Ceramicist Zhu Ohmu’s Sculptural Art Is A Lesson In Creative Meandering

The contemporary artist and self-taught ceramicist Zhu Ohmu is a highlight on the Aotearoa Art Fair schedule.

Melbourne-based artist Zhu Ohmu’s winding, organic sculptural forms convey a sense of endless possibilities. They provoke an opportunity to take a beat, inviting you to pause for a moment in the strange serenity of their otherworldly shapes.

The wonky disposition that her distinctive clay vessels inhabit can only be made possible by human hands; built-up meandering coils that decide when and how they would like to rest. Imitating the automatic forms of 3D printing, Zhu’s work is a unique exploration of bringing a sense of humanity to a world consumed by mass production and its compulsion for more stuff.

“The process that takes the longest is building with coiled clay,” she explains. “Once the form is complete, I will put it in the kiln for the first (bisque) firing. After the initial firing, I will then glaze the work, and put it through for a second firing for completion.

Presenting as part of this year’s Aotearoa Art Fair taking place at the Viaduct Events Centre from April 18-21, the former Elam graduate who immigrated to Auckland with her family from Taipei, aged 7, will also be collaborating with leading fashion designer Kate Sylvester on a limited-edition tote bag, along with joining Kate for an intimate VIP talk at the brand’s Commercial Bay store. Having spent 13 formative years honing her skills before moving to Australia, Zhu is looking forward to reconnecting with her home away from home.

“It’s special to exhibit work in a space that is completely new to me — yet holds so much familiarity,” she says.

“It’s international but also home. I’m writing this from Melbourne, but perhaps déjà vu would be apt to describe how I might feel when I’m physically at the Aotearoa Art Fair. Who will I meet and through which mutual friend? Who will I reconnect with and what memories of teenage years or early adulthood will that trigger? What future exhibitions or collaborations might this lead to? How wonderful to experience an art fair this way. I am proud to be participating in a prestigious art fair in one of my home countries and I look forward to reacquainting with the New Zealand art community as a fully-fledged adult.”

Represented locally by the McLeavy Gallery, Zhu shares what it’s like navigating the art space and the lessons she’s learned along the way.

What are some of the key lessons you’ve acquired over the years when it comes to implementing the values of the natural world in your work?

Observing nature has introduced me to the interconnectedness and interdependence of all things, a shift from the human-centred hierarchy of the natural world I was conditioned with. I am curious about how humans can remain relevant in the age of automation, and nature’s holism instigated my inquiry into the entanglement between machine, human and non-human ecologies.

Describe your studio space. How does it inspire you?

My studio is the single garage in my home. I’m about to do some renovations to it, so hopefully it becomes more inspiring! I love having a studio in close proximity, I can float in and out, meander between studio work and daily tasks around the house.

Do you have any studio rituals?

I put on these brown corduroy overalls that were hand-me-downs from a friend who wore them to dig up dinosaur and mammoth fossils in the USA.

You’re no stranger to fashion and we can see you have an appreciation for it. What are some of the things you love about fashion and how this complements your work?

I was actually accepted into fashion school at AUT but decided to attend Elam Art School down the road.

I believe in the power of fashion and the deeper connection between how we dress and how we feel and how we move differently in the world.

Kate Sylvester is a designer very much connected to the arts space — what is it like when you’re collaborating with other people?

Compared to the tiny amount of modelling experience years prior, I’ve found that I have a lot more autonomy when collaborating with brands as an artist.

In the Kate Sylvester photoshoot in my studio, I was able to bring my friends on board for hair art (Zeina Thiboult) and creative direction (Mariana Blanco). I enjoy the agency of making creative decisions that shape the outcome.

What is it about your work that gets you excited?

I’m excited about the journeys my practice is taking me and will take me on. I also love the surprise of random, unexpected, tangential opportunities, even if they don’t come to fruition.

Have you had a setback that you learned from?

All ceramicists will tell you about coming to terms with failures. Cracked greenware when clay is dried too quickly, a piece exploding in the kiln, a glaze that didn’t turn out quite right. During a firing temperatures go up to thousands of degrees celsius — so you really have to submit to the kiln.

Breakages were very common in my early works — from little faults to the whole piece collapsing.

I think those disappointments have helped me build a strong resilience against emotional traumas in other areas of life. While I have embraced the radical acceptance of transience and imperfection, I’m still slowly tweaking the making process so works are more likely to make it to completion successfully.

What are your memories of studying at Elam and how did this experience help shape you as an artist?

Elam is a pretty theory-heavy art school, which I found very challenging at the time, especially after high-school-level art. The training helped develop my critical thinking and conceptual skills, but the artspeak I had to endure compelled me to make sure that my artist and exhibition statements are written in a way that is accessible.

Have you ever considered giving up at any point?

I haven’t considered giving up on art but from time to time I think about what my life would be like if I had chosen mathematics. I excelled in calculus and got into university-level maths in high school, but maths class clashed with art class and I was forced to choose between the two subjects. It was a real fork-in-the-road moment at age 17. Maybe in the far future, I will study maths again.

Have you ever had a business mentor? How do you navigate the business of the art world?

I am lucky to have a strong support network in and outside of the arts to rely upon as a sounding board when needed. My brother works in the corporate world and has an advisory side business, he recently started assisting me with strategy and resource planning.

My father worked in marketing overseas and is familiar with celebrity endorsement in Asia, I love picking his brain on my PR and influencing opportunities, and I think he loves it too, even if the medium, product, market and times are different. It is a lovely and unexpected thing to bond over.

What’s the best advice anyone has ever given you?

I read this somewhere and it really stuck with me: “The grass is always greener where you water it.” And from my mother: “Don’t be financially dependent on a man.”

Aotearoa Art Fair is offering Viva readers a chance to win 2 double x Premier Art Passes, plus 2 x limited edition Kate Sylvester x Zhu Ohmu tote bags. To go into the draw, enter here.

Dan Ahwa is Viva’s fashion and creative director and a senior premium lifestyle journalist for the New Zealand Herald, specialising in fashion, art and culture. He is also an award-winning stylist with over 17 years of experience, and is a co-author and co-curator of The New Zealand Fashion Museum’s Moana Currents: Dressing Aotearoa Now.

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