RETURN 2, 2024

Emerging from the wood fire as a relic of action & process, my vessels showcase the stoneware clay form which has been treated with wood-ash, shino & chun glazes. The way they melt & craze over the belly of the vase, all surfaces & perspectives are distinctly individual. The alterations made to the base of this vase give the body of this work its contemporary edge. I strike my wheel-thrown vessels with wooden rods to finish the work’s foot once leather hard, a technique developed through experimentation & play, making a distinctive base. Like many before me I have become infatuated with the rituals & traditions which surround the wood firing process, the relationships cultivated over long hours of stoking. The offering of work which has been carefully completed into the kiln, in the hopes that after days of firing they will emerge as once in a lifetime treasures.

Sara Gonzalez is a Brisbane based ceramicist, she is largely self taught & has been practicing her craft for over 6 years. The fragility & unpredictability of her play with altering wheel thrown vessels creates forms that are fresh & contemporary. Recently deep-diving into woodfiring; she is developing work that is exemplary of this firing technique. Sara manipulates the boundaries of the clay to create forms which lean into the natural effects of the woodfiring process & also show the materiality of the clay in its elasticity & strength. All works are currently fired in the Anagama kiln at Middle Pocket Pottery & fired for 78 hours.