Playing with Fire

7 March 2016

Playing with fire is not recommended - unless you're a ceramic artist, of course!

A group of artists who hail from the Coromandel to Taupo is exhibiting its work that has been forged by fire in a new exhibition at Taupo Museum from March 12.

Playing with Fire has been curated by artist and former Taupo resident Fiona Tunnicliffe, and the exhibition will display a variety of clay creations - ceramics, multimedia and pottery - from functional to inspirational.

Tunnicliffe said potters and ceramic artists aimed to create work that was durable and able to withstand the elements, so it was a good exhibition to find something that would last.

Colour, surface texture and the feel of the finished piece are also vital to the ceramic process whether it's a coffee mug or a garden sculpture, and the thing that cements that process is fire, she said. The process can include chemistry and physics, and to know when to call an electrician or how to sharpen a chainsaw.

She said the group of potters either dug clay out of the ground or bought it ready-made in packages. Fire was created in a variety of ways using wood, gas, diesel, electricity or sump oil. It is our own approach to these variables that makes our work unique and personal, she said.

Playing with Fire features the works of Taupo potter Ross Palmer, Tunnicliffe, Charade Honey, Duncan Shearer, Elsa Lye, E M Mertens, Janet Smith, Louis Kittleson and Maureen Alison. Tunnicliffe has won awards for her work and has exhibited at Taupo Museum many times.

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For further information contact:

Kerence Stephen

Exhibitions Officer Taupo Museum

Ph 376 1583

kstephen@taupo.govt.nz

www.taupo.govt.nz