‘Istoriato’ examines the interconnectedness of culture and conflict across history and into our own troubled times. Its visual narratives reference the highs and lows of the human experience, from iconic artworks to global warfare, mass displacement and genocide. This large-scale tiled panel explores the complex geo-political history of tin-glazed earthenware, combining traditional ceramic techniques with contemporary digital transfer printing technology to re-imagine Dixon’s complex visual narratives on an architectural scale.

The work references the architectural use of maiolica in Renaissance and pre-Renaissance Italy, particularly the altarpieces of Luca Della Robbia and the form and symbolism of ‘bacini murati’: Islamic tin-glazed bowls set into the facades of Romanesque churches in Tuscany and Liguria. Bacini were acquired through trade and conquest across the Mediterranean and represent a pertinent metaphor of contemporary globalisation and the ubiquity of international conflict. ‘Istoriato’ was commissioned for the British Ceramics Biennial 2023, and installed as the altarpiece at All Saints Church, Stoke-on-Trent (September to November 2023).

Photos: Jenny Harper.