NAS at Sydney Contemporary

In 2024 I curated the exhibition Interactions for Newcastle Art Space which included the paring of a ceramic artist working with an artist in 2d. The artists were invited to respond to each other’s work in an overt or indirect way. The exhibition invited a conversation between the artists’ works.

Interactions included the following pairing of artists:

Jacquie Garcia (ceramic) – Caroline Traill (painter)

Peter Gardiner (painter) – Nicki McCann (ceramic)  

Maggie Hensel-Brown (lace)– Oliver Harlan (ceramic)

Megan McGee (ceramic) – Linda Greedy (painting)

Karen Wells (ceramic) - Dan Nelson (painting)

Sue Stewart (ceramic) – John Cliff (photography)

Whilst most parings led to separate works exhibited side by side, Peter Gardiner and Nicki McCann worked collaboratively on one piece and created the first Night jar- a gothic black ceramic urn with a fiery inferno painted on the surface. Fast forward to 2025 and several more vessels later Peter Gardiner and Nicki McCann were presented at Nanda Hobbs as part of the Sydney Contemporary Art Fair at Carriageworks.

I would like to acknowledge Karen Wells for her work on exhibition development of Interactions and thank all the artists involved who were willing to run with the idea.  Including a special mention of Maggie Hensel Brown whose work is now showcased in the new building of the Newcastle Art Gallery.   As a curator it is humbling to be a small part of an artist’s journey and I am proud to be part of Newcastle Art Space which has the elasticity as an organization to be a space for artists to experiment and produce new work, whilst supporting emerging and established voices, and hopefully one day being presented on a national scale such as this one!