The Work

Paul Wood
Domestic landscape, 2007
Reproduced courtesy of the artist

Paul Wood

Assembled from used domestic ceramics, gleaned from opportunity shops, the Banyule community and friends, this work is created by the process of refiring which warps the ceramics together to make new forms. The rejected ceramics are thus transformed from unfashionable clutter and resurrected into small monuments to their past existence. The new form expresses the exhaustion of their previous domestic use while at the same time releases the objects into a new context.

Referencing the themes of landfill and landscape the ceramic monuments become art commenting upon our relationship with the natural environment and the impact of consumer behaviour.

Paul Wood

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The environmental impact

Ceramics are manufactured mainly in Asia, namely China, Thailand, Sri Lanka, India and Japan.

The total amount of energy required to produce 1kg of porcelain plates is estimated to be 20,000kj

The major processing steps after the extraction of raw ceramic materials include crushing, blending, forming, drying, firing, and finally packaging

Drying and Firing are the most energy intensive processes in ceramic manufacture. The sources of energy in the manufacturing process can be divided into 3 types: heavy oil, liquefied petroleum gas, and electricity. Heavy oil and liquefied petroleum gas are fuels for heat in the drying and firing processes; they account for 65% and 13% of the total energy consumption respectively. Electricity is transformed into mechanical energy for crushing and blending and accounts for about 22% of the total energy consumption.

The major air pollutants associated with ceramics manufacture include Carbon Dioxide, Carbon Monoxide, Sulphur Oxide, Nitrogen Oxide and Hydrofluoric Acid.

A Life Cycle and Economic Analysis: Paper versus Ceramic Plates in the Barn Restaurant - April 18, 2006 Prepared by Kevin To & Winnie Chan

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