28 May – 14 June 2020
about the exhibition
PORCELAIN brings together the work of six highly respected ceramicists: Prue Venables, Keiko Matsui, Kevin White, Neville French, Shannon Garson and Alice Couttoupes. The exhibition showcases the complexity, beauty and strength of this material.
While looking for a house in which to live, Keiko Matsui found herself becoming ‘obsessed with the concept of the house and what it really means’. Gradually she realised she was ‘searching for a place my heart felt was home’. Keiko has divided her life and affections equally between Australia and her native Japan. Her house/vase series, a functional expression of her ‘dreams, whimsy and sentiment’, incorporates Kintsugi (mending) on cracks and joinery. To Keiko, the chair is reflective of human character and presence. She says, “You will find your place or sense of belonging when a chair is placed in an empty room. It also implies home, or gathering as there are always chairs when people get together.” Keiko enjoys working with fine porcelain as “It is extremely sensitive and responsive to the human touch when it’s soft. When fired, it becomes translucent and very strong. The nature of clay is endlessly fascinating.”
Keiko received her honours degree in fine arts from Sydney’s National Art School in 2006. Since then her ceramics have been included in many group exhibitions and she has held six solo shows. A three-time winner of the ceramics division of the Gosford Art Prize, she has also won the Viewer’s Choice award at the Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize in 2008.
