helen earl australian ceramic artist

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My studio is on acreage in NSW, surrounded by bushland and not far from the coast. I acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which I work. I acknowledge Elders past, present and emerging and the spirits and ancestors of the Clans that lived in this area.

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My electric kiln is powered by both grid and solar power. I drive an EV. A large solar array, designed by my father tracks the sun as it moves across the sky providing power to charge my car and support firing my kiln. I have additional solar panels on the studio roof and all are connected to a Tesla household battery. A 30,000 litre water tank aids in mitigating drought and fire risks and keeps all the trees and garden we have nurtured over many years surviving in times of low rainfall.

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Ideas for new artwork mostly begin with the experiential, the moving about and exploring of a natural space by walking, listening, observing. 

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This being-in-the -world' experience of natural places inspires research of linked narratives that explore the associated culture, history and science of place.  

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I look for stories about connection between the everyday existence of our daily lives and the natural world we inhabit.

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In the words of art critic, Germano Celant what interests me...is the discovery, the exposition, the insurrection of the magic and the marvellous value of natural elements. Like an organism of simple structure, the artist mixes himself with the environment...he enlarges his threshold of things.

 

Germano Celant,  Art Povera (New York: Praeger, 1969)