STEEN IPSEN

Steen Ipsen (Danish, b. 1966) is a ceramic artist living and working in Copenhagen. Throughout his career he has explored and experimented with myriad themes emphasizing form and composition, as well as spatial context. Primarily employing hand-built circular, elliptical, and biomorphic shapes, Ipsen’s work reveals a methodical approach combined with a dynamic chaos that is both complex and refined in structure. His Ellipse sculptures are accented with interwoven strands of PVC, resulting in an optical expression of surging movement within the object. The monochromatic Organic works are created intuitively—a series of idiosyncratic undulating forms. Ipsen’s meticulously executed glazes further enhance each artwork with a striking graphic aesthetic. His sculptures exist within the sphere of Pop Art and Modernism’s organic abstraction as well as within a legacy of Scandinavian design; they are imbued with a contemplative mood and feeling of timelessness.

Steen Ipsen studied at The Royal Danish Academy, School of Design and Kolding Design School from 1984-1990. He was appointed Head of the Ceramics and Glass Department at The Royal Danish Academy, School of Design in 1996, a position he held through 2004. Ipsen is a co-founder of the artist run exhibition platform, Copenhagen Ceramics (CC), launched in 2012. His work has been exhibited widely, including numerous international solo presentations, and is in the collections of Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, France; Victoria & Albert Museum, London, UK; Design Museum, Copenhagen, Denmark; CLAY Museum, Middelfart, Denmark; Hetjens Museum, Düsseldorf, Germany; Trapholt Art Museum, Kolding, Denmark; Höganäs Museum, Sweden; Musée de Sèvres, Paris, France; Musée Magnelli, Vallauris, France; and Icheon World Ceramic Center, South Korea, among others.