Jim Cooper (born 1956) is a New Zealand ceramic artist.

Life

Cooper was born in Westport on the West Coast of New Zealand's

South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...

in 1956, and attended Buller High School. He studied ceramics at the

Otago Polytechnic Otago Polytechnic is a public Education in New Zealand#Tertiary education, New Zealand tertiary education institute, centred in Dunedin with additional campuses in Cromwell, New Zealand, Cromwell and Auckland. Otago Polytechnic provides career-f ...

School of Art in 1984 and 1989, but did not "get a ticket"; he returned and completed a Masters of Fine Arts there in 1999. Cooper studied under Neil Grant while at Otago Polytechnic and acknowledges him as a mentor.

Artistic career

After graduating, he taught for some time at Otago Polytechnic. Cooper has worked in ceramics since the early 1980s; his earliest works in 1982 were vessels. He then began creating heads and torsos of free-standing figures and relief sculptures. His works tend to consist of installations of numerous figures, sometimes hundredsa One of his major works is ''Sgt P'', a ceramic installation loosely inspired by the album art of ''

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' (often referred to simply as ''Sgt. Pepper'') is the eighth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Released on 26May 1967, ''Sgt. Pepper'' is regarded by musicologists as an early concept ...

'' by

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

. The installation, made up of more than 100 ceramic figures, cardboard cut-outs and drawings, was shown at the

Dowse Art Museum The Dowse Art Museum is a municipal art gallery in Lower Hutt, New Zealand. Opening in 1971 in the Lower Hutt CBD, The Dowse occupies a stand-alone building adjacent to other municipal facilities. The building was completely remodelled in 2 ...

in 2007 and then toured to

Tauranga Tauranga (, Māori language for "resting place," or "safe anchorage") is a coastal city in the Bay of Plenty Region and the List of cities in New Zealand, fifth-most populous city of New Zealand, with an urban population of or roughly 3% of t ...

Rotorua Rotorua () is a city in the Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand's North Island. It is sited on the southern shores of Lake Rotorua, from which it takes its name. It is the seat of the Rotorua Lakes District, a territorial authorities of New Zea ...

and

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

. In 2010, Cooper was one of three ceramic artists to take up residency at the Yingge Ceramics Museum to produce work for the 2010 Taiwan Ceramics Biennale. His installation at the Biennale consisted of more than 1,000 pieces. In 2013, he held a residency in Hualien, Eastern Taiwan, as ground breaker with the Taiwan Land Development Corporation.

Recognition

Cooper won the McSkimming Award in 1984. In 1996 he was a finalist in the New Ceramics and Glass Awards. He won first place in the Norsewear Art Awards in 2006 for his work ''Snowy from Cavy''. He was named joint winner of the

Portage Ceramic Awards The annual Portage Ceramic Awards is New Zealand's premier ceramics event. Established in 2001, the awards are funded by The Trusts Charitable Foundation and administered by Te Uru Waitākere Contemporary Gallery (formerly Lopdell House Gallery) ...

in 2009 and was awarded the Premier Award in 2012 for his 30-piece installation ''Millbrook Holiday (the League for Spiritual Discovery)''. He won merit awards in 2016 and 2018.

Solo Shows

* ''Sgt P.'' 2007'':''

Dunedin Public Art Gallery The Dunedin Public Art Gallery holds the main public art collection of the city of Dunedin, New Zealand. Located in The Octagon in the heart of the city, it is close to the city's public library, Dunedin Town Hall, and other facilities such as ...

''.'' * ''Peppermints and Incense''. October 2008–February 2009:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Jim New Zealand potters 20th-century New Zealand male artists Living people Otago Polytechnic alumni 1956 births People from Westport, New Zealand People educated at Buller High School 21st-century New Zealand male artists Artists from the West Coast, New Zealand