Stephen Bowers - Mark Thompson - Adelaide Festival Exhibition - Friday 24 February - Sunday 19 March 2023

Ouija Birds and Other Fragments

This selection of current and recent work reflects my interest in natural history and the traditions and techniques of ceramic craft – specifically the detail of hand-painted images obtained by the conjunction of fire, earth, metal and fused glass. Themes include pattern-in-nature and nature-in-pattern and how we appropriate, fragment and accommodate nature within our environments. Much of the imagery comes from archival research and from the local neighbourhood.

Stephen Bowers, 2023

…TO BE CONTINUED…

Let’s all go crazy together……
The effects of recent social upheavals and a society reeling under pressures from unexpected sources always prompts creatives to either retreat to the safe or push on. Working outside the metropolitan milieu often results in a gentler view, occasioned by long periods without the manufactured.

These works delve back into lighter and older references, and start to tease out future directions based on early memories of visual clues from many sources. That and a redefined love of clay as a medium, coupled with its ability to take additional and colourful embellishment are proving to be a source of wonder and enjoyment.

Mark Thompson, 2023