Suter Gallery in Nelson

Nelson has a marvelous little gallery, the Suter Art Gallery, set in the Queens Garden, which is a green refuge near the city centre.

Queens Garden

 At the moment there is an exhibition of Alan Pearson's paintings and Steve Fuller's ceramics. Both are definitely worth visiting. Pearson's paintings, mostly portraits, many with some sort of grey tinge, are memorable (perhaps especially for a portrait artist? ) and Steve Fullmer's ceramics large, colourful, interesting and fun.

I especially liked a vase type sculpture with multi layers and written comment on the outside. 'Jesus said buy Steve Fullmer's art's said one inscription.

Steve Fullmer's ceramic

Watercolour of bridge in Queen's Garden, Nelson

Ceramic Violin Wall Plaque

There is something charming about ceramics that is hard to put your finger on. Is it because we know they are made from clay, or is it the colours? I am not sure. This 'ceramic violin' piece was made in 2010

Garden dancers

A little bit of fun from the ceramics workshop.
These dancers ....

now dance on the old BBQ in the garden.

Fred and Ginger

Franz Liszt in Ceramic

This portrait of Franz Liszt is made of ceramic. He is part of a series of ceramic portraits I made when I was in Dunedin. I unpacked them the other day and thought how lovely they are. All of them apart from Liszt and Wagner are of people in Dunedin whom I admire. When I made them I intended to have a show called 'Heros and Saints' but I left Dunedin before I was able to exhibit them. Instead, two years later, I am exhibiting them online.

My violins

Crocodile leather?

No, not crocodile leather but ceramic. This last plate out of the kiln was a real surprise.

Art, music, love

Terracotta bowl with slip edge. It was fired at 1120C and the terracotta colour is not quite as rich as the clay bowl with music which was fired at 1080C.

Music plate with crackled edge

This plate (about 30cm diameter, from the same mould as the plate below) had two firings. The first firing was at 1080C with an alkaline glaze. Then I added the slip edge and some turquoise glaze before re-firing at the same temperature.

Kiln products

A terracotta bowl with black music (Tristan and Isolde!)
This flat plate is made of white stoneware clay. The face is made of slip, which is the sloppy mess you have when you mix clay with water.

Zipper plate

This zipper plate was made by making a mould with a zipper pressed into it. The name on the zipper, Luigi, is intelligible through the glaze.

Cooper's Freud

Dunedin and nearby Port Chalmers are full of such wonderful art. How could I have forgotten? It is such a pleasure to be in a city where citizens buy local art because they love it. The result is a plethora of art which is every bit as good the art on show in Berlin, Cologne and Zurich.
This is ceramic artist Jim Cooper's Freud. He stands in the garden of a gallery in Port Chalmers. Freud has lost is arms, but is still charming none-the-less.

More ceramic music

I put some more music ceramics online.

Sound Cloud

Sound Cloud, one of my ceramic pieces in the 'Handled' exhibition that opened this evening at Whiteroom at 31 Moray Place in Dunedin.

Sorry pots

Kevin Rudd says 'sorry' and I make ceramic sorry-pots.
Out of the pots emerge tender young shoots.


I think it is hard for people living this side of the Tasman to appreciate the change in Australia. Perhaps you have to have lived through the last 11 years in Oz.