Using everyday objects to create art

Next, we speak to Chao Harn Kae and Karen Pow, creators of the Citibank Plaza Recycled Nutcracker Project’s The Birdcage Nutcracker and The Ceramic Ware Nutcracker. The exhibition runs until 2 January at the Upper Ground Lobby of Citibank Plaza in Central!

緊接上一網誌，今日我們亦邀請到花旗銀行廣場胡桃夾子再造計劃中，創作雀籠胡桃夾子及瓷器胡桃夾子的藝術家曹涵凱及鮑卓微，與我們分享胡桃夾子的創作過程。展覽由即日起至明年1月2日假中環花旗銀行廣場高層大堂舉行，大家萬勿錯過！

(scroll down for Chinese 下面附中文)

We are…
Freelance artists. We are usually commissioned to create art pieces, and to develop and run workshops to teach others how to create mosaics, sculptures and murals.

Found object art…
Many objects in our daily lives have interesting shapes and structures. Through adopting found object art to create these nutcrackers, we wanted to inspire people to value and appreciate the beauty of everyday objects.

The Ceramic Ware Nutcracker…
Ceramic ware that we use in our daily lives, such as cutlery and kitchenware, all have unique and exquisite designs and shapes. They, themselves, are beautiful objects. We thought, well, wouldn’t it be fun if we used these beautiful objects to collectively create a different object?

The Birdcage Nutcracker…
We thought that the structure of a birdcage and the outline of a nutcracker actually has similarities – its body and its limbs are all barrel shaped. That inspired us to use birdcages.

Challenges…
The biggest challenge was how to ensure that the nutcrackers were safe, that they had stable solid structures. As they are created from objects that aren’t usually used for sculptures or installations, we had to do many rounds of testing and experimenting to see which methods or which types of adhesive could do the job.

Tips for creating art?
We always start with the material – exploring its characteristics and the diverse ways in which it can be used. We then draft and design how to create a stable structure and how it should be installed. Only after all these aspects have been decided on, do we then finally start creating the piece of art.

我們是…
自由藝術工作者，主要是受客人委託去創作藝術作品和籌辦工作坊，帶領大眾去參與創作，工作坊範疇包括拼砌瓷磚畫、創作雕塑和繪畫壁畫等。

現成物的藝術創作…
在日常生活中，很多物件都有著有趣的形態和結構。利用現成物創作今次計劃的胡桃夾子，可使人發現及欣賞身邊事物的原有形態和價值。

瓷器胡桃夾子…
生活上的各種瓷器用具，包括食具和廚房用品，各有獨特和精緻的設計和圖案，是一件很漂亮的藝術品。如將這些不同形態的瓷器組拼合成另一種結構，應該是一件十分有趣的作品。

鳥籠胡桃夾子…
鳥籠的結構與胡桃夾子的外形有相似的地方 — 整個身軀和四肢都是圓桶形，這就是引發我們運用鳥籠為主要材料的原因。

創作過程中的困難…
最大困難莫過於雕塑的結構安全。由於製作材料並不是用於創作雕塑，我們要進行不同的試驗及測試，以確保它們能安全且穩固地結合。

製作貼士?
我們會從物料方面開始構思，想想物料的特性及其變化程度。開始製作時，先計劃好作品的結構，再想想如何固定及安裝/安放在固定地點。完成這些構後，才開始動手製作。