Gulgong Australia -2013
ClayPush 2013 – ‘'The Event’
Gulgong, a once bustling and turbulent Gold Rush town in 1870, provided the perfect backdrop and relaxed country setting for Australia’s most famous pottery event, ClayPush 2013, held from Sunday 28th of April to Saturday 4th of May 2013.
In order to reach it you have to drive 4 hours West from Sydney, NSW, via Katoomba and the Blue Mountains, ascend the Great Dividing range with its magnificent gorges and canyons, pass through undulating hills covered with grape vines and the town of Mudgee until you have finally stepped into another world – Gulgong – unchanged since its historic heydays.
400 likeminded people from around Australia and the world set the town abuzz while connecting, networking and sharing their passion for the subject clay. One delegate described the event aptly as – the biggest potter’s love-in.
Gulgong – ‘the event”, now in its 9th year, did mourn the recent sudden and sad loss of its founder Janet Mansfield, one of Australia’s finest and most well known ceramicists. Janet had a powerful impact on Australian Ceramic history. Her first publication in 1990 of Ceramics Art and Perception magazine was the first step to put Australian Ceramics on the map and globalise ceramics in general.
ClayPush 2013 did honour her legacy and paid tribute to her outstanding achievements.
Janet was present at every moment, as it had been her, who had invited the National and International Masters and presenters. An important part of the program was the official tribute to Janet, held at the historic Opera house in Mayne Street, with her friends Vicky Grima, Chester Nealie, Owen Rye, Frank Boyden (USA) and Elaine O’Henry (USA) sharing some private anecdotes and moments. Janet was described as generous, full of energy and goodwill. It was said she was a risk taker, who loved the limelight and who was a brilliant delegator. “She made you feel that you were important to her and you were her best friend.”(Owen Rye)
‘She taught me the art of shameless self promotion and advised me to always carry a bag big enough to hold a magazine” shared Elaine O’Henry, who bought her magazine in 2003 and was mentored and nurtured in the process of taking over.
A film of Janet’s last Interview from 26th October 2012 s s showed her holding her most favourite pot which was on display at her show “A life in wood fire”. The show was held at The Front Room Gallery, 139 Mayne Street, and was currated by Owen Rye. It contained many of Janet’s private collection of her finest and most favourite pieces.
Janet chose an impressive panel of Masters and presenters; some were doing both, demonstrating their skills as well as presenting lectures about their work.
One of the most engaging and memorable Master potters would have to be Lee Kang Hyo from Korea, who hand built two large vessels with the help of his daughter who is following in his footsteps. He delighted the audience by performing a dance to Korean traditional music while decorating his first vessel using his hands and coloured slips. He invited his friends to join him to help with the second pot. The collaboration took on a tribal twist, with slip-covered participants taking turns in painting, carving and dancing around the pot. The performance culminated in what almost seemed like a human sacrifice, when a young male participant stripped of his shirt, got slipped and pushed onto the pot, while Frank Boyden sported a wet mop on his head, reminiscent of a Papua New Guinea warrior, dancing in trance – a definite highlight of Gulgong!
This was a hard act to follow, but all the Masters had to offer something unique and special in their own way.
USA’s Frank Boyden, a veteran in Ceramics, delighted the crowds with his larrikin humour, his imaginative work, his technical skills and his infectious passion for the subject.
Stephen Robison (USA) referred to himself as a lifelong learner and teacher who is inspired by nature, viruses and diatoms. His environmental bridge-like structure, placed into nature actually become part of nature again, where cavities fill with organic matter that will grow.
Nina Shand and Paul de Jongh came from South Africa to present coil built traditional pots which
were burnished, then pit fired and once cool, polished using shoe polish to highlight the subtle sheen.
Marianne Hallberg from Sweden demonstrated a whacky sense of humour of making and decorating her 2-D interpretation of everyday household items on clay slabs, indeed quite intriguing and unique.
Ane-Katrine von Bulow from Denmark astonished with her intricate silkscreen printed patterns, painstakingly applied with great patience and accuracy to her slip cast pots in various ways.
Norma Grinberg from Brazil continued what seems a lifelong obsession of working with one mould by making fictitious animals, at one stage inviting delegates to join her on this journey.
American Diana Fayt showed why her work has such universal appeal. Not only is her work functional and decorated with Flora and Fauna, it is also modern, funky and collectible.
A strong South East Asian contingency was also represented. Naidee Changmoh demonstrated how to hand build a life size Buddha in one day. His smile and energy was infectious. He works from sunrise till sunset in his native Thailand as his studio has no electricity. He used to be a monk until he was 12 years old which may account for his desire to portray smiling Buddha’s in his work, like the Master himself, always gracious and smiling.
Tok Yu Xiang, Steven Low Thia Kwang and Alvin Tan Teck Heng engaged delegates to be hands on and take part in creating a gigantic clay landscape.
Last not least the Australian representatives who are legendary in their own right!
Kirsten Coelho, a relative newcomer compared to the next two Masters, provided a reference point to Australia’s colonial history and its enamelware i i in her wheel thrown porcelain ceramics.
Jeff Mincham, living treasure and undisputed Raku king in the 80s and 90s adorns his beautiful, large hand built vessels with abstract landscapes, inspired by his surroundings.
Greg Daly’s lustre ceramics are undeniably without comparison – they speak for themselves and for the maker. He is a true legend, a whiz with glazes, a pro on the wheel, always willing to share his amazing skills and his vast wealth of knowledge.
Yuri Wiedenhofer, Daniel Lafferty and their team got excited about the possibilities offered by large quantities of rich red clay slip, grass clippings, charcoal and firewood. Add a large Korean pot and you get land art Gulgong style.
A delightful 4 year old, Aster Kunze, shared their excitement when stripping and taking to the slippery dip in true Gulgong performance style!
As the sun set over the hills, the firing of the large Korean pot as well as bottles of fine Mudgee wine, kept delegates warm and cosy.
Other memorable moments would have to be the pot wiz, organised by Andrew Bryant and friends at the Opera house, with the life re-enactment of the famous movie scene in Ghost on the potter’s wheel by Kari, inspiring Yoga teacher and her husband Stephen Roberts.
At another instance Ray Cavill presented the Clay Olympics, with all of the participants taking part in a clay “slip-battle” round at the end. The last bucket of slip ended up over Ray’s unexpected head and shoulders, which certainly proved one thing, potters just love to get down and dirty.
Delegates also enjoyed 2 nights of local Wine tasting at the Gulgong pub, the Prince of Wales, which became “the” meeting place in town.
22 Local stores exhibited pottery in their windows as part of the Gulgong Festival.
7 Exhibitions were held throughout the town:
1. A life in wood fire: Janet Mansfield
2. Masters exhibition: Clay push masters and presenters
3. Touch of clay: Chester Nealie and Jan Irvine-Nealie
4. Soft edges, Rough surface: Work by Andre Bryant, Ray Cavill, Rowley Drysdale, Cameron Hess, Grant Hodges, Kari, Isaac Patmore and Stephen Roberts
5. Still friends: Susie McMeekin ,Su Hanna and Owen Rye
6. Ceramic Study Group 50th Anniversary
7. Exhibition Central: The Matchbox Show; SE Asian potters; Canberra Potters society; Australian National University; Ceramic Study group of NSW; National Art school; New Zealand potters Straight Stokers.
A delegate’s exhibition was held in the large Marquees and a car boot sale was part of the Saturday last day events, which was open to the public.
This event would not have been possible without the professional event planning of Vicky Grima, the editor of the journal of Australian Ceramics and her dedicated team and the seasoned Gulgong team.
Janet’s son, Neil Mansfield and family sponsored this event.
Although extremely successful and a great economical boost to the town, Gulgong – “the event” may have happened for the last time and may not be continued.
In a time where ceramics education is discontinued at colleges throughout Australia, where teachers are made redundant, where potters have to find other means of employment to subsidise their income, events like Gulgong become something of a ‘Life Line”.
It is an opportunity for likeminded people to share their passion, to make new connections, or to meet old friends, to network, to do business, to socialise, to show off new work, to get new ideas, to re-charge and gather strength. We can go back home revitalised, refreshed, into our studios, often in isolation, to contemplate, continuing our journey, knowing that we are not alone in our compulsive, obsessive madness called ceramics.
Thank you Janet, for this precious opportunity!