Ready, set, up&go!

Hi, here's a new pair of ceramic sculptures titled Up and Go, Sit and Stay.

Up and go, sit and stay. Acrylic on earthenware ceramic. 13cm x 8cm x 11cm (x2). 2020

Originally created for Cement Fondu gallery, these works are included in the upcoming online exhibition called 'Do I have to spell it out for you?', opening this Saturday at Hawthorn Town Hall Gallery.

Running from September 5th to October 25, the current restrictions have shifted the show to being an online event.

The show brings together eight artists whose work plays with language, and features myself alongside artists Ben Aitken, Chun Yin Rainbow Chan, Kate Just, Nasim Nasr, Claudia Nicholson, Christian Thompson, and Shevaun Wright. 

Big thanks to Chris Thompson from the Vision Australia community radio arts show for inviting me on last Monday to talk with him about the show.

For more info about the exhibition click here.


In other exciting news, a big thanks to Art Almanac, who featured this review of the current Cement Fondu online exhibition 'Don't Let Yourself Go' in their latest issue, with accompanying images of my ceramic Apocalipso series.

In other exciting news I have some small sculptures in an exhibition called 'Primaveral' at Mitchell Fine Art Gallery in Brisbane. The show runs from September 2nd to October 3rd, for more info click here.

And in other exciting news, it's officially Spring! 

To celebrate, here's a ceramic sculpture I'm making of a mini Spring roll, photographed next to an actual mini Spring roll.

And lastly, a huge shout out to the superstar artist Tony Albert who recently acquired my Melted Bubble'O Bill ceramic sculpture.

Here's a photo of Bubble'O installed in its wonderful new home, surrounded by amazing pieces by Richard Bell, Daniel Boyd and Gemma Smith. Some very nice housemates indeed!

A sign of the times

Hi, here's a new series of nineteen ceramic sculptures I made this year called 'A sign of the times'.

Back in March, just before Melbourne's first lockdown, I was invited by the City of Melbourne to try to capture something of the moment. Wearing gloves and a mask I went for a walk through the city and found myself drawn to all the signs that had suddenly popped up in every shop window.



There was something urgent in these fleeting signs. With heartfelt thank you’s and concerned well wishes of safety, these signs illustrate the relationship that our businesses have with our community. 

Some of the signs contain humour while others are more sincere, almost all contain a strong sense of hope and togetherness.

These nineteen ceramic sculptures I've made are exact replicas of signs I found hanging on the front doors of businesses throughout Melbourne city on March 28, 2020.

1. Shimbu, Tibetan restaurant on Lygon Street.

2. T2 in Melbourne Central.

3. Barber on Degraves.

4. Melbourne Aquarium. 


5. Pellegrini's on Bourke Street.

6. Design A Space in Manchester Lane. 

7. Flight Centre on Queen Street.


8. Melbourne City Libraries.

9. KOORIE Heritage Trust Inc. in Fed Square.

10. The Arts Centre.

11. Secret Kitchen restaurant on Exhibition Street.

12. Wax Museum record store in the Degraves Arcade.

13. TAB on Bourke Street.

14. Lt Collins Melbourne cafe.

15. Museums Victoria. (Melbourne Museum, Scienceworks, Immigration Museum, Royal Exhibition Building and IMAX Theatre.)

16. St. Paul's Cathedral on the corner of Flinders Street and Swanston Street.

17. Goodlife Gym opposite Etihad Stadium.

18. Myer on Bourke Street.

19. Sushi Sushi in Melbourne Central.


A big thanks to Eddie Butler and the City of Melbourne for commissioning this project. Also a big thanks Yarra Arts and the Creative Community Quick Response Grant for helping support this project too.

A big thanks as well to writer Andrew Stephens for so wonderfully writing about this project in his article "A Blank Canvas: As the world holds its breath, creative minds are mapping out a new direction", published in Saturday's The Age and Sydney Morning Herald. 

I'd like to acknowledge the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin Nation, whose land this series was created on, and pay respect to their Elders past, present and emerging, who have been creating art here for thousands of years.

Thanks for reading, hope you're safe and as well as can be!

The nineteen sculptures will now live at their new home in the City of Melbourne Town Hall Collection. Am looking forward to one day seeing them installed on a gallery wall, but in the meantime as we remain in the current lockdown here is the series laid out on my living room floor.

Anything is popsicle

Hi, this year the Royal Children's Hospital turns 150 and to celebrate they've invited 100 artists to each paint one of these animal sculptures, known as an UooUoo.

I was lucky enough to be one of the artists selected and turned my one into an ice-cream truck!

The one hundred UooUoo's will be displayed in a public Art Trail throughout Melbourne and Geelong early next year, and then they'll be auctioned off with all funds raised going to The Royal Children's Hospital Foundation!

Growing up I spent a bit of time at the Royal Children's Hospital in the lead up to having major spine surgery, and during those years I experienced first hand what an amazing job everyone does who works in that building.

I'm really honoured to be a part of this project supporting such a great cause that does so much to help the lives of so many people.

Big thanks also to Melbourne based company Lovelight for choosing to sponsor my work as well. 

If you'd like to find out more info about the project then please visit the 'Me and UooUoo' Royal Children's Hospital Foundation website by clicking here!


Thanks for reading, hope that you're as safe as cone be and your week is going as well as popsicle.

There's no biscuits like show biscuits

Hi, here's a new ceramic sculpture called Time Has Never Felt So Crumbly.

In a little bit of nice news, this piece has been selected as a finalist in the 2020 McClelland National Small Sculpture Award!

Big congrats to all the other finalists, for more info and if you'd like to see all the works in the exhibition please click here.

In other news, here's a new ceramic sculpture I was commissioned to make of an original 1926 first edition book of Winnie The Pooh.

It was a bear-ticularly special sculpture to make, as it was commissioned as a retirement gift by some colleagues to a much loved Primary School librarian.

And lastly, I just wanted to say a huge thanks to everyone who attended my NGV cooking themed live online drawing workshop last Saturday!

Here's a photo from the session that shows me demonstrating how to paint peanut butter onto a drawing of toast.


Thanks for reading, I hope you're safe and well and that you have a nice weekend, perhaps you might spend it like this new drawing I made of a cloud, cooking up a storm.

Bake to the future

Hi, here's a new ceramic sculpture I made of the fantastic baking book by iconic Melbourne bakery Beatrix Bakes.

Speaking of all things yummy, tomorrow morning I'm very excited to be hosting a free online live drawing workshop with the National Gallery of Victoria, and it's all about drawing cook book covers!

The workshop is designed for primary school aged children but all are welcome! 

The workshop's tomorrow morning (Saturday August 1st) at 11am. 

To watch along, please click here!

And thanks so much to everyone who attended my NGV workshop a couple of weeks ago that was all about ice-cream, here's a couple of photos from it.
In other news, a huge thanks to the Chapel Street Precinct for recently commissioning me to paint a couple of murals.

This one, titled Life is like a box of crayons, will hopefully bring some smiles to those who pass it.

Thanks so much for reading, I apple-solutely appreciate it, and I hope you have a spec-spatula weekend!

Every frog has its day

Hi, here's some ceramic sculptures I made of the new freddo frog ice-creams.

Acrylic on earthenware ceramic.
Each sculpture is 18 x 3 x 8cm.
2020.

These ice-creams are toad-ally delicious. A few weeks I first tried one of the frog ice-creams and I knew I had to make some sculptures of them ASAP, (As soon as popsicle!)

Speaking of ice-creams, tomorrow morning I'm very excited to be hosting a free online live drawing workshop with the National Gallery of Victoria, and it's all about drawing ice-creams!

The workshop is designed for primary school aged children but all are welcome! The workshop is tomorrow (Saturday July 18th) at 11am. 

To watch along, please click here!

Thanks so much to everyone who attended my previous NGV pet drawing workshop a couple of weeks ago, it was so much fun!

Here's one of the drawings I made during it of my neighbours dog popping its head over the fence to say hello.

Hope you're really well and hope to see you soon. Or you should I say, hope to see you spoon!

Here's a new drawing I made of some spoons :)

Thanks for reading, and so as another week melts away here's a new ceramic sculpture of a Bubble'O Bill.

Melted Bubble'O Bill
Acrylic on earthenware ceramic
26 x 3 x 25cm
2020