Pottery In Australia Vol 35 No 1 Autumn 1996

Tea pot. Salt glaze. 15h (cm).
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appreciated in John Leach , Ian Jones and Gwyn Hanssen
Pigott's work. I get the impression that Stewart is serving a
lifetime apprenticeship. During 1983-88 he established
glaze recipes that he still continues to use and develop.
Now established at Strathnairn as a studio potter and
teacher at the Canberra School of Arts, I'm no more
surprised by his advice to students "Go and
specialise ... explore your desire to create, but do that first!"
than I am by the fact that he emphasises wheel skills,
encourages with positive feedback, trial and error. "We
must allow ourselves to fail".
Initially Stewart left WA to join Ian Jones at Gundaroo,
NSW. Eventually he set up another studio in Canberra, built
a gas kiln, explored and developed various coper reduction
glazes combined with wood ash. Strathnairn offers him the
opportunity to explore woodfiring even further.
A community arts property, Strathnairn provides studio
space for emerging ceramic practitioners, much needed
access to equipment and kilns as well as informal learning
through cross fertilisation of ideas. All this in return for
labour to develop the place further. However, none of
these facilities would be possible if it weren't for the vision,
cooperation and hard work applied by the Members of
Strathnairn Ceramic Association Inc. who have built both
studios and kilns to suit diverse practise over the past few
years. Stewart shows me 'before' photos of the property
where building materials lean against the studio like junk
at the local tip. I'm surrounded by well-kept lawns, newly
planted trees, a vineyard in the distance, another kiln in
progress and don't ask if this exchange is working.
Now? He's restless again, says he has arrived at a
jumping off point, doesn't fully explain. There is a kiln full
of bonsai pots to unload.
We have just completed lunch, the geese are grazing
closer to the studio and I remark that what I like about
geese is that they are just geese. One of his jugs holds my
attention. What he likes about this jug is - it is what it is .. a
jug. When are artists just artists? To surrender clay to kiln,
experiment yet stay with functional art withiri an industry
divided on an issue as artificial as non-functional verses
functional art, is to specialise in more than work ethics.
Made of soft clay, glaze and form synchronise; this jug
surrenders to the direction of the clay. oo
Kathy Kituai is a freelance writer and poet who has reviewed since
1989. She is published locally and overseas and her first collection of
poetry "green-shut-green" (Polonius) came out in 1994. She also
facilitates creative writing courses in the ACT (six years) for ANU
Continuing Education, Women's Referral Centre, Southern Adult
Education and other ACT Community Centres.
ISSUE 35/ I AUTUMN 1996 + POTTERY IN AUSTRALIA 11