Competition Key Dates

Well the entries all now in and the variety and quality is just astounding!

Here are the Key Dates:

Thursday 30 Sept - Delivery of Pots (done :^) )

Friday 1 October - Judging takes place

Saturday 2 October at 2pm - Official Opening, Presentation of Awards followed by refreshments

Exhibition continues to 12 October.

Wednesday 13 October - 10am to 4pm Collection of pots from the Hazelhurst Gallery.  Pots will be signed out with the PHPG Committee before you take them away.

Hope we see you at the Opening.  Let us know if you have checked out our BLOG.

46th National Pottery Competition and Exhibition

Our Biennial Competition opens at 2pm on Saturday, 2nd October at Hazelhurst Regional Gallery and Art Centre, Cnr Kingsway & Talara Road, Gymea.  
Our Judge for this year is Dr Julie Bartholomew who will present the Awards and talk about the entries.  Guests are welcome and refreshments will be served.  Visitors will have the opportunity to vote for the People's Choice Award or to purchase a unique ceramic work.  Hope we see you there.  For more details on the gallery go to their website and look under Community Gallery for our exhibition listing:  http://www.hazelhurst.com.au/

Here are some images of winners of the 2008 Competition.

Andrew Halford - Wheel thrown spherical form

Brett Smout - Moulded beakers

Helen Blayney - Hand formed

September Meeting

Sandy Lockwood was our guest speaker and shared images of her work and information about her own woodfired, salt fired and soda fired works.  Check out her website:
http://www.sandylockwood.com.au/

Raku Day at Bundeena - Results!

Once the reduction sawdust and the pots in it have cooled enough, the lid is removed and the pots carefully removed and placed on the ground or a surface that can take a still hot pot.  The pots are left to cool in the air and then when they can be handled are cleaned up with water and steel wool.
Some people had unexpected results but we were all happy with the pots we took home.
Thanks again to the team at Bundeena.  Port Hacking Potters had a great day! Thanks again too, to Arlon Roese for the great photos!

Still smoking

Tongs still needed

The results are revealed as the ash is removed

Are they cool enough yet?

Discovering some great results

Raku Firing at Bundeena - Unload and into reduction

This is the exciting part of any Raku firing.... so some safety precautions needed.  Heat proof gloves, long handled tongs, face masks to protect eyes and lungs from fumes and ash.

Team Work

Hot, hot, hot!

Work needs to be removed quickly but carefully

This big old case held the sawdust for the reduction

The hot pots are placed on the sawdust and some more sawdust is placed on top

Safety gear definitely needed when adding the extra sawdust

Wet newspaper is placed around the edges to minimise smoke

Raku Day at Bundeena - Firing up

Our host potters had the kilns up and running with their own wares which meant we could start packing as soon as we had glazed our own pots.

Our first firing was soon underway

Raku Day at Bundeena - getting started

Our hosts had everything all setup and ready for us to get glazing:

At the glaze table

We all wanted different effects and so we used brushes, dippers, wax and stencil resists as well as dunking in more than one glaze.

Raku Day at Bundeena - Setup

Thanks to Anna's nephew, Arlon, we have some fantastic photos of our Raku Day at Bundeena.  Thanks to Jane, Marian and the crew for a great day.  We all got some good pots, some of which I hope to see in the Competition.

This is one of the kilns we used.  It is fibre lined and powered by LPG gas

All organised with glaze tests to help with our choices.

Some of the glazes have wonderful names.

August Meeting

Our guest speaker at the August meeting was Dr Julie Bartholomew.
  Her slipcast work is astounding!  We saw images of her work,past, present and future as well as images taken on her travels and residencies in Asia.  Thanks Julie.  Check out her website:
http://www.juliebartholomew.com.au/
and try to go to see her new work at the Sabbia Gallery which will be opening on 8th September. 
http://www.sabbiagallery.com/ex_future.php