Northcote Pottery Supplies is proud to offer emerging ceramic artists a three month residency program.
Our spacious, well lit, studio access space, provides artists the opportunity to develop and produce work, experiment or work on specific project outcomes. Artists in residence are able to focus on their creative work, as well as share their ideas and thoughts with the Northcote Pottery Supplies ceramics community.
2024 Guest Artists in Residence
Pedro Guarracino
Born in Argentina and now living in Melbourne Pedro’s work reflects his colourful life of Buenos Aires exploring “the cubist takes on reality, absurdism as a philosophical approach to life, and the idea that behind everything there will always be play.” During his residency Pedro wanted to explored the connection between the traditional and the modern with a focus on creating new sculptures that he will integrate with Augmented Reality (AR) technology.
“It has been such an honour to be selected to spend time working (playing) at Northcote Pottery. The space, the people, the support, helped me to take my ceramic practice to the next level, and I’m so excited for what’s to come.
My three month residency allowed me the time to explore my art practice in so many new ways. I learnt the wheel and incorporated new forms and shapes onto my hand-built sculptures, always keeping loyal to my love for colour. I’ve experimented with some different types of glazes, and even clays. Soon the sculptures will be part of Kubo’s animated world.
I can’t thank the team at NPS enough, front of staff and everyone else working in such a cool place. Special shoutout to the amazing Iona for the cautious firing of my pieces, all the clay advice and some other quality chats. And, to Zoe for all the care and support through the whole process.
See you all around!”
Siobhán Motherway
Siobhán is a Brunswick East-based potter who’s work is inspired by her background in museums and her curiosity about the world around us.
During her residency Siobhán embarked on her ‘Brunswick Reactive Ground’ project which aimed to “represent the geological, colonial, social and industrial histories of the inner North in a material way.” Over the twelve weeks Siobhán developed a series of vessels and forms that resembled historic domestic functional stoneware, incorporating local clay and reproductions of news articles and social discourse from the period of the Brunswick pottery boom as decoration.
“I can’t quite believe 12 weeks has passed by so quickly. My time as the NPS Artist in Residence has been genuinely transformative – not only in how I make things, but it gave me the space, time and support to reexamine why I make what I do. I loved my professional development sessions with Ray and Iona, touring Bendigo with Aly, trying new materials and ideas, and helping to grow that beautiful sense of community in the public studio. Thank you so much Zoe and NPS, and watch this space for an exhibition of my series of “potted histories”!”
Claire Harmer
Based in Sydney, Claire’s current practice is focused on a response to “gathering the vernacular of urban architecture together with abstract forms of landscape to foster a solidity of local belonging for myself and my audience.”
Her residency work will aim to explore the “conceptual and material potential of waste” with a goal of creating a series of abstract ceramic sculptures inspired by these forms and structures integrating her own ceramic waste as well as gathered local materials. “Aesthetically I intend on holding the tension between the chaotic ugliness of waste, and the beauty and visual complexity I see within waste sites.”
