WIN NG, (American 1935-1991) Terra Cotta Sculpture, 1959-1960, 22″h x 18″ w x 2 1/2 d (More)
Win Ng
Born and raised in San Francisco’s Chinatown, Win Ng established his reputation as a master ceramist, with an initial focus on abstract, non-utilitarian works along side that of Peter Voulkos.
“There is evidence that the work of Voulkos and Ng overlapped (Ng for a brief period utilized Voulkos’ studio at the California College of Arts and Crafts). When Voulkos was at the Los Angeles County Art Institute, Ng was working in San Francisco, which is when Ng first came to the attention of Ruth Braunstein. She knew of Ng’s work before discovering Voulkos, but even though Voulkos returned to San Francisco in the late 1950’s, it was Ng who, at the time, played a significant role in the local ceramic scene. It is conceivable that Ng’s work was prescient to that of Voulkos, given the Eastern influence of Ng’s cultural heritage as well as San Francisco’s intellectual Bohemian climate. Ng may not have been given credit for being “ahead of his time” for other reasons, the least of which could have included his marginalization as Chinese and his turn to the craft-orient work of Taylor & Ng just as his fine art career was blossoming. Ng, however, respected Voulkos work, and ultimately included it in his personal collection.”
(Allen R. Hicks, The Art of Win Ng: A Retrospective, Chinese Historical Society of America, 2005, pg 8.)
As a part of the group of potter-craftsman, Win Ng emerged from the post World War II era and established himself within a new tradition of American pottery. This new direction came out of a dissatisfaction with cold, factory-generated ceramics mass produced on assembly lines. These new potters sought to establish a place for handmade ceramic ware.
Since factories met the mass demand for utilitarian ware, American potters still faced the dilemma of having their craft fill no immediate need. The result was a new breed of craftsman: the artist-potter—artisans who both design and execute their pottery. (Allen R. Hicks, The Art of Win Ng: A Retrospective, Chinese Historical Society of America, 2005, pg 7.)
In 1958 Ng had his first one man show at the Michow Gallery in New York and then in 1961 was represented by Braunstein Gallery in San Francisco.
Selected Exhibitions
1960 Carnegie Institute
1961 Smithsonian Institute
1961 Saint Paul Gallery
1962 Seattle World Fair
1962 Museum of Contemporary Craft
1962 Dartmouth College
1962 Alfred University
1963 The Oakland Museum of California
1963 University of St. Louis
1964 National Museum of Modern Arts, Tokyo
1964 Edmonton Gallery
1964 Museum of Contemporary Craft
1964 University of Oregon
1964 Pennsylvania Academy
1965 Museum Cantini
1965 Krannan Art Museum
1965 California State College
1965 Smithsonian Institute
1965 Everson Museum
1965 Museum of Contemporary Art, La Jolla
1966 Albert Museum
1966 Reed College
1969 John Wax Corporation
1981 Braunstein Gallery
1986 Victoria and Albert Museum
1990 Braunstein Gallery
Selected Collections
The M.H. de Young Memorial Museum
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
The Oakland Museum of California
Mills College Art Museum
Everson Museum of Art
Chinese Historical Society of American Museum
Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo
Government of Taiwan
Asian Art Museum, San Francisco
San Francisco Art Commission
Victoria and Albert Museum
Museum of Contemporary Craft
WIN NG (American 1935-1991), Ceramic Slab Construction Sculpture, 17″ x 12″ 11″, c. 1960 (more)
WIN NG (American 1935-1991) “Horizontal Rectangle”, 1960, 9″ x 6″ x 4″, Earthenware (more)