For fans of Brooke Clunie’s ceramics, and Verandah Magazine is certainly among them – the good news is that she’s got her first exhibition opening tomorrow night in Ballina.
Brooke is celebrating 25 years behind the potter’s wheel with her exhibition ‘Stillness and Time’ at the Northern Rivers Community Gallery in Ballina from 29 August to 23 September. The stunning exhibition features Brooke’s ceramics accompanied by photography by Demetre Minchev.
“I wanted to acknowledge my tools with both photography and my pottery. I’ve always felt photography and pottery are similar with their immediacy and truth,” says Brooke. “It’s something I want to celebrate after being a professional potter for 25 years – something I still can’t believe.”
For the last eight years, Brooke Clunie has showcased her work from her own studio gallery, the Red Door Studio, in Fernleigh.
“I purpose-built my studio gallery so people can come and see me at work, at the process of making and the many steps involved. Ultimately, I hope this creates a relationship with pieces purchased and a meaningful shopping experience,” she says. “I think people are genuinely seeking a connection. We have been so disconnected by mass production that we’re longing to get back in touch with the crafts.”
She attributes the growth she has experienced over the last five years to this, as local restaurants and cafes have also sought connection through locally sourced foods and the wares on which they serve them.”
Presenting her ceramics with images was an idea that developed as Brooke sat at her wheel and created. “The repetition, the circular motion and the hum of my wheel with my hands continually creating absorbing this quiet energy and my two hands connecting and dancing with each piece, it all fed into the idea of making a moment of stillness – and so the exhibition unfolded. The images by Demetre Minchev capture my creative journey.”
Photographs by Demetre Minchev
