Contemporary Ceramics
This year from October 29 – November 11, I have the ENORMOUS pleasure of leading a group of women on retreat to the Gaya Ceramics and Arts Centre in Bali. Under the tutelage of artist and Gaya Director Hillary Kane we’ll embark on a journey of creative daring to create BIG pots and BIG magic.
(This magical women’s retreat is now SOLD OUT. Don’t hesitate to contact me to join the waiting list. Meanwhile, check out the workshop schedule below and follow the links for fees and details.)
The ‘Power of Two’ is one of my all time favourite songs by the Indigo Girls. My sister and I would sing it together when we were younger and fantasise about driving around the country in a Volkswagon campervan being singer songwriter rockstars.
It’s a love song, but I catch myself humming it whenever I’m working alongside another artist or working on a community arts project, and if you think about it, all creative projects are labours of love, so a love song is completely appropriate. Like many potters I usually work alone in the studio, and I’m used to it, but there’s nothing better than bouncing around creative ideas with kindred spirits and running with them in full flight together.
Vicki Grima, editor of The Journal of Australian Ceramics – my new partner in crime 😉
Some of the world’s most significant moments have included mud, from the creation of Adam to that famous mind altering festival at Woodstock, and although we find ourselves in an age of rapidly advancing technologies, this humble stuff continues to inspire thousands of makers who still call themselves ‘potters’.
Unearth Lauren Campbell aka ‘Sit Still Lauren’ at Studio 7 on the North Coast Mud Trail
On Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 August, more than 140 ceramic studios around Australia will open for the fourth annual Australian Ceramics Open Studios.
I’m opening my studio and I.CANNOT.WAIT to meet you all! I’m also SUPER excited to say that Vicki Grima is joining me in the studio to host two workshops and to present an artist talk!
In ceramic circles the world over, Vicki Grima needs no introduction, and I can see her cringe as I say this…but, she’s kind of a big deal. 😉
For ten days in February 2016 I travelled through India to meet traditional Rajasthani potters with a small group of clay enthusiasts led by Australian potter Sandra Bowkett.
At the end of our tour, on the Yamana River between the Holy City Vrindavan and Delhi, Sandra asked me if I missed anything back home. Her words, and the adventure she led us on inspired the short story below.
My story begins at the end of my tale as I’m settling into my seat on flight SQ403 from Delhi to Singapore.
It’s almost 10pm at night and the plane is packed, but for the first time in over two weeks of travel through Rajasthan with a group of potters, I feel like I’m on my own.
Last year, I was listening to Richard Fidler and author Elizabeth Gilbert on the Conversation Hour, and my ears pricked up because of how she spoke about the nature of creativity, and in particular how she talked about the cultivation of curiosity rather than preach a sermon on following your dreams.
I’m all fired up about the inspiring schedule Hillary Kane has created for the culinary clay workshop, ‘Food Meets Plate’, happening May 15 – 28 at Gaya Ceramic Art Centre, in Bali!
Places have been quickly snapped up by a diverse group of foodies and clay enthusiasts from around the globe. There is ONE place remaining in this workshop.
If you would like to join us, click here for workshop fees and secure your place. [Read more…]
For centuries, islands have captured our imaginations, they are magical places inhabited by mermaids, pirates, fairies, and more recently – much to the delight of my two sons – they are the petri dish of mad geneticists and their dinosaurs!
For many years, I lived on an island north of Sydney. Island living is every bit as idyllic as you imagine. However, I discovered that it was not just the physical beauty of the island that inspired me, but equally it was the challenges we each faced, that inspired creative thinking and helped shape a diverse, vibrant, and resilient community.
Today’s post is the final in my Bali series, and I’m talking to Janet DeNeefe, long time islander, internationally renowned restaurateur, writer, festival director and, one time student of ceramics 😉 [Read more…]
I’m leading a group to Ubud in May 2016, for the clay-bending-mouth-watering workshop, ‘Food Meets Plate’ at Gaya Ceramic Art Centre. This month we’re meeting some of the inspiring artists whose knowledge and vision will turn our time in Bali from a trip into a transformative experience.
Last week I spoke to our workshop host Hillary Kane, and if you’re just joining us, catch up on our conversation Creative Callings.
This week we’re checking out the workshop accommodation, at the inspiring, art-filled guest house ‘Ubud ArtVilla‘, owned by Australian ceramic artist Bruce McWhinney.
Ubud ArtVilla at night
Bruce McWhinney is an Australian artist with over 30 years experience in ceramics. Nature and travel have been the main inspiration for his work; be it wood fired ceramics, sculpture, painting or drawing.
I met Bruce about 15 years ago when I was a student at Brookvale TAFE, where Bruce and a group of exceptional designers and potters were building a dynamic ceramics department on Sydney’s Northern Beaches. Brookvale TAFE continues to thrive, and while Bruce is as passionate as ever about Australian Arts education, his vision now incorporates a much wider classroom that includes building creative communities in other parts of the world…and Bruce is literally building them.
Stunning garden design links sculptures and architecture throughout the villa
One such project is Ubud ArtVilla, a unique guesthouse in the quiet hamlet of Penestanan, just minutes from the bustling town of Ubud.
Here the concept is to infuse hospitality with Bruce’s long time love for Balinese arts and culture. In this place each day, guests soak up stunning architectural design, idyllic gardens, wood fired ceramics, paintings, drawings, and sculptures at every turn.
ArtVilla is managed and operated by Wayan Suparta and his family, who bring local knowledge and Balinese custom to every moment, enabling guests to discover the real traditions and culture of Bali during their stay. ArtVilla is the perfect place for anyone who is seeking to revitalise or woo their inner artist, and for two weeks in May 2016, Ubud ArtVilla will be home-sweet-home for ‘Food Meets Plate’ workshop participants.
Ubud ArtVilla’s lap pool looks out to Mt Agung
Claire Atkins: Hi Bruce! I had the pleasure of staying at Ubud ArtVilla last year while I attended a workshop at Gaya. I have to say, that living with and using your woodfired ceramics every day was one of the best parts about staying at ArtVilla. Each morning, breakfast was served on stunning ceramic pieces that quietly called for our consideration. Do you think that living with handmade ceramics affects us?
Bruce McWhinney: Woodfired ceramics for me is the ultimate expression of working with clay and fire. The spontaneous effects coming from the fire on each piece is quite individual and embue the work with a human warmth that makes using it a daily joy. What I love most is that I never tire of the work and it keeps me captivated by the evidence of nature.
Bruce McWhinney ceramics
Can you describe your design process, and is your approach different when you’re making ceramic pieces intended for food?
Making tableware is very much about understanding the function of each piece. One can only be a good functional potter if they use their work and learn what makes it a pleasure to use and live with. After decades of making ceramics, my forms have been pared right back to the simplest possible. This allows space for the fire to complete the piece and also gives a calm reassuring presence about them. Teapots must pour, cups must be easy to hold with a lip that feels good up against one’s mouth, and plates should provide a smooth finish. Having said that, while I strive to give the most, it often takes time to appreciate what is there in each piece. But so it is in life and art.
Traditional ‘Bali kopi’ served in Bruce’s woodfired ceramics, is a daily ritual at Ubud ArtVilla
You divide your year working and living in Australia and Bali, with residencies throughout the world thrown in! How has travel, and living so intimately with the Balinese impacted your own art practice?
This is a big question. Bali has provided a cultural retreat where I can make work and share it with people from all around the world. My aim in building the ArtVilla was to create a place where people could experience living with hand made things and discover the joys of using wood-fired ceramics. Bali has taught me patience, detachment and to see the funny side of life. Things do not always go according to plan but the caring nature of the Balinese makes it all worthwhile. Travel is a passion but being able to work in different places makes it immensely more rewarding. When doing residencies one is privileged to experience life as an insider. I get to know people over a longer period, and hopefully share our different experiences of the world. Sightseeing is fun but it doesn’t sustain me in the same way.
Bruce in the studio
What do you hope your guests will experience at Ubud Art Villa?
What I would hope for is that people coming to ArtVilla would experience Bali from the inside. Connecting to the culture and traditions of Bali is made easy through Wayan and his family who staff ArtVilla. Combine that with the joy of making pots at Gaya, and discovering the local food and gastronomy would be a great thing. But, staying at ArtVilla would also mean extending the experience by using, learning about, and living with woodfired ceramics every day.
Thank you so much for joining us Bruce.
So, what do you think?! Will you join us? Visit the workshop page now for Early Bird fees, Ubud ArtVilla accommodation, and booking details. Private room options at ArtVilla and Art Manor are limited, so please don’t delay in contacting me to secure your place as bookings are rolling in!
Be sure to join me next week when I’m talking food and Bali with the indefatigable Janet De Neefe! Janet is the founder and Director of the Ubud Food Festival, the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival, she’s also an author, a mother of four children, aaaand the owner of some of Ubud’s best restaurants and bars!