Manningham Victorian Ceramic Art Award

Manningham Art Gallery

687 Doncaster Road, Doncaster

Monday 29 July - Friday 2 August 2019

Some of my favourite works from last night's opening.

Angus Gardner's work was a real surprise and delight in scale (c. 40cm high) and colourful abstract design.

Yoko Ozawa's sculptural arrangement are a subtle combination of clay, slip and colourant are really hard to capture on my iPhone. Apologies... this snippet of nature was gorgeous.

Narelle White's material exploration exemplified how 'light' and tenuous clay can be. This subtle shifting palette of colour was a feature of many works in the cleverly curated show.

Lene Kuhl Jacobson's exquisite fruits and vegetables were a lesson in glaze mastery, marred slightly by petri dish display.

Pilar Rojas still life 'perfections' danced across the plinth balancing trapese-like on fine wire scaffolds. I would have loved to have seen these flying across a wall.

Kris Coad's porcelain fabric added a contrasting flesh-like detail, bringing an extra figurative dimension to this mediative work.

Fiona Hiscock's work is perennially fresh and lively painted Australian plants and birdlife sits beside...

Madeleine Thornton-Smith's chubby amphora vessel that has collaged textural bits and bobs that are both familiar and illusive. Have seen this

Jane Sawyer, presented two enormous plates (annoyed I didn't get an image of the other). Jane never fails to excite me with her challenging approach to her ceramic palette. Check out those confident by humble finger stipples, this work is just so lively!

Dianne Mangan, A masterful and quiet vessel.

Kirsten Perry is alway a treat and these large-scale columns express her interest in rough-hewn textures, hilarias cast forms and lolly coloured clay bodies. 

Alexander Esenarro Santafe | Alison Frith | Alistair Whyte | Angela Nagel | Angus Gardner | Anne Fleming | Anthea Williams | Cassie Leatham | Christine Yeghyaian | Ciaran Begley | Claudia Terstappen | Dianne Mangan | Felicity Law | Fiona Hiscock | Frances Guerin | Graeme Wilkie | Hedley Potts | Jane Annois | Jane Sawyer | Jennifer Conroy-Smith | Kate Wischusen | Kenny Pittock | Kirsten Perry | Kris Coad | Lene Kuhl Jakobsen | Lilach Mileikowski | Alterfact (Lucile Sciallano and Benjamin Landau) | Madeleine Thornton-Smith | Magdalena Dmowska | Matt Butterworth | Narelle White | Natalie Ryan | Neville French | Pattie Beerens | Pilar Rojas | Richard Greenacre | Susan Robey | Ted Secombe | Terunobu Hirata | Yoko Ozawa | Timothy White

Winner: Matt Butterworth

Matt's work is a definite 'snapshot' of ceramic motif, palette and glaze finish for the late 2010s. Dripping in lustre glaze, the gold contrasts with the impasto application of seemingly 'raw' clay accretions. The three pots are both precious and worthless as the intentional damage and fracture attests. 

2019 Judge: Eva Czernis-Ryl

Congratulations to those acquired: Felicity Law, Pattie Beerens, Angela Nagal & Richard Greenacre.  Sorry - couldn't snag images of these!

Past winners