Lynda BENGLIS’ Bird’s Nest series are a vivid manifestation of this central core, the ceramics modelled as abstract, elongated 'bird’s nests' with a deep central opening. Benglis, who is best known for her poured sculptures made from wax, latex, metal and foam in the 1960s, created these glazed ceramic moulded forms to be hung on the wall – the first time ever with the medium – with the raised lips on either side offering an opening to the space within.

 

Placed next to the small, fantastical ceramic shoes of Zoe Williams, their monumental size is exaggerated, and they appear as surreal, Dali-esque melting forms.

Juxtaposed against Benglis and Williams is the work of the pioneering Belgian-born British artist, Jacqueline PONCELET. Poncelet was loosely associated with the 1980s New British Sculpture movement, a male-dominated movement led by Tony Cragg, Richard Deacon, Anish Kapoor and Bill Woodrow, who were reacting to the prevailing minimal and conceptual movements at the time.

 

Poncelet’s abstract forms are infused with a sense of sexuality: the phallic form of a Rhinoceros; the Venus of Willendorf, the famed female figurine made 25,000 years ago; or the ambiguous form of a fractured body in the shape of split legs. These ceramic works show her innovative and sensual approach to the media, each designed with coloured patterns and marks, rooted in her early fascination with naturally occurring patterns.