Geoff Mitchell
Geoff Mitchell’s work is a meditation on beauty, history, myth and the unconscious in which he creates fragmentary narratives in dream-like landscapes. These works are his ‘Istoriato’, drawing on the traditions and iconography of both the 16th century Italian maiolica and from a thousand years of decorated porcelain. His is not work with a self-conscious and explicit message, rather it is a reflection on the past, playfully woven through with contemporary references and with layered allegory and metaphor.
In 2016, Geoff was awarded a mentorship with Stephen Bowers, an Australian master whose work has long been an icon of Australian ceramic art. Having worked previously in digital media and then as a jeweller, this relationship with Stephen dramatically shifted Geoff’s artistic trajectory and his work has increasingly focused on ceramic painting techniques. Geoff is now working exclusively with Australian porcelain, hand making pieces in his own studio and laboriously decorating them using the traditional Chinese techniques of Qinghua.