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Clay comrade and partner-in-crime, Adriana Christianson, is curating an exhibition of handcrafted cups later this year - The Cup Collaboration. 34 potters from across the globe have been paired up to create two cups together and one of their own. I'm fortunate to be one of those potters! The AH-mazing Niharika Hukku is my partner. We met three years ago at the Eveleigh Market during an Australian Ceramics Association event, where we bonded over our love of illustrated pots and birds, particularly Australian natives! Niharika paints exquisite, highly detailed, almost photo-realistic designs on wheel-thrown porcelain.   We'd both been watching rainbow lorikeets in recent weeks, so they became the subject of our collaboration. Niharika welcomed me into her studio whilst I was in Sydney this week. Each of us threw cups in our preferred forms and swapped them to paint. Niharika works in Clayworks Cool Ice porcelain, a new clay to me. Thankfully it threw and trimmed beautifully, which made the new-studio-new-wheel experience pretty pleasant! We spent hours talking, sharing stories of our cultures, travels, families, work, social media (Niharika's Instagram following sky-rocketed this year after a featured post, so she has a unique experience of it!), love, thriving as an artist. The gorgeous men in her life, husband Tintin and 5 year old son Shay, were also lovely to spend time with and made me feel right at home!  [an excellent moment; coffee, Alt-J and a teeny piece of dark chocolate in readiness to paint.]  [my illustrations on Niharika's cups - the curved ones - and my own straight-sided cups.]  [a sneaky photo whilst I was on the phone to my love!]  [Niharika's practice run. Amazing huh.] These two days, along with some time spent with other friends this week, have fed my soul. That's why I travel, that's what I'm seeking. The magic doesn't always happen, but this time the stars aligned.
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The last images from my time in Freo...packing was a somewhat anxious task! I'm stoked with the new designs that I developed during the residency and excited to use them at home.  It's been two weeks since I completed my residency at The Clay House. After a challenging start I produced some decent work, explored new designs that have been rattling around my head for months and learnt some screen printing techniques, thanks to Elaine Bradley. I loved Fremantle. It's a small town (officially a city), but it has a heap of energy for it's size. The dockside cranes dominate the skyline. I love that they look like creatures, gobbling up the shipping containers. Massive ships glide in and out of the harbour constantly. It feel like a healthy environment for indie business, I loved so many of the coffee shops, eateries and shops. Definite recommendations: Moore & Moore, Kakula Sisters, The Monk Brewery & Kitchen, Little Creatures and especially The Raw Kitchen!   [Elaine's studio]  [my freshly made screen!]  [the first print!]  [I've really enjoyed working with wider bands of colour and will definitely continue this at home.]  [I love love LOVE the effect that screen printing creates.]   [Wherever I go in this country, lorikeets swoop and screech overhead. I had to paint a few!] |
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