JAYNE SHATZ POTTERY
PhD-Prehistoric Ceramics
MA- Pottery and Sculpture
BA - Art History
ICE AGE CERAMICS
© 2010 Jayne E. Shatz
If artists and ceramists in particular, could imagine a person 30,000 years ago modeling a figure in clay, we would feel kin to the artistic urges of our Prehistoric people. Creating and firing clay is the way of all ceramists. Ceramics is a component of the human development, an element so significant, we have preserved its artifacts through time for us to view and touch.
We know a great deal about prehistory through the scholarly pursuits of anthropologists and archeologists throughout the world. In the 1950-60’s, archaeologist Jacquetta Hawkes, presented one of the first reviews on prehistory. She based her writings upon her archaeological excavations, which then became the basis for much of the discourse on prehistoric cultures.
We know that the world's first art movement occurred during the Upper Paleolithic period of the Great Stone Age Toolmakers around 30,000 years ago. We recognize this as a movement from the large amount of diverse artwork of significant quality produced during this time. The period flourished during the last Ice Age until the glaciers finally melted away by 11,000 BPE. The climate was harsh with average temperatures ranging from -10 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter to 55 degrees in the summer months. The ice laid a mile and a half thick in some places with snow and ice accumulating into mountainous ocean peaks, creating low sea levels and large landmasses.
One area was unique to Continental Europe. There existed an ice-free corridor, lying between the large ice sheet in the North and the icy mountains of the Alps. This landmass of grassy hills created a tundra with a moderate climate that stretched from the Czech Republic through Poland into the Ukraine and Siberia. In the icy parts of Europe the cold loving reindeer, wooly rhinoceros and ibex dwelled, while these warmer regions saw herds of mammoth roaming alongside communal tribes of mammoth hunters. Early Homo Sapiens were stone toolmakers, and archaeologists refer to this period as the Late Stone Age.
The Upper Paleolithic, or Ice Age, was a time of spontaneous evolution in the development of art, music, and tool technology. What is amazing about this period is that it seems to have suddenly appeared on the horizon without any precedence in the evolutionary process. We recognized this period as an "Evolutionary Explosion". The earlier Neanderthal culture did have tool kits, with some objects carved smooth to comfortably fit the hand, and some displaying deliberate scratch marks. However, the limited artistic pursuits of the Neanderthals could not explain the explosion in art that was to follow.
This cultural blossoming of the Ice Age is similar to the artistic revolutions in 13th century Sung Dynastic China and 15th century Renaissance Europe. During these times, Humankind developed a cultural heritage through their painting, sculpture, music, and literature that mirrored the creative urges of the inner being. As individual art forms developed within each culture, they contributed to the expansion of the others. I believe that these unique periods of renaissance occur when political, economic, and philosophical social structures are ready to burst forth with experimentation and new thought, within a supportive, creative environment. The Paleolithic culture exemplified such an artistic atmosphere. They were a developing people with a sense of clanship; they established a hierarchy of relationships, each person having a particular status within the group. The more successful their hunts, the greater ease they endured throughout the cold winter months. They were intelligent, strong and actively pursued a very complex lifestyle, where the philosophy of the group was supreme.
With a fervent burst of sophisticated artistic aptitude, the Ice Age artists crawled into caves holding chisels, brushes, and pigments, ready to paint, carve, and sculpt in the deep recesses of the earth with only a simple oil lamp to guide their way. The paintings in the caves of Northern Europe are so artistically vibrant and dynamic, we revere then as something spectacular, much like a cathedral or chapel. As we examine the murals of bison, horses, and the hunt that depict the lives and symbolism of the prehistoric world, we can compare them to the ceiling of Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel in energy, force, and artistic expression. The map here shows several cave entrances, including the cave of Le Tuc D'Audoubert, where the bison sculptures were found.
The caves were places of ceremonial rituals where the Paleolithic artisans incorporated art with the mystical beliefs of the people. They created many of their paintings to insure a profitable hunt. Discoveries of musical instruments completed the portrayal of the ceremonial co-existence of art, music, dance, and song. Patterns of footprints found on some cave clay floorings and a few drawings of high-stepping humans on cave walls suggest that dancing and probably singing and music were part of the prehistoric culture.
In 27,000 BPE, in an ice-free corridor of tumbling hills in northern Europe, a discovery was made of a grouping of three huts in close proximity to one another. Jacquetta Hawkes described those outdoor dwellings to be reflective of the warmer climate. The people from that area did not live in caves like those in the more icy regions, but rather used caves for ceremonial rights and artistic expression. Situated alongside a stream, the huts’ main posts were of wood, dug deeply into the ground. The remaining framework for the walls and roofs were of large mammoth bones and tusks. A wall of bone, brush, and dirt surrounded the hut, providing shelter from animals and cold winds. The oval floor was specially prepared with a coating of limestone grit. Inside the huts were hearths made from a shallow depression in the flooring, ringed with flat stones.
The two larger huts had five hearths each and archaeologists believe that they were the communal dwellings of a hunting clan. The smaller circular hut with similar flooring was entirely enclosed within a wall of limestone and clay. The hearth in the middle of this hut provided a spectacular discovery in ceramic history. A prehistoric kiln in the shape of a "beehive" was surrounded by thousands of clay pellets, attesting to a ceramic modeler’s work. Along with these pellets, fragments of the heads of two bears and a fox and some unfinished statuettes were found. Some archaeologists believe this 30,000-year-old kiln to be the oldest kiln ever discovered! They believe it to be the home and sacred hut of a Paleolithic Shaman, who produced and fired figurines of women and beasts for the clan’s fertility rites.
Another found treasure trove in prehistoric ceramics was the discovery of a small cave in Le Tuc D’Audoubert, France, hidden in the hills of the Pyrenees. Two sculpted bison, 24” and 25" long, dating from 17,000 BPE were unearthed inside this cave. The primitive sculptures exhibit an incredible vitality of form in sophisticated detail; finger marks demonstrate a robust power of artistic manipulation and intention, as the artist skillfully impressed his mark onto the clay surface.
The intricate high relief shows the movement of the artist's fingers across the clay to be decisive, spontaneous, and amazingly adept. This sculptor knew the bison form intimately, and with a vigorous drive, crawled into a tiny-mouthed opening to the cave, presumably on his or her belly, to sculpt the animals. He sculpted the bison from an existing mound of clay, which displays the artist’s footprints around the sculpted area. The direction and depth of these footprints suggest the artist created the work in one session, never to return. This phenomenal discovery happened due to the protective circumstances of this particular cave, which remained intact for thousands of years. I wonder how many more sculptures were created in caves such as this one, only to be melted away from dampness and rain. From the sophistication in detail and adept proclivity of these sculptures, I believe an artistic legacy had been developed by this time and this was no singular occurrence.
How did art of this brilliance emerge from a hunter-gatherer society that was so troubled with the ferocity of every day living? I believe it is Humankind's desire to control the forces of nature, align themselves with other worldly beliefs, and become integrated with their established position in respect to nature, the unknown (spirit), and human cycles. Art is a human urge and like most human urges, it needs to be articulated and cherished, regardless of political circumstance, society, or economy. The people of the Ice Age viewed themselves as a part of nature; they had the capacity to realize they could be influential to the outcome of events. They created art as an expression of who they were and a way to commune with one another and their spiritual beliefs.
The prehistoric people of the Ice Age lived their lives with a keen relationship with wild animals and the changing of the seasons. Their paintings, engravings, and sculptures convey an innate duty to make their lives richer and more beautiful. As they evolved, they began to socialize with other tribes, and learned to cooperate with each other for successful hunts. They employed ritual and belief to assure a better life. As the glaciers receded a more moderate climate was established, and food became plentiful. They became non nomadic with more efficient tools, and secure homes. Life settled down and they found leisure time to contemplate their place in the world and produce more art.
An understanding of the development of humankind and their approach to art provides ceramic artists a heritage that dates back 30,000 years. Through archaeological excavations and anthropological assimilation of collected artifacts, a wondrous portrait of our first ceramists becomes evident.
As ceramists, we can examine the artwork of our ancient predecessors and appreciate a long and enduring legacy in clay. We can feel proud of the breadth of our art form and appreciate the contribution ceramics has made as a major art form.
Images of horses and bisons were painted on the cave walls by the prehistoric artists; these paintings were meant to ensure a successful hunt. Throughout the centuries these paintings have become widely appreciated, and viewed by many as great art. Some contemporary artists were inspired by the discovery of the cave paintings. Elaine De Kooning believed the spirit of the cave painters were kin to that of contemporary artists. She painted her own version of paintings that reflected the surfaces of the cave walls. She began this ambitious series in 1983, after a visit to Lascaux, France, and exhibited her beautiful paintings throughout the 1980’s.
Lascaux Cave, France, Dordogne Bisons, 15,000 BPE
Altamira Cave, Santander Spain, Sleeping Bison
15,000 BPE
An element of the mystic belief system of the prehistoric people was the reverence of fertility statuettes, or the Venus Figurines. The uncovering of the Dolni Vestonice Venus from the cave site in the area, which is now the Czech Republic, is of special interest to ceramists..
Elaine De Kooning, 1980;s
A small black figurine sculpted from clay and bone ash was found intact at the Dolni Vestonice kiln site. Alexander Marshack, from Harvard University was an authority on Ice Age art; in the 1970’s, he described this figure as one of the earliest "Venus" figurines. This Venus displayed large voluminous breasts, angular shoulders, and legs tapering down to small rounded points, which indicated the sculpture was meant to be carried or laid down as an idol. The top of the head had four holes constructed to hold flowers, leaves, or feathers, symbolizing the successful changing of the seasons that were attributed to the fertility of the goddesses. The female figure predominates Paleolithic small sculpture. She personifies the continuity of the species, the magical invocation of the survival of the race. The severity of form is a minimal representation of womanhood abundant with life. Later on these figurines displayed a vulva which became known as the "mound of Venus", eternally receptive to life and the archetype of universal fertility.
After this startling discovery, scientists examined the composition of the clay found at the Dolni Vestonice cave site for the production of these Venus figurines. With renewed excitement in exploration, other prehistoric sites that contain ceramic artifacts were unearthed. Archaeologists on the ceramic artwork of the Paleolithic period are still investigating other sites.
Ice Age Hut Reconstruction
Dolni Vestonice Venus, 17,000 BPE
The Bisons, Le Tuc D' Audoubert Cave, France, 17,000 BPE
I was deeply moved when I learned about the ceramics of Dolni Vestonice. Being both a ceramic historian and a ceramist, I became enmeshed in this period of art history. I continue to be influenced by the artwork of these ancient artists; in the late 1990’s I produced a series of Venuses in terracotta and colored metallic patinas, a few that I will share with you here.
Venus Ascension, Shatz, 1990's
Shell Venus, Shatz, 1990's
