Ilona Romule (LV). CANNED FISH. - 8600 Eur

Year and Place:   2019, Jingdezhen, China (Overglaze painting completed in 2021 during a creative residency at the Rothko Museum, Latvia)

Materials:   Jingdezhen porcelain; matte clear glaze; brushed gold, silver, and gold chroming.

Technique:   Original author’s models and moulds; slip‑cast porcelain, altered and assembled; gas‑reduction firing at 1350 °C; overglaze hand‑painting

Description:   Canned Fish forms part of the project Semantic Migration, exploring how objects and symbols shift in meaning as they move across cultural, geographical, and conceptual contexts. Created in Jingdezhen—China’s historic porcelain capital—the work combines industrial casting traditions with expressive alteration and meticulous overglaze painting. The metallic accents and assembled forms evoke both preciousness and mass production, prompting reflection on consumption, preservation, and the transformation of everyday motifs into sculptural narratives. Completed in two stages across two countries, the piece embodies a dialogue between place, process, and evolving interpretation.

Exhibition History:   CREO, ERGO SUM — I Create, Therefore I Am. Baltic Contemporary Ceramics, Museum of Decorative Arts and Design, Riga, Latvia (2021).

Publication History:   CREO, ERGO SUM exhibition catalogue, 2021.