Edmund De Waal

Edmund de Waal, CBE, is a contemporary artist and writer. Born in 1964, Edmund is best known for his large-scale installations of porcelain vessels, which are informed by his passion for architecture, space and sound. His work has been exhibited throughout the UK and internationally. Edmund has been an Ambassador for Link Age Southwark since our 25^th year anniversary in 2018. To celebrate this year's 30^th anniversary, Edmund has very generously donated a porcelain and gold tile from his collection to help us raise important funds for our work. 

He has previously said about working with porcelain: 

'....when I need to make something, I'm often mesmerised or haunted by an idea or by a piece of poetry. A line from poetry, a word sometimes, or a piece of music, or a space that I've been thinking about, a particular place that I want to kind of question by making something for it. So, there are all these different possibilities when I begin. I am grounded in history, the history and culture of the materials I use, this extraordinary two-thousand-year history of porcelain. I don't use this material lightly. It’s not a light material. It's got incredible resonance, incredible power.'

Tile to be auctioned

MMXXIII, 2023, porcelain and gold, 12.5cm x 20.5cm

The writing inscribed on the tile comes from a poem by the Romanian poet, Paul Celan – a constant inspiration and touchstone for Edmund – the words read:

language with a gesture/ that you let happen like/ the dance of two words of just/ autumn and silk and nothingness

The tile will be sold via silent auction on the eBay auction site from 10th to 20th December. Further details to follow