Last exhibition of the year

Till Sunday 16th December, you will be able to enjoy a colorful and lively show from 8 out 11 of the ArtMakers Noosa artists. The Noosa Library wall and glass cabinets have been specially curated by us to share with you some of our recent ceramics, paintings and jewels.

Lane Sladovich is colouring your life with her amazing decorated bowls and vine glasses.

 Liana Volpe tall and slender latest fired women are more beautiful than ever.

 The wall with artworks from Liana Volpe, Linda Perry and Beatrice Prost

 Thunder Eggs made of layered dense glazes are the latest playful creations from Beatrice Prost.

 As always, sculpted pots carved in Coolum Creek local clay are John Ritchie trademark.

Those fine and delicate amazing porcelain jewels are created by Ellen Appleby.

This large bowl from Carolyn Ritchie is running inside out with some gorgeous blue glazes.

We are off to China

ArtMakers Noosa are off to China!!!

Our wonderful Robyn Gill has organised a residency at the Phoenix Ceramics Arts Centre at Jingzedhen. We will be at the newly built centre for most of October, with a few days in Shanghai at the beginning and end of the residency. A group of Brazilian ceramicists will be there with us and we'll be having a joint exhibition during the residency.

The artists who have committed so far are: John and Carolyn Ritchie, Robyn Gill, Ellen Appleby and two other local ceramic artists Yeats Gruin, Mieke van Sambeek.

All very exciting.

Looking across from the Residency to the Emporium & Galleries

Pimenta (from Brazil), Mr Feng (the Chinese businessman who build the centre, and Robyn

The exhibition area (was still under construction when this photo was taken)

Floating Land 2013

A group of ArtMakers Noosa artists, Ellen Appleby, Liana Volpe, Linda Perry and Lane Sladovic put in a proposal for an installation in the next Floating Land, Nature's Dialogue - Biomimicry AND we were successful. So we'll be lead artists in the next festival, and we'll be creating an installation and running community workshops with a conversation about bees. Here is a snippet from our application with a working title of APIS:

As urbanisation increases, societies continue to sever ties with nature. Perspectives of our dependence on it for survival are being lost. The lessons and stories about interdependence and survival that our ancestors learnt from animals and insects are also being lost. One such animal is the honey bee. These insects have long been loved for their honey, but they are also hard working insects, that collaborate in ways we do not fully understand. Their critical importance on our food chain has been in the news as population estimates of bees indicate numbers have significantly declined in recent years. This project aims to highlight the plight of the honey bee, and draw attention to its importance, and how we need to be in dialogue with such animals.

This project is to create a beehive sculpture from clay hexagons, some glazed, some bisqued and some green ware (unfired). To reflect the essential contribution to the food ecoweb, the sculpture will change and move as pieces disintegrate as the rain,  sea or other external factors erode the unfired clay hexagons. A photographic journey of the hive will be recorded.

During the festival the public will be invited to create small clay “bees” to live in the hive, which will also change position and may be destroyed as the hive evolves over the festival week.

At night the hive will be lit from the inside with solar lights , which will illuminate the role of the bees so the audience can consider the collaboration of the bees to produce honey, and more importantly their role as pollinators of food plants. 

Four out of Eleven

Four of the ArtMakers Noosa, namely Linda Perry, Beatrice Prost, Liana Volpe and Ellen Appleby are exhibiting at the Noosa Library Foyer till the end of October.

They have put together for you to enjoy a strong and diverse selection of wall works, sculptures, large ceramic forms and mixed media installation.

Under the Surface is over

What an engaging event! Great turn out! Great venue! ArtMakers Noosa will be remembered in the Floating Land memories.

First weekend both kids and parents got their hands very dirty. Giving form to creatures leaving under the surface by shaping local found clay is addictive. We ended up with more than 300 small coloured slipped sculptures and ready to dry before being fired in our “cones” firing night. Why do the theme “Under the surface” prompt people to make boats? The question still puzzles us!

First few hours of community art works drying by the lake shores

Lane whispering to her kiln dog

Christene applying a final artistic touch to her coral kiln

Mid week: tough day ahead. First stack the sculptures in the cone shaped clay kilns.

Then cut the collected dead wood and circle the kilns tight. Cover the kilns with slipped newspaper sheets.

Let dry and…be ready for the show of the year!

The wood was not so dry so the team put some efforts to get them started.

Live music in a magical surroundings. The show has started.

And on with the blue flares...

Crumbling end of firings

Dancing sparkles

The week long event resulted in an amazing community art installation

UNDER THE SURFACE

As part of Floating Land, we will work with the community to create an installation called Under the Surface. The workshop is inspired by images and research about the wild flora and fauna cultures under the sea that keep our Earth in balance. The sculptures will be made from local clays, and fired in mini paper kilns.

Free workshops. Participation is warmly welcomed; no bookings required.

Where: Boreen Point, off Noosa.

When:

Clay Making Workshops: 10.00am–3.00pm, Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 May

Kiln Making Workshop: 10.00am–3.00pm, Thursday 2 June

Firing of the Little Kilns: 5.00pm–7.00pm, Thursday 2 June

Installation of Works: 10.00am–3.00pm, Sunday 5 June

DIRTY DOZEN

It's time to get muddy with the Dirty Dozen. Yes, we are exhibiting a selection of our new works in the Noosa Regional Gallery.

But it will not be just mud! The 12 of us are exploring contemporary mixed media creations incorporating lights, LEDs, plaster art and Perspex.

The exhibition will be opened by Sunshine Coast Council creative planning and programming manager Chirstine Ballinger on Friday, April 29 at 6:30pm.

The exhibition continues until May 29. Noosa Regional Gallery is opened Wednesday to Sunday 10am-4pm, Pelican Street, Tewantin, QLD.

ArtMakers Noosa will also be running a free workshop on Sunday 15th May 11am-2pm at the Noosa Regional Gallery. Drop in with your family on this fun and busy day for the ultimate experience in clay!