Shipwrecks and samian ware: commissioning art with Turner Contemporary

Between 8 October 2016 and 8 January 2017, the British Museum sent a Spotlight loan of samian ware pottery to Turner Contemporary in Margate as part of the Museum’s wide-ranging national partnership work. Also known as pudding pans, the pottery originally washed ashore from a Roman shipwreck off the coast near Whitstable.
The British Museum National Programmes team and Turner Contemporary have commissioned artist Hannah Lees to create a new work in response to the Spotlight loan. Working in close collaboration with an artist allowed both organisations to bring an important new perspective to the interpretation of the pots. Focusing on the idea of feasting, Hannah worked with Richard Hobbs, Weston Curator of Roman Britain and Sam Moorhead, National Finds Advisor: Iron Age and Roman Coins to ensure that all aspects of her installation were accurate as well as evocative.
Further information about the Pudding Pan artist commission: www.britishmuse...
Further information about the Roman shipwreck project: www.britishmus...
Further general information about the British Museum’s national partnerships work: www.britishmuse...

[@JonnyKaneGaming]

Brilliant to see how our history can inspire modern artists and allow audiences to better understand and FEEL the past. Much more of this please!!

[@christofmaupin2023]

Brilliant. More of this sort of collaboration is needed to help bring ancient art and the distant past into perspective for modern viewers, many of whom might see these Roman vessels and other, much finer objects, simply as "dead people's art."

[@mealex303]

you really should get an artist who does art not just throws crap together then talks about how good it is when you see how bad it is.

[@lukabatrovic6009]

my thoughts.

[@muxxxxy]

Interesting. No mention here of the decorative samian vessels [not represented in this particular shipwrecked cargo] which might perhaps have been bought for their 'art-work', commonplace or otherwise... Some such vessels at least appear to have been seen as 'ornaments', some were little used and some - decorated or not - were sometimes kept for a century or two - as antiques, and family heirlooms probably, with some such antiques being then placed in graves. And so 'revered' or even 'put on a pedestal'.

[@petrfrizen6078]

It’s a pity this ware is not being filled with gold, platinum, diamonds, sapphires, emeralds, …with the precious metals, gems and all the aquatic treasure troves attributive paraphernalia…

[@shappo]

It is a sad day when the curators of the greatest collection of human history ever assembled believe history and knowledge to be insufficient. That adding amateur modern art to humanities touchstones with its past is anything more than distraction.

[@maxiewawa]

philip frick It's "humanity's" past innit

[@Sekei..]

It's also sad that boors like you interpret every well meant effort to put historical artifacts in context with modern art as the downfall of western culture.

[@WizzleThump]

If that's art, I could do art at age 5. I'd be pissed if my tax money gave her thousands to throw some shit together and make some smears on the wall.

[@DirtyBottomsPottery]

Yet another artist who places an artificial divide between craft and art. In this context the true divide between craft and art is little more than a matter of social status. How else can you explain the British Museum promoting an artist who displays work that is a larger version of an art project for five year olds? The lazy children of rich people make lousy artists.