2 - 20 September 2004
about the exhibition
Accomplished Canberra ceramicist Anita McIntyre translates the visual experience of Australia’s remote top end onto clay forms. Deep ochres, oranges and reds over rough, pitted surfaces evoke the colours and texture of the desert. “The major source for my imagery is the Australian landscape. My approach to the landscape is basically to abstract from the whole what I consider to be the essentials. My view of the landscape is not specifically a realistic one, but one which supplies the viewer with sufficient visual material to enable them to involve themselves in conceptually ‘completing’ what they see”. Regular and extensive travel to remote parts of Australia, in particular the Kimberleys, is the inspiration behind Anita’s evocative imagery. Variations in the rich ochre tones are dictated by the heat of the kiln, just as the geology of the desert was informed by heat: “My new body of work, which includes framed monoprints, has been developed to express the geological plates, which were part of primeval Gondwana some 3 billion years ago. This ancient landscape, joined together by volcanic action, erosion and silica extrusions that were the welding of the Great South Land, has been the basis of my work for some time.” Rock forms and fossils are an important aspect of Anita’s work.
Anita McIntyre graduated from the Canberra School of Art in 1976. She is currently a visiting fellow at ANU, lecturer in Ceramics and Sub-Dean, School of Art, ANU. She has been a long and active member of the Crafts Council of the ACT and the National Ceramics Conferences, chairing the Committee for the 8th conference. Anita has travelled extensively overseas, but in particular across outback Australia, finding inspiration in the spectacular landscapes of the inland. Anita’s work is represented in collections throughout Australia and overseas, including Darwin Museum and Gallery; Renwick Alliance Group ,USA; and the Canberra Museum and Gallery.
