Skip to content

A ceramics residency for an emerging artist

The Port Moody Arts Centre’s new ceramics artist-in-residence hasn’t been a ceramics artist very long.
Ray Tse
Ray Tse is the new ceramics artist in residence in Port Moody.

The Port Moody Arts Centre’s new ceramics artist-in-residence hasn’t been a ceramics artist very long.

In fact, Ray Tse has only been working on his craft for about three-and-a-half years.

Still, in that short time, the Emily Carr University of Art + Design graduate (2014) has made a strong impact with his functional clay designs and decorative sculptures.

And he hopes his year-long tenure at the Port Moody arts hub will be a kind of launching pad for his career.

Born and raised in Hong Kong, Tse started Emily Carr as a painting major. Clay soon became his passion.

Ceramics art, he told The Tri-City News, “is a mash up of 2D and 3D and not many other art forms do the same thing. There is a lot more to consider for a ceramist like how to make the form and the surface work together.”

Tse believes art should be part of everyone’s life and the best way to integrate it is to ensure it can be touched and used daily like on plates and pots; however, he also believes art can make a strong statement — politically and socially.

“I hope viewers can be aware of the issues that exist in this world and I hope that my art can make them think deeply and consider changes in their life to make the world a different place,” he said. “Many people have said my work is a bit on the dark side but I think the reality is just that.

“It’s not dark all the time; there’s also a bright side,” he said.

Tse, who started his residency at PMAC in late July, takes over from Otto Kamensek, who is currently exhibiting the results of his second tenure. Kamensek’s show — titled Dave, An Unexpected Tale — runs until Aug. 20 and demonstrates the plight of many Canadians living with arthritis.

Tse said he hopes his residency will also give him a platform to showcase his ceramics works as well as to connect the community to the ceramics.

This fall, Tse is expected to teach a class at PMAC.

jwarren@tricitynews.com
@jwarrenTC