nye

Happy 2013 x

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I've been hiding out in Melbourne this Christmastime.

[good morning gold coast]

[good morning melbourne]

[Adriana gave me a Bridget Bodenham jug!!]

[morning walks around albert park lake]

[drawing what I see]

[sketchbook time]

[I'll never tire of this view]

[the great hall, NGV]

[view from the shrine]

[the see yup temple, hidden nearby]

[road trip!]

[Yuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuummy banana and ginger cake, courtesy of Bridget Bodenham]

[tea with Bridget]

[Bridget's plethora of spoons!]

[Treasures from the Daylesford Mill Market - the dish was made by Guy Boyd!]

[more designing]

big.

Udessi will be at The Big Design Market Melbourne on Friday 7, Saturday 8 + Sunday 9 December!
Hosted at The Royal Exhibition Building, this will be the biggest market of its kind in Australia, bringing together the best of independent Australian + international design over 3 huge days. Look out for my wee little porcelain cups!



Dear Adriana Christianson will be there too! Ooh!

home time

It was a LONG day, sustained only with tea, lemon biscuits and M&Ms...we were exhausted when we arrived at Adriana's home in Croyden on Monday evening! Before a scrumptious dinner, Adriana gave me a speedy tour of her home studio.

[I have a thing for inspiration walls.]

[this is where the magic happens!]

It was bitterly cold by that time, so we whizzed through her studio and kiln room quickly, hence I only took 2 photos...!

[it's me and Adriana! We *happened* to visit Craft Victoria the next day...]

That wonderful Monday in August was truly inspiring; I gained an insight into so many different studio set ups, work processes and most importantly, artists' lives. I learnt a little wisdom from each potter as to how they juggle their life and arts practice; that's precious knowledge.

I was sad to say goodbye to Adriana and I miss her now. Thankfully the wonders of the internet keep us in touch and we can support each other's work from a distance. Time for a serious plug now; I recommend you follow her blog, visit her website, like her Facebook page, follow her on Twitter AND especially on Instagram - @adrianachristianson.

AND I mustn't forget...Adriana manages the very brilliant Mud Colony, a space for potters from all over the world to join together and share our work every week!

studio visit: jane annois

The penultimate stop on the Grand Adventure; Jane Annois' studio! Jane works in two styles; Raku, making sculptural or decorative pieces and “terre vernissee”, French tableware using traditional honey, green and blue glazes. Jane's French-style work really appealed to me, with its wonderful luscious glazes.

[LOOK at all that work!!]

There was more tea [we had a lot of tea and biscuits]...

[Adriana + Jane; typical potters, ignoring the food and inspecting the plate!]

[I forget who made this teapot, but it was lovely]

Jane has so many aspects to her ceramics practice; alongside producing her own work she organises 2 large  annual events for ceramic artists, Pottery Expo, as well as teaching ceramics, English and French and coordinating French cultural tours! Multi-talented much?

studio visit: julia franz

The Grand Adventure continues! Adriana drove us all the way out to Healesville, in the beautiful Yarra Valley grape growing region! Adriana's good friend Julia Franz is the sweetest Swedish potter you could possibly meet! Her smile is quite infectious. 

[Julia's little throwing space]

[I wonder if Julia has finished her plates yet...?]

[view from the wheel]

Julia made us tea and we nattered over (more) of Adriana's homebaked lemon biscuits; we both complimented the cute cups we were drinking from and Julia told us to take them home! I am in LOVE with this teacup, I have used it nearly everyday since that visit!

[a cup full of Queensland sunshine]

Adriana also gifted some delicious French Earl Grey loose tea to me, which is MOST excellent in Julia's cup!

Follow lovely Julia over on her blog and Facebook page! She's also hosting a birthday competition, so be sure to comment on this post!

studio visit: slow clay.

Next on the Grand Adventure of Adriana and Katy: Slow Clay. Founded by Jane Sawyer in early 2012, Slow Clay Centre is a beautifully designed ceramics studio in inner-city Melbourne, offering a wide range of exciting classes and guest artist workshops and forums.

(Forgive me, I nabbed that from the Slow Clay website - Jane said it better than I could!)

[the throwing room - look at those shiny new venco wheels!]

[clay prep room]

[inspiration!]

[Jane's beautiful work]

We spent 2 superb hours talking clay with Jane and her assistant Anne over green tea. Slow Clay is a gorgeous, peaceful space - I imagine the classes would be brilliant.

Run over to their Facebook page and give them some love!

studio visit: sophie milne

I've followed Sophie Milne's work since I was in college, admiring (read: drooling over) her elegant and uncomplicated wheel thrown forms via her website and blog for the past few years.

[side street collection]

[gorgeous coloured porcelain bangles!]

[Sophie's new coloured porcelain range]

[makers mark]

[works in progress]

[the studio door doubles as a black board!]

Sophie's new studio is covered in fake grass!! I don't think it could be any cooler.

[how awesome is the fake grass?!]

[a sneak peak of some collaborative work]

We were privileged to have a sneak preview of Sophie's collaborative work with artist Jacqueline Kennedy before their exhibition opened at Potier in September. Each piece is exquisite, both in the form and imagery.

I will geekily admit now that I was super nervous prior to meeting Sophie! But she is totally lovely (what else was I expecting?!) and was happy to show us around her workspace, answer my endless nerdy questions and share a few nuggets of advice. A beautiful deep blue porcelain bangle came home with me after the visit - thank you Sophie!

I could gush on about Sophie's work, but that might become uncomfortable...! Besides, the lady herself keeps a most excellent blog over at Six Hundred Degrees and articulates far better than I can - I highly recommend it for your reading list!