary art is characterized by its focus on current ideas, diverse media, and the exploration of new concepts and techniques.

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Ken Price

Hermit Crab Cup, 1972

71 x 56 cm

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Ken Price