Kim Boyd
ABOVE: Dragon and Egg The Story of My Hands I think I might have been born with a pencil in my…
Lynn Isherwood
THE CREATIVE FLOW
Lynn Isherwood uses the old as time ceramic technique of hand building to create flowers, animals, birds and creatures for people to enjoy. Her calling is to create, to make, and to then close the loop by recording, and reflecting on, the outcome. This is her passion.
“I have been keen on art all my life. I love making; it is my passion. I believe that there is a spiritual creative force which encourages, inspires and uplifts me. I am happy when people buy my works and take them home to enjoy them in their daily lives. I am happy in my studio when I am in a creative flow… or just thinking and playing with my art. My aim is to develop more skills and confidence in painting and pottery – to be able to express myself more fully.
Yasmin Yussof
GLOBAL GIRL
My name is Yasmin Yussof. I was born in Germany of Swiss-Malaysian parentage. I have been an Australian citizen, lived around the world and now, I am a permanent resident of New Zealand. Someone once called me ‘Global Girl’ as I never lived anywhere for more than two years, and was born to parents from different ends of the world.
My father was an Ambassador so I have lived in Singapore, Germany, Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia, India, Iran and Rome. Travelling all over the world as a child I attended mainly international schools. From when I was young, I have always been a tactile person, never knowing I wanted to be an artist, it just happened. I always creating something, just a doodler and needing to keep my hands busy. Never thinking anything of it, just did it. If one has a calling, whatever the profession, you can’t help but go in that direction.
Karen Taylor
Born an artist, Karen Patricia Taylor has always had a fascination with the human form which is often an integral element to her work. Driven by an intrinsic force where her creativity finds a happy balance within the flow of her artistic making, her work speaks of the feminine amongst a myriad of other creative explorations. Her early life was spent drawing and making, often copying faces from comics, “pages and pages of them” until this grew to include the human form.
Born an artist, Karen Patricia Taylor has always had a fascination with the human form which is often an integral element to her work. Driven by an intrinsic force where her creativity finds a happy balance within the flow of her artistic making, her work speaks of the feminine amongst a myriad of other creative explorations. Her early life was spent drawing and making, often copying faces from comics, “pages and pages of them” until this grew to include the human form.By the time she was in her late 20’s she began to work with clay, primarily cut and altered slip cast objects. Slip cast objects are created when liquid clay (slip) is poured into plaster moulds and allowed to form a layer, the cast is left on the inside cavity of the mould and taken out and altered or added to as required.
Christine Redfern
BREAKING THE BOUNDARIES
Christine Pickstone-Redfern spent her childhood years watching and assisting her father, the renowned Queensland artist, George Pickstone, sketch, paint and carve. Her passion and inherent talent ensured her participation in scholastic art activities, where she spent much time sketching and entering art competitions. Winning an Australasian scholarship to the Melbourne Art Training Institute boosted her confidence. She re-trained to become a nurse.
Christine has a very interesting perspective in life. All of her creations are unique - ‘one of a kind’. She will not reproduce any work (not even try to) twice, and the worst thing you could say to Christine is: “It can’t be done, it’s not possible.” She wants to know why, and you while you are explaining, she’ll do it anyway and when you finish explaining, she will be standing proudly next to her latest creation, defying the rules.
Cherol Filbee
A PORTABLE OCCUPATION
Cherol Filbee has been heading in the arts direction her whole life. She loves being an artist. “I am never bored and my work is portable. My husband Peter, a top croquet player, enters tournaments all over NZ and likes me to accompany him. He knows I am lost without a project, so the deal is that I take my art work with me. When he played the world champs in London, I enrolled in a five day portraiture class at the Heatherly School Of Fine Art.”
Qualifying from The Learning Connection with honours in art and creativity, Cherol studied part-time, starting in 2010.
Awarded a scholarship for every year but one, she explains that simply drawing has become the basis of all her work. “I love faces and like to portray them as portraits or caricature in 2D and 3D. Cats have also featured quite a lot in my work. I like to challenge myself and work from life rather than a photo reference.”
Aaron Scythe
DRIVEN TO CREATE
Painter and ceramicist, Aaron Scythe trained at the Carrington Polytech in Auckland in 1988 and East Sydney Polytech in 1989 where he developed an interest in Momoyama pots.
While working at the Sturt Craft Centre in NSW, Australia he built an Anagama Kiln and began investigating Shino glazes. In 1995 he travelled to Japan to study Minoyaki style pottery under master ceramicist Koie Ryoji. Aaron lived and worked in Japan until 2011 when he returned to New Zealand. During his time in Japan he held over 60 solo exhibitions and participated in many group shows and workshops. He is currently based in Whanganui East.
Maxine Waters
CLASS IN CLAY
With nothing more than a deep-seated belief that art would be a major part of her life, internationally-recognised New Zealand ceramicist Maxine Waters decided after attending some night classes at Riccarton High School in Christchurch, that clay was to be her ‘thing’.
“I have had no formal art training, only a passion to learn everything yesterday,” Maxine says emphatically. Formal or not, Maxine says being an active membership of pottery clubs allowed her opportunity to participate in the many workshops from visiting international and local potters, which enhanced her skills and fuelled an inherent passion to create. “I was part of the successful potters co-operative ‘Classy Clay’ in Christchurch for around seven years then continued on my own, making and selling my domestic ware. At one stage employing three sales staff,” Maxine reveals.
Vinny Thompson
THE PASSION THAT SURROUNDS
When a fine artist was introduced to ceramics the resultant mix was an evocative blend of genres and bold colours recalling another side to what makes New Zealand what it is. Vinny Thompson talks about her life, work and her passion for clay.
My introduction into ceramics came about while I was attending night classes at Archibald’s ‘The Art Place’, in Upper Hutt where I was learning portraiture painting with Mary Archibald. I booked in for a weekend class doing clay sculpture with Wellington sculptor Di Conway who was teaching us how to make ‘roly poly’ women. In the first 10 minutes of having my hands on the clay, I thought, “Oh I can do this! I like this!”
Di Conway
DOING IT HER WAY
Wellingtonian Di Conway was all smiles and radiance when we met up with her at The NZ Art Show last year. There is literally a light emanating out of this lady. Displayed on her stand are groups of her renowned ‘Roly’s’ – ‘women of substance’ and a number of her remarkable drawings and yes, the light shines through.
Creating works in both bronze and clay, Di Conway has had many successful solo exhibitions. She is an elected artist member of the New Zealand Academy of Fine Art (NZAFA) and is also a foundation and active member of the Pueto bronze casting group, now in its 26th year.