Mud - My new love!

Have I told you about my latest obsession?

Ive just started a course with the intention of learning how to translate my designs onto ceramics (after years of not wanting to get my hands dirty) I am now elbow deep in mud..... and I love it!

There is something magical about the transformation from clay to pot, and then there's the alchemy of glazing too. I have a feeling that I am about to embark on a new journey of adventure :)

I've discovered you can carve into clay, just like a lino print. The effects are amazing!

Ive experienced a wood firing - now I know why potters love this effect - the ash produced can flavour the clay and glazes (above) and you get different results using the same glazes in a gas or electric kiln.

Above is a 'before' image, the tea bowl is coated with shino and temaku glaze in stripes. And below is how it looks after being fired in a wood kiln.

I love love love it! :)

Design Spark Article

Wow!

I was flicking through the latest publication of the Design Institute of Australia and discovered an article on the Interwoven Exhibition I participated in earlier this year. To my delight the large image is of my screen printed fabric covered tea pots.

How very cool :)

A big thanks to Pip Wilkinson for organising the exhibition and article.

Canberra Times Review

How marvelous!

My Shibori Silk Stole was mentioned by the esteemed Canberran art critic, Sasha Grishin.

"Kate Ward's Pomegranate, 2011, a sik shibori stole, is another work which holds attention and has its own sense of presence."

To read the article in its entirety double click on the image below.

Works selected for display in home

Some of my prints have been selected by a client for display in their home whilst the house is on the market for sale. Because all the furniture has been removed it made the ideal space to display some of my fabric prints. If you look closely in the picture above you can see 'red knit print' as a canvas on the back wall.

The client was looking for some bold fabrics and my 'knit print' is the perfect feature within the neutral tones of the cottage - hinting at the possibilities the living spaces provide.

Mum's visit

Mum came to visit me the other day to enjoy some country air.

She disappeared for a while and I found her drawing vignettes of my house.

Above is in the guest bedroom featuring a favourite cat toy I found at the Craft Fair in Tasmania last year.

And this is the other end of the bed..... Mum has the amazing ability to see beauty in my mess!

Silk Shibori Stoles

My latest shibori silk stoles have been selected to be exhibited in the Creative Alchemy exhibition at the Belconnen Arts Centre. The show promises to be quite a visual feast with over 60 works by 40 artists, all responding to the theme 'Creative Alchemy'.

The word 'alchemy' conjures up ideas of mystery and intregue: genies in bottles, magic carpets, the Middle East, the exotic and transformations of the sate of being. My works are created by manipulating silk and transforming it into a permanent three dimensional object using shibori techniques. The silk is then dyed using exotic ingredients which originated in the Middle East: saffron and pomegranate - alluding to the magic of food that transforms our bodies and souls.

This is my first experience of dying with natural colours, and Ive really enjoyed the process. I quite like that it is non toxic, and can be done in my kitchen at home. I have a feeling this may be the beginning of an adventure as I explore dying with other natural colours.

In conjunction with the Creative Alchemy exhibition, artist of international acclaim Julie Ryder will exhibit her work in Creative Alchemy II. Julie's fascinating work explores the marks made by the chemical reaction of bacteria and moulds which occur between vegetable matter and natural fibres.

(detail of Julie Ryder's work)

The exhibition opens at 6pm on Friday 23 September 2011 at the Belconnen Arts Centre.

National Gallery of Australia Commission

I have been working with the National Gallery of Australia over the past couple of months to create an image of the new entrance to the gallery which will be printed onto tea towels. After several design variations they decided on the one below....

They were printed and delivered last week :)