Babs Haenen works with colored porcelain slabs and builds organic vessels with a dynamic inner choreography. Her new work has shown the artist moving from vertical vessel forms to more complex works that are composed of various layers. These colourful porcelain sculptures refer to Chinese mountains and the ancient tradition of scholars’ rocks.
Babs Haenen works with colored porcelain slabs and builds organic vessels with a dynamic inner choreography. Her new work has shown the artist moving from vertical vessel forms to more complex works that are composed of various layers. These colourful porcelain sculptures refer to Chinese mountains and the ancient tradition of scholars’ rocks.
Ceramic Art Inspired by Abstract Painting and Landscape Motifs
The ceramic works of Babs Haenen are celebrated for their expressive and impressionistic qualities, where colour, line, and form seamlessly intertwine. Influenced by abstract painting and the natural beauty of landscapes, her vessels exhibit a painterly aesthetic with fluid, dynamic forms that evoke the delicate movement of rippling water.
Colour, form, and movement in Contemporary Ceramics
To create her innovative ceramic sculptures, Haenen works with coloured porcelain slabs, which she meticulously manipulates by hand. These pigmented slabs are rolled into thin ribbons, then folded, cut, and sculpted to form tactile, expressive works of art. The resulting pieces transcend the traditional concept of the vessel – whether a bowl, vase, or plate – blurring the lines between functional ceramics and contemporary sculpture.
A Celebrated Ceramic Artist with Global Recognition
A graduate of the Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam, Haenen has made important contributions to the world of ceramics through her teaching, exhibitions, and high-profile public commissions. Her achievements include winning the Van Achterbergh Prize in 2020, and her work can be found in important Public Collections worldwide, including:
Babs Haenen lives and works in Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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