Clay Conversations: Molly Desmond Studio Talk

Canberra Potters is pleased to present the first Clay Conversations of 2023! Clay Conversations is a lecture and conversation series featuring artists, arts professionals, teachers and more.

This February, join current artist-in-residence Molly Desmond (2022 Emerging Artist Support Scheme Residency Award recipient) for a relaxed evening in the artist-in-residence studio as Molly discusses her work, inspirations, and her experience as artist-in-residence at Canberra Potters.

Entry by gold coin donation. Please RSVP for catering purposes.

About Molly: My ceramic practice is led by material investigations to construct narratives concerned with time, place, and memory. Drawing influence from institutional architecture, abstracted and geometric forms are created through simple slab and hand building techniques as a canvas for exploring complex surfaces through the application and interaction of various glazes. Through this 8 week residency I will be able to continue my research into glaze chemistry and colour development to develop glazes that can be exploited for their sculptural qualities as a method of augmenting the surface of the object and its inferred meaning. Through an iterative methodology, I intend to create a body of work during this time that explores pattern, colour and a holistic relationship between clay bodies and glaze application.

The residency will be used to continue my current investigations into form and surface with a focus on glaze development. This amount of dedicated time in the studio will also afford my practice more opportunity to experiment with different clay bodies and forms within my sculptural work.

Taking influence from institutional and brutalist architecture, key considerations within this exploration are:

• Scale
• Shape
• Texture
• Positive / negative space

I will be working to develop primarily mid fire glazes for oxidation. Using my current glaze library as a starting point, I will be focusing on the interaction of glazes through varied and layered applications, with an intention of developing a small catalogue of glazes that function sculpturally that blur the line between clay body and glaze membrane.