Apricity : (n.) the warmth of the winter sun

A New Duo Show by ceramicist Nancy Fuller & weaver Maria Sigma

17th November 2022 - 17th January 2023

The two practices of Nancy Fuller and Maria Sigma have a natural synergy. Both are inspired by a raw connection to nature in their choice of mediums and techniques, sensitively responding to the shifting seasons. Whilst preparing this duo exhibition, Sigma and Fuller discovered the word ‘Apricity’ – an English word that has fallen out of use. ‘Apricity’ refers to the warmth of the winter sun; it evokes the precious moments when one can bask in the sun during the coldest of seasons, and be cheered by bright sunlight amidst dark surroundings. This poetic meaning has been translated into the work they individually prepared for this show.

For Maria Sigma, the need to “grasp the sun”, as she puts it, is intimately connected to her personal history of growing up in Greece. While creating her woven pieces, Sigma’s memories of sun-drenched summers infuse her work:

“My main inspiration, like images in my head, come from Andros, the Greek island where we are from. I didn't grow up there, but I spent all my summers there, and it was the more natural environment I had… So in all my memories, it's summer there – the landscape, the really bright sun, the contradiction between the sea and the rocks, the white of the Cycladic architecture. But then I use materials, especially the wool, which is quite British, and wintery. In something that could be very wintery, I'm trying to translate something which in my head is more summery. It's always very abstract. And then there are streaks of orange silk, which I find is a really sunny orange.”

Maria Sigma

The orange silk delicately streaming through materials like wool, linen and paper stands out like a sunbeam. Sigma is committed to using undyed threads and fibres, and this vivid orange silk is no exception; sourced from India, its bright colour comes from the silkworm’s feed. The raw materials is something Sigma is drawn to: ‘I'm very interested when yarn has a nice, natural, undyed state.'

She explains the multiple reasons for choosing undyed materials:

“One reason is sustainability: it takes less energy, less toxins, less water consumption to make. I really like to use the closest to raw fibre yarn; although it is spun into a yarn, its the least processed I can have, the wool is just cleaned and spun, that's it. Nothing else. The same goes with the silk, which is hand spun. Another reason is that I really like colour. I think they are so beautiful as they are, and they're getting unnoticed when we dye them - so why not using them as they are. It's more of a challenge to find these kind of colours, that occur naturally, when you can create everything now, any colour you want.”

Maria Sigma

Ceramicist Nancy Fuller’s work has an inherent connection to the landscape. Her pieces are wood-fired in rural Aberdeenshire, and each firing carries traces of the season:

“If I fire in a different season, I get different colour effects. Every firing produces a different palette of colours, no two firings are the same, no two pots are the same. It's to do with the atmosphere in the kiln; it's very hard to explain, there's a lot of unknowns. For example, this time I fired in autumn, and I got a lot more of the deeper oranges and darker greys. In the summer firings, using the same clay body, I was getting pale creams and light greys. It can vary that much.” 

Nancy Fuller

Rather than using glazing, the colour variety comes from the unique response of the clay body and the effects of the wood ash. Fuller uses woods that are available locally, mainly firs and beech, and so literally uses the landscape in her process. Her pieces become deeply rooted in their surroundings, as she explains, the effects of the ash “depends on your firewood, what minerals are in the wood and where the trees are grown.”

“Where I grew up in the North East of Scotland, the winter days that you do have a bit of sun peeking through the dark forest are precious times. That's why I chose these pieces, that were a darker clay body, some with a little bit of gold leaf over the top of them. Just catching the light in small details. My work is so tied to the season I am firing in. You have to slow down and your whole focus becomes on the firing, and then that focus opens your awareness to your surroundings – you become more in tune with them. When I'm choosing the titles, it's whatever came to mind that I paid particular attention to.”

Nancy Fuller

The names of Fuller’s pieces – ‘Autumn Flush’, ‘First Signs of Winter’, ‘Return to Earth’, ‘The Scent of Land’ – are all responses to Fuller’s subjective experience. They are the story of her practice – ‘The Scent of Land’ relates to the smell of firing, and the unique scent that each natural place has. Above all, the titles are also ‘how I experience nature’, and evoke her perception of the seasons and the earth around her.

Photography by Beth Evans

‘Searching for Apricity’ will be shown at Flow from the 17th November - 17th of January (excluding 25th Dec - 3rd January, when the gallery will be closed). Join us Wednesday - Saturday, 11am - 6pm.