The Journal of Australian Ceramics Vol 52 No 2 July 2013

Wedge
I am Rachael . . Rachael McCallum.
I am artist.
I didn't just wake up one day and say "I am an
artist"; I was told I would be since I was very
small. Now that doesn't mean that I had to be
an artist. but it does mean it was a decision I was
predisposed to since my personal 'forever' began. I
was the grandchild who would make personalised
birthday and Christmas cards at every chance I
could with glue, cardboard and Textas. But I did
wake up one day and say that I would not let
anyone call my work 'craft' ... and this happened
fairly recently in the forever of my thinking.
Ceramics has this terrific tension between arV
craft hierarchies. It can be both if it feels like it.
Regardless, my decision came eaSily after I saw the
advertisement for a particular department store that
shall not be named selling their ceramic homeware
at a mere $2 for a mug. I don't want to compete
with that because even I am tempted by that
disposable offer. And if I were to make competing
functional objects they would spend most of
their life unused and sitting on a pretty shelf, as
protection, somewhere out of reach so as to justify
the exorbitant price I would put on such objects.
Now that just won't do!
If I make objects to be looked at, I had better
discard the idea of function altogether. And so,
what is pretty and looked at?
Paintings!
Rachaol McCallum
B(uo Dwarf, 2012
stoneware, 1280 0 (
h.43cm, w3 Scm. d.ll em
Not that I want to dis' on my painting amigos
and amigas, but paintings get all the attention.
Waa!
Painting is more than just pretty, if it wants to be;
and so too can ceramic objects.
I make ceramic paintings. J search for a
decorative balance of dry and wet-looking surfaces,
colour and line compositions. Essentially, they are
forever-lasting abstract expressionist paintings.
'02 THE JOURNAL OF AUSTRALIAN CERAMI CS JULY 2013