SHANNON GARSON, NIHARIKA HUKKU, BARBI LOCK LEE

ONLY FOR THE BIRDS

9 OCTOBER - 1 NOVEMBER 2014

10am - 5pm Tuesday to Saturday

“Meet the Artists” Niharika Hukku & Barbi Lock Lee,  2pm-4pm, Saturday 11 October 2014 

Featuring birds and ceramics by three Australian ceramists Shannon Garson, Niharika Hukku and Barbi Lock Lee, Mu Gallery presents “Only for the Birds” in conjunction with “Taronga Zoo Bird Festival” & “Bird Art in the Park” at Landship Gallery, Headland Park Artist Precinct, Mosman.

Shannon Garson

Shannon Garson is an Australian ceramic artist specialising in thrown, decorated porcelain.

Shannon’s latest exhibition work articulates landscape using domestic pots as vessels for drawings about the strange beauty and wonder to be found in the marginalized eco-systems of the littoral zone. Images, bird-footprints, tiny flowers completely covered in white hairs, the myriad detail of the landscape has been collected into marks. A visual language mapping the experience of being in the landscape, creating a dialogue between domestic life and nature.

These pieces required multiple firings with layers and layers of drawings and surface on top of one another.

Shannon Garson is the President of The Australian Ceramics Association.  Shannon’s studio is based in a small rural town in the hinterland of the Sunshine Coast.

Niharika Hukku 

Starting with an idea this work is an expression of what the artist finds elegant and beautiful in her world. Inspiration is seeded in her observations in nature; in capturing colour and narrative with purpose onto clay.  Each piece is wheel formed and hand painted individually by the artist.

Ceramics has an ancient history in India where Niharika was born and brought up and is used commonly in function and as art. My earliest memory of it being the ‘Kulhars’ (unglazed earthenware tumblers) used to drink sweet tea at train stations.

I left India 11 years ago to pursue my career as an illustrator. In my travels, I had the privilege of tutelage under ceramic artists in Indonesia and Singapore. I also had the invaluable experience of working along side many potters at the WPA, New Zealand. I am currently based in Sydney, Australia.

Barbi Lock Lee

My designs are mostly inspired by the richness of colour and the diversity of Australian birdlife. I choose to work with white earthenware clay in combination with coloured underglazes as this gives me the wide palette I need.

I spend my life making objects from clay for several reasons. One is that I really enjoy the nature of the material. It is seemingly lifeless yet has infinite possibilities. I like the idea of beginning with a lump of clay and transforming it into something such as a cheerful little jug or bowl that might become part of someone’s daily breakfast ritual. Creating ceramics that can be used to present food is important to me and I consider this when I am designing my forms and selecting colours. I imagine and hope that the user will also colour co-ordinate the food they create with the colours present in their pot.

I have worked as a professional potter for over thirty years, most of these based in Sydney, Australia. My husband’s work on ships brings me to Seattle every year for lengthy periods. I now have a good working rhythm. I enjoy sharing Ginny Conrow’s porcelain studio in Seattle.

Related links

Headland Park Artist Precinct – Upcoming Events

Taronga Zoo Bird Festival 2014