David MacDonald

This large stoneware plate was sculpted by David MacDonald in 1992. This piece is in perfect condition and measures 25 7/8″ in diameter.

David is retired from Syracuse University however he is still working in clay making beautiful objects.

Read about MacDonald here.

The nature of the art experience for me is one of self-discovery and communication. In one sense, it is a very private and personal journey in search of order, reason, reality and beauty. In another sense, it is a very public act in the attempt to express and share, with others, my realizations and discoveries. The principal concern of my art is the articulation of the magnificence and nobility of the human spirit; and a celebration of my African heritage. The material I use is clay. The primary vehicle for expressions the vessel. In my view, the vessel represents unique social and spiritual connections and associations, to all people, that do not exist in non-vessel ceramic forms. There exists in the vessel a timelessness and universality that records, contains and continues the very essence of humanity. goes here

The Everson Museum of Art describes a piece they own in the following statement.

“He utilizes a combing technique with strong ties to the Nigerian tradition to create intricate pattern designs on the surfaces of vessels and plate forms. The monumental plate in the Everson’s collection is an excellent example of this technique and characteristic of MacDonald’s work. Combing involves wetting a custom-made comb across the surface of the clay to create parallel furrows. Plate (1984) is a large, deeply carved, footed stoneware form almost 28 inches in diameter. The carved imagery on the surface is a geometric design dominated by a six-pointed star with semi-circles joining each point. A circular pattern fills the center circumscribed by a larger ring.”— Everson Museum of Art, 2011