22 Feb – 24 Mar 2024; opening Fri 23 Feb at 6pm
Linden New Art
26 Acland St, St Kilda VIC 3182
Tues to Sun, 11am – 4pm
lindenarts.org

“Facts of Matter” explores issues which reflect the diversity of individual interests in our Clay Matters group. The Clay Matters group came together online for the first time in the 2020 Covid lockdowns to explore shared concerns over the impact of the artistic ceramics industry on climate change. On our minds were the issues of firing electric kilns (carbon), the source of materials (the extraction of clay and minerals) and the impacts of rampant consumerism. [Cinda Manins, curatorial statement]

My works are small and precious. Small work has less environmental impact than large work (less materials, more can fit in the kiln etc). I am also working consciously to avoid waste and failed work. I like the idea that the work I make is accessible and affordable, and can fit almost anywhere. I enjoy making several pieces along a theme which I group together to achieve an impact.

My forms are made to nestle in the hand. I seek the beauty in handmade details – fingerprints, delicate edges and decoration which unravels as the viewer gets closer and then holds the pieces in their hands. My works is functional, sculptural and decorative.

Rocks, beach, sea and sky are my inspiration – ever-changing and ephemeral but also solid and long-lasting. My local landscapes are an important part of my life.

REFERENCES
sybariscollection.com/how-size-in-art-matters
In opposition to the “bigger is better” culture in today’s modern art world, some artists have chosen to take economy into consideration and focused on not only creating smaller works, but to encourage the idea that humankind can function beautifully on a smaller scale, impacting the world emotionally without as much physical impact. Small scale works confuse and disorient viewers, forcing them to focus on what they are viewing, and creating internal discourse.

widewalls.ch/magazine/scale-in-art
… Alan Wolfson takes as a reference one of the largest cities in the world, New York, and transforms its gritty reality into sculptural miniatures. Scaling down the streets, subway entrances, flats and other elements of the urban environment, his primary interest is in the story behind them: “I’m providing you with clues to a narrative, telling a story with minute details… The real impact of my work is not in how small everything is but in the stories these small things tell.”

Above: Vicki Grima, Rock Bottles (5 of 7), 2024, pinch pots, Red Earth midfire clay, oxide, glaze; photo taken at Botany cemetery
Below: Vicki Grima, brooches inspired by Little Bay, midfire Lumina, oxide, clear glaze, gold lustre, w.3-7cm