Majolica
works
Click on each picture to view albums
Majolica
is tin glazed earthenware introduced into Europe
from Moorish Spain by way of the island of Majorca
and produced in Italy from the 14th century.
The
Italians raised this form of ceramics to it present high
art form.
Much
of my majolica is inspired by Australian
wildflowers, with a 'Prestonesque'
technique, although I also enjoy painting abstract
designs.
My
work is wheel thrown, hand
painted and thrice fired with 22ct gold
lustre. For those you technically minded, I
use a fine
white porcelaineous
clay with a white zircon glaze then painted with
ceramic colours. I
fire to 1220° C and apply 22ct gold lustre before a
third firing to 750° C.
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Conceptual
and Fanciful
This body of work
represents two distincts interests.
In the first, I create fanciful, larger
than life birds inspired mainly by extinct and/or
prehistoric varieties. I give each bird its own
personality and name. I also create fanciful
floral garden sculptures.
In the second
body of work I cononcentrate on "conceptual"
themes such as the example
above "Earth Bound I and II" in which I have
layered different coloured
stoneware clays. This is my way of referencing the
form, surface and texture
of the earth that surrounds us.
In this conceputal
work I search for the essence of the material's
structure and the qualities
it naturally posseses.
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Hand-built
coil and raku works
These
pieces
are handbuilt using
coils and
slabs of a versatile and groggy clay called
BRT.
When
highly
fired, iron spots come to the surface and glisten in
the sun.
Raku
is
a Japanese pottery style with roots in the
development of the 'tea ceremony'
about 400 years ago. Raku is a low-fired, glazed
pottery.
When
red-hot,
pieces are removed with tongs and placed in a metal
container
usually with sawdust or paper to catch carbon which
is infused into the
body. This
is
a quick, spontaneous way of firing with
unpredictable results (risks
as the quick thermal shock can crack some
work).
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