Artist of the Day: Carol Barclay

Well today just happens to be the perfect day for posting some gorgeous pots with flowers and botanical themes, as where I live we’re in the midst of an early deep freeze which is making most of us contemplate moving to warmer climate (any one got a job for me??? anyone???) My thanks to Carol for at least warming up my computer screen! Enjoy her beautiful work and words:



“I’m Carol Barclay, from Rochester, NY, and I’ve been playing in the mud for almost 30 years! My studio overlooks my large perennial and annual garden, and the botanical influence is strong in my work.I see my porcelain forms as freezing a moment of fluidity. Each hand-built piece involves rolling out thin sheets of porcelain, coaxing the clay into shape, and tending the work through weeks of careful drying, burnishing, and carving. The last steps of glazing and firing in an electric kiln finally yield the finished piece.

I’ve been excited to have my work shown at the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian, and in the Corning Glassworks Executive Club collection.


I’m often asked about my fascination with making functional porcelain. I think that a handmade pot is a most satisfying possession. It can make any meal a celebration, as one savors the shape, the glaze and the decoration that make each piece unique and personally pleasing. I myself have an extensive collection of pottery and I select with care when I pick a vessel for my cereal, or salad, or soup. I enjoy the connection to the potter and the opportunity to add beauty to my daily routine.

Working with porcelain is a heady delight for me and I’ve been energized with ideas for elegant form and joyous decoration. I love my work!’

I have two websites: http://www.BarclayStudios.com (where my husband, a photographer: my daughter, a playwright: and my son-in-law, a novelist also have sites)

From the All Hand Made newsletter:

All Hand Made and Helen Stephens Gallery December 09
254 Bronte Road, Waverley 2024 T/f +61 02 9386 4099 [email protected] www.helenstephensgallery.com This Saturday December 12, is our last trading day at All Hand Made and Helen Stephens Gallery. There is a 10 percent discount on all items even the specialist one off items by some of our major Australian Contemporary studio ceramic artists. Don’t rely on the website for stock since we can’t keep it up to date. Better to call by and see what we have. We still have some of our smaller inexpensive ceramics by several artists including Cath O’Gorman”s pourer jugs, little dishes and shells, brightly painted cups, earthernware bowls and plates. Keiko Matsui has made a selection of her wonderfully quirky hand painted porcelain bowls and jugs in blue and white and also oribe style bowls and sake set. There are also our patty cake candle holders in red, green and white and just a few of our AHM Gallery slip cast jugs and lots more by more than 20 individual makers . We also have textiles: table runners, Indian cotton table cloths and napkins, place mats, summer scarves, cloth bags and even soft toys. Over the years we have made our reputation for our unique style because these artists have come to us with their “labours of love”. The exhibition and sale of ceramics and artwork from a private collection will continue in Helen Stephens Gallery until December 12. This exhibition can be checked out on the website. www.helenstephensgallery.com An additional exhibit is a new body of work by Phil Elson. Phil spent four months last year in Barcelona as a recipient of an Australia Council residency grant. Phil, as many of you will know, makes beautiful porcelain wheel thrown bowls . This body of work in translucent unglazed porcelain is more sculptural though still essentially functional forms influenced he says by the size and shape of the buildings dominating the skyline in Barcelona. In the stockroom we have discounts on paintings and works on paper and some ceramics. I look forward to welcoming you in the shop and in the gallery over the next few days. If you are having trouble getting here please call 029386 4099 or 0410037359 and I will make sure I’m here to open the doors for you. Thanks for your continuing support over the years. Still looking for a buyer for All Hand Made so if anyone is interested or knows anyone who might be interested please contact me. Helen Stephens Hours: Tuesday – Saturday 10.30 – 6pm

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Helen Stephens
Principal
Helen Stephens Gallery and All Hand Made
252 Bronte Rd, Waverley 2024
(02) 9386-4099
URL: www.allhandmadegallery.com

Artist of the Day – John Shirley

So nice to see and include a familiar face as well – John was part of the last Artist of the Day month (see the post here.) Always interesting to see a follow up of what the artist has done next. In John’s case – continued on making objects of exquisite beauty!


John Shirley – Artist’s Statement
My fascination with the ceramic process is a major influence in my work. I work in bone-china with soluble salts as surface treatment. These salts have a tendency to permeate the surface of the work adding subtle water colour effects and creating an ethereal quality. My aim in this work is to produce one-off pieces integrating technique and personal expression.

For more info on John’s research and technique:
2009 Ceramics Technical, no 29, ‘Exploring Local Materials in the Development of Translucent Bodies’
2008 Ceramics Technical, no 27, ‘Soluble Salts as a Surface Treatment on Bone China’

Contact John by email at:
[email protected]
his website at:
http://www.johnshirleyceramics.com
visit his blog at:
http://johnshirleyceramics.blogspot.com
or his facebook page at:
http://facebook.com/johnshirleyceramicspage

Designers & Makers 2009: Talk

15 Dec 09
FE McWilliam Gallery & Studio
7:30-8:30pm

As part of Designers & Makers 2009, Joseph McBrinn, Lecturer in History & Theory of Design presents ‘From Arts and Crafts to Studio Crafts: The Development of Fine Craft in 20th century Ireland’. Admission £5, +44(0) 28 4062 3322 | www.femcwilliam.com | MAP |‘Designers and Makers 2009’, a stunning showcase of fine craft and design featuring the work of 45 well-established and up-and-coming talented craftspeople from Ireland and the UK, will be exhibited at the F.E. McWilliam Gallery and Studio in Banbridge from Saturday 3rd October 2009 until Sunday 17th January 2010.For more info.

Ruth Ann French Ceramics @ Harcourt House Gallery


A Perfect State of Happiness
Candace Makowichuk & Ruth-Anne French
Until December 18th

“This group exhibition unites the small-scale ceramic sculptures of Ruth-Anne French and the photographic work of Candace Makowichuk. Both artists entertain aspects of play within their work while investigating individual points of interest. Using manufactured molds, thrown clay pottery and an intense colour pallet, French tinkers with formal design, pop culture and the handmade to present a series of amusing but bittersweet narratives that question beauty and truth. Makowichuk merges two photographic series; “The Identity Project” which examines identity issues in the context of women in society and identity in relation to the family, and “Through the Eyes of a Child,” depicting the playful aspects of childhood that remain constant over time, generations and cultures.”

Harcourt House Gallery