King Houndekpinkou-Guozhong Ceramic Art Museum

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King Houndekpinkou

Artist's Work

The Little Sea Widow: Wet, Wet, Wet…Sorrow Rained onto Me…

Work introduction

I aspire to give birth to pieces that can have a life of their own. Pieces that have a voice to

engage you, pieces that need your wildest imagination to be complete, pieces that show the

beauty of our imperfections…

In 2012, my fascination for Japan took a new turn as I discovered the works of the Six Ancient

Pottery Kilns of Japan, which include Shigaraki, Bizen and Tamba. That year, I started learning

ceramics in Paris and traveling to Bizen, Japan, each year to acquire further experience besides

fellow potters.

3 IAC office: December 2019

There, I was amazed by their ceremonial approach to blending earth, water, air and fire to

create ceramics with a natural and crude aesthetics. To me, their practice was reminiscent of

Benin’s animist traditions of Voodoo as both “sciences” search for a fused relationship between

man and nature in order to guide our existence.

In 2016, guided by my intuition, I carried out the BB Project (Benin-Bizen Project), consisting in

blending techniques and local materials from Bizen, Japan, and the pottery village of Sè, near

my father’s native lands in Southwest Benin. The adventure resulted in hybrid works that shed a

new light on cross-cultural dialogue while placing clay work as a mean of universal plastic

expression.

This significant chapter of my life led me to develop Terres Jumelles a program that consists in

fostering a cross-cultural dialogue between the various pottery sites of Benin and Japan

through the local practices of ceramics/pottery in both countries.

Today, I blend clays and other materials from all continents to create experimental works that

combine craftsmanship, cross-cultural understanding and spirituality. I cultivate an attraction for

the “beauty of imperfection” and purposely scratch, tear and repair clay bodies often

disfigured by texture overload.

Once fired, glazes reveal cracks, grains and flux that often emulate the aesthetics of the

Voodoo altars from Benin.

Artist Biography

King HOUNDEKPINKOU, Ceramic artist, sculptor

b. May 9, 1987 - Montreuil, France

Born in Montreuil (France), in 1987, King Houndekpinkou is a Franco-Beninese ceramicist who

lives in Paris. He works in France, Benin and Japan. In 2012, his discovery of the Roku Koyō

(the six ancient pottery kilns of Japan) encouraged him to visit Bizen, Japan, each year to

acquire further knowledge and experience besides local potters. There, King was seduced by

their spiritual and ceremonial approach to creating ceramic works, which was reminiscent of

Benin’s animist cult of Voodoo. Following this epiphanic experience, King developed Terres

Jumelles, a program that consists in fostering a cross-cultural dialogue between the various

pottery sites of Benin and Japan through the local practices of ceramics/pottery in both

countries. Today, King has developed a practice that merges tradition, spirituality and visceral

creativity while crossing several “borders”, whether they are cultural, geographical,

generational, disciplinary, technical or historical. Mainly based on the vessel shape and

sculptural works, King’s practice involves blending materials (e.g.: clays, ashes, powders) from

all continents. Though built on strong and proportionate shapes, his works seem disfigured by

a surcharge of clay and lively textures that emulate the aesthetics of the Voodoo altars and

fetishes of Benin. King is a member of the International Academy of Ceramics and his work is/

has been regularly exhibited internationally at art/design fairs, museum exhibitions and

biennales in Australia, Benin, Hong-Hong, Japan, Morocco, Senegal, Spain, South Korea and

USA.

WeChat Official Account

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Phone：010-84015509

Fax：010-84015509

Email：718922066@qq.com

Address: First Floor, Pingan Mansion, No. 100, Dongsi Shitiao, Dongcheng District, Beijing.