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.