Royal Red Vase

Kottler’s sense of humour and irreverence for established modes of art theory was cultivated by his exposure to California Funk — an artistic movement in 60s-70s that rebelled against nonobjectivity and celebrated crude or unrefined results, with particular regard to ceramics as a sculptural device. “Royal Red Vase” defines its form by the use of a Rubens-Vase effect, the artist mirroring his own inward-facing silhouette to create the illusion of a vase in negative space as a visual gag. It performs its role as a vase, a sculpture, and a self-portrait; whilst adhering to few traditional notions of those formats.