Sara Scott: Far from Home

My main interest over the last 16 years has been in the development of translating pattern or line from two dimensions into three. Sometimes the actual technique of decorating (i.e., burnishing slips, scratching lines, scraping through glazes, drawing along the edges of a piece or inlaying different clays) helps to describe the form. At other times the sheer vibrancy of the colours used, or another idea popping up, distracts me from this preoccupation, but I always like to keep my decoration immediate, spontaneous and gestural.

My main priority has not always been functional, although often the works refer to a function or an impression of how something could be used. I am more of a ceramic artist than a potter. Many types of clay interest me, terracotta, stoneware, porcelain, paper-clay, depending on the message being conveyed. I use several different building techniques, coiling, slabbing, and throwing. Sometimes, something I thought of years ago suddenly crops up again in a slightly different form. Ceramic techniques often drive these ideas, but I find myself mainly attracted to oval forms, asymmetrical top edges and altered thrown ware.

At times I feel very cut off from my European roots and the manner in which I was trained, which rather obviously differs from my New Zealand counterparts. (I will be talking a bit about Bernard Leach and his influence over here being stronger than in my era in the UK). Being ‘Far from Home’ is also a blessing, as is being represented by a gallery several hundred kilometres from Picton.