Morten Løbner Espersen

Ceramicist

©Anders Hald Johansen

©Ole Akhøj

The boundaries of experimentation

Morten explores the extremities of clay
He develops one-of-a-kind glazes
His extreme control leads to unexpected beauty

Morten Løbner Espersen is a ceramicist, educated at the Danish Design School and the École Supérieure des Arts Appliqués in Paris. Whether working, lecturing, or being in residence, Morten is a relentless explorer, experimenter and chemist. He has become an authority on clay vessels. Morten assumes a scientific approach to exploring what clay can do. He accumulates knowledge, cultivates technique, attains artistic control to the extreme, and then lets go. This is where beautiful errors manifest themselves. The results of his creative approach are pieces that are out of human hands yet reveal human nature. Morten concocts a vast range of glazes, from ancient Chinese recipes to off-the-shelf formulas, and immerses himself to stretch the laws of nature and craft the ceramic vessel of the future.

Interview

©Soren Ronholt

Form, surface, or glaze: what is most important to you?: The precision of form is essential. Proportions are crucial – a slight change can distort the balance. The surface dictates where the glaze can go and what it can do. It has to be a thoroughly planned symphony if it is to succeed.
When does a vessel fail during the firing phase?: I try to control my dream result thoroughly. However, I am often caught off-guard by the beautiful results that occur during the firing. This is the space my control cannot enter. Failure is when I cannot add more colour, and the firing has exhausted the clay.
How much or how little control does it take to succeed?: A tremendous amount of control is needed before I can achieve what I strive for: form, composition, the amount of glaze, and the firing temperature. I control everything up until it goes into the kiln.
What part does scientific research play in your artistic method?: I still experiment with glaze mixtures. I read and expand my knowledge of glaze chemistry, but only the firing will tell if it worked at all. Often, my mixtures are beyond categorisation and, therefore, purposefully fail and create beautiful results.

Morten Løbner Espersen is a master artisan: he began his career in 1992 and he started teaching in 1999