ceramicist hayden youlley

Hayden Youlley took a leap of faith during his studies at the respected Sydney art college COFA. He had never worked with clay before, but he decided to major in ceramics. It was a decision that has paid off. He's been working with the medium ever since, and has picked up stockists such as Pure and General for his launch "Paper Series" collection, photographed by Amanda Prior (read her interview here). Next up, Hayden plans to release a range of lighting.

Which five words best describe you? On top of the world!

How did you get your career start and what path have you taken since? After completing a Bachelor of Design from the College of Fine Arts UNSW, majoring in ceramics and applied object design, I was working part time and spent the rest of my time completing my first range of ceramics. That process took about 10 months, from start to finish. The whole time I was focusing on the goal of being able to quit my day job and spend the rest of my days having fun throwing mud around the studio. So far it’s all going to plan.

What’s the best lesson you’ve learnt along the way? Start small, jump in headfirst, ask for help and learn as much as you can while you go.

What’s your proudest career achievement? It’s only been six months since I started the company. It’s all still very new. When it happens, I’ll be sure to let you know.

What’s been your best decision? Making ceramics the undergraduate major of my design degree without having ever touched clay before in my life. I followed my gut feeling and that totally paid off.

Who inspires you? My family and friends. They never stop encouraging and helping me to be better.

What are you passionate about? Soccer, surfing, hand-crafted design and ice-cream.

Which person, living or dead, would you most like to meet? Wikipedia is telling me its Bernardo Buontalenti from way back in 1565. The first person to create gelato - absolute genius. This guy deserves a big hug!

What dream do you still want to fulfill? Surf the backdoor of pipeline on the north shore of Oahu, Hawaii.

What are you reading? At home: a short history of private life by Bill Bryson

images courtesy of hayden youlley and amanda prior

CERAMICIST LEAH JACKSON

After a few years of working for a commercial gallery Melbourne’s Leah Jackson felt a pull to what had drawn her to the arts in the first place - ceramics. It was her major during her Bachelor of Visual Arts (Honours) degree at the ANU in Canberra. And she had immersed herself in that world before then too, studying up on The Journal of Australian Ceramics while at high school. Since returning to the wheel she has been exhibiting regularly. “I love the exhibition process,” Leah says, “as it always pushes my work into a new direction and challenges me to take a fresh perspective.” She is also stocked in retail spaces, and is about to participate in the Markit design market at Fed Square on November 24. Leah also runs the occasional workshop at Northcote Pottery. “It is a fun, day long event that encourages play and irreverence while providing some staple hand building and simple mold making skills,” she says. “They are fun days which yield a surprising amount of work.”

Which five words best describe you? Always hungry for more everything. (That “everything” initially read “cake”).

How did you get your career start and what path have you taken since? I studied ceramics at university, but left it alone for a few years while I worked in the arts. Working at a public contemporary gallery was like undertaking a second degree - I learnt so much. Eventually the want to be making took over and I left my job to return to the studio - via some more travel, living in some different places, and generally just finding my way.

What’s the best lesson you’ve learnt along the way? My Grandfather gave me simple but effective career advice once: "You just figure out what you want to do, and you work hard at it". That statement really seemed to consolidate my dedication to my career path for some reason. Sage (simple) advice aside, the most important lesson I have learnt is time management - it is essential for ceramics when you are working towards a deadline! You have to allow for drying time, firing, glazing, re-firing - and hope throughout the entire process that the kiln gods will smile upon you.

What’s your proudest career achievement? Being featured in The Journal of Australian Ceramics was pretty exciting. I have been geeking out over those magazines since I was at high school, so that was a very big career achievement tick.

What’s been your best decision? Setting up my current studio at Northcote Pottery - working away from home has made such a difference to my practice, as has having multiple kilns on site.

Who inspires you? My friends. They are incredible. They open galleries, write articles, create beautiful clothes, buildings, jewellery, products, props, exhibitions... The list goes on. Dynamic, ambitious people with strong vision and direction who it is a privilege to spend time with, and I learn so much from.

What are you passionate about? Equal love. Hand moisturisers (ceramics is very hard on the hands). And people enjoying my work in their domestic space.

Which person, living or dead, would you most like to meet? Gore Vidal, circa 1960s. Even though his intelligence would have been horribly intimidating. I could watch him making clever, witty quips on YouTube all day.

What dream do you still want to fulfil? I have dreamt this so long it almost feels silly now, but I would love to live in America for a time - perhaps I will retire in Florida?

What are you reading? I am just starting on The picture of Dorian Gray - literally the first pages of the introduction.

images courtesy of leah jackson; photography heather lighton

CERAMICIST ALISON FRASER

Happy accidents seem to be a hallmark of Alison Fraser’s life. After reading about a collaboration between a graphic designer and a ceramicist to create handmade tiles, she decided to try and combine her former career with a medium she had yet to learn. During this process Alison created a flatware range for her family that was loaned for a photo shoot after a chance meeting. That set of a chain of events, including receiving commissions from restaurants and interior designers, as well as having Slab and Slub picked up by a couple of boutique Sydney homewares stores. Creating the pieces themselves is about being open to the unexpected too. In Japan, this is known as “wabi-sabi” - the perfection of imperfection. It’s an idea that Alison is exploring in some other projects through the use of textiles and cyanotypes.

Which five words best describe you? Impatient.

How did you get your career start and what path have you taken since? My first job was Santa’s Elf on a stage in a suburban shopping centre - red outfit, pointy hat, photographing children on Santa’s knee. Not long after that, I was a zoo keeper in a B-grade wildlife park in Brisbane. Hence I learnt not to work with children and animals, especially when the animals are bigger than you - like an emu. 

I did a Business Communications degree with a major in advertising at QUT in Brisbane. I did okay in the arty electives and failed all the real subjects like accounting, economics, marketing. Graduated into the recession we had to have, couldn’t get a real job in advertising, so started working in a vegan cafe in Fitzroy, then a corporate role as a trainee in Desk Top Publishing (am I sounding old yet?). I got that job because I drew a life-sized drawing of myself begging for the job, on a roll of fax paper and faxed it my future employers. It came out at the other end as a whole piece - a two-metre long application... perhaps the longest job application in the world? Loved the design work, but was rubbish at it. So went to night school for an Associate Diploma in Illustration and Design at a dodgy private art school - blessed with some fantastic teachers. (Stephen Pascoe, are you still out there?) 

So that launched my main career as a grapho. I moved to Sydney and worked corporate side mostly until I set up my own outfit. I usually had about six staff and it ran quite well for about five years. I sold it to one of the staff when first baby was coming and hubby and I were moving to Hong Kong.  

Planned to freelance but found quickly that deadlines and breastfeeding didn’t mix - then second baby 20 months later so I abandoned that career. I also longed to get much more hands on - create work that pleased me completely - not answerable to a commercial agenda. I happened to read an article about a British ceramicist collaborating with a graphic designer to produce handmade tiles, and a light bulb went off. I thought, “Yes, I could do that! No one is doing that in Australia - how hard can making tiles be? They are just flat, right?” But, of course, the answer is: extremely hard. Clay does not like to be flat! 

As I was learning how hard it is to learn about ceramics, I started fiddling with some flatware for myself and the family. Some were lent to a friend for a photo shoot and the stylist asked if they were for sale. The answer was, “They are now!” And then Sarah from Small Spaces in Redfern, whose shop we Iived behind, and was already interested in the tile idea, saw some the plates and walked out with an armload, very exciting. And from there... 

What’s the best lesson you’ve learnt along the way? Working with ceramics is the first time I have produced work to my own aesthetic. I really really don’t care if other people like it or not. I just enjoy mucking around and learning about clay. Being independent of others’ opinions and an outlier of the traditional art schools, ie, mostly self-taught, has played in my favour. I was good at art as a kiddie, but my parents wouldn’t let me pursue it - so things have come full circle. Better late than never. (And, yes, I have forgiven my parents - I do know lots of interesting science facts - thanks to a traditional education.) 

What’s your proudest career achievement? Selling that first load to Sarah O’Neill at Small Spaces. Sarah has such great eye - she is one of the best in Australia, so it was very, very exciting to be in her portfolio. Another mummy friend of mine baked and delivered a batch of celebratory scones that afternoon - that friend understood how deeply important creative activity outside of the Baby Cave was to me. I think the psychologists call it self-actualisation. 

What’s been your best decision? To stick to hand building. Thanks to Kwi Rak Chuong, a fantastic ceramicist, whose guidance I was under for about six months at the Willoughby Arts Centre. 

Who inspires you? Sarah O’Neill from Small Spaces - again. If I am making a piece and wondering which way to go, I try to channel her, what choice would she make? Sometimes the ESP doesn’t work, so I send her a text instead. 

What are you passionate about? Pursuing what you like doing the most. If you love doing it, you’ll do it a lot. If you do something a lot, you’ll be good at it. If you are good at something you will be successful in a way that you define as success.

Which person, living or dead, would you most like to meet? The fathers of my children... no, wait, only kidding. Alexander Calder - from monumental to the most delicate charming sculpture - a grand master of art who didn’t seem to take himself or the art world too seriously.

What dream do you still want to fulfil? To be able to do a cartwheel.

What are you reading? Byssus by Jen Hadfield: an exquisite, funny collection of contemporary poetry and Composting by Bob Flowerdew. Seriously. We are moving to a little farm at the end of the year and I need to know. 

images courtesy of alison fraser

CERAMICIST MORGAN PECK

Morgan Peck's home, growing up in the state of Washington in the US, was always filled with some sort of creative endeavour. Her father was a woodworker while her mother worked as a high school art teacher. When Morgan wasn’t sailing, she was making paper by hand, shaping pine needle baskets or drawing still lifes. By the time she went to college, Morgan wasn’t able to settle on one single area of study. Instead she got a taste of photography, printmaking, film history, welding and Russian literature. Post graduation, Morgan went on to study a two-month course in architecture too. But it was after she moved to LA that Megan enrolled in a ceramics class to help her reconnect with her creativity, and found a sweet spot. Morgan says she enjoys working with clay because she can work reasonably fast. She can create in multiples and doesn’t get too attached to any one particular object. 

“I feel like ceramics is the right thing for me to do right now,” she says. “I'm not sure I would call it a career, maybe making stuff is my career, or at least working with my hands. I first felt I was on the right path when I had my own business refinishing wood on boats. Watching something change and turn into something new, by the work my own hands, was one of the best feelings I have ever had.”

How did you get your career start and what path have you taken since? My first job was a greeting card assembler, gluing paper heats with bows on cards. Since then I have worked as an art installer mostly.

What’s the best lesson you’ve learnt along the way? Just keep going.

What’s your proudest career achievement? Working for myself. 

What’s been your best decision? Buying a kiln.

Who inspires you? Gary Knox Bennett, Pietro Cascella, Pierre Szekely, Fletcher Benton.

What are you passionate about? My garden.

Which person, living or dead, would you most like to meet? Robyn, the Swedish pop singer.

What dream do you still want to fulfil? Buy a boat.

What are you reading? I listen to audio books in the studio. I listen to every Michael Connelly detective novel I can get my hands on.

images courtesy of morgan peck; portrait sherise lee of The Radder