The Big Clay Out

The brainchild of studio artists Dan Nelson and Kara Wood, The Big Clay Out offered the local community an opportunity to shake off the post-COVID lockdown blues and venture out for an afternoon of muddy fun at NAS.  

More than 600 people of all ages and abilities flocked to NAS for this event, which included a clay-themed exhibition, I’m From Earth, featuring our studio artists and HeadsUp, a community collaboration to create a giant installation of clay ‘selfies’ in the NAS Gallery. 

Supported by ceramic artist Ali Sobel-Read and a team of studio artists and volunteers, Kara Wood led workshops throughout the afternoon, inspiring everyone to make their own clay portrait heads. We were amazed to witness hundreds of delightful, comical and intriguing clay selfies spring to life and join a growing ‘wall of fame’ mirroring the community’s diverse identities and expressions. Wide-eyed babies, spectacled grannies, serene teens with headphones, wigged-out puppy dogs, a funky Batman and a sleepy Yoda were just some of the weird and wonderful characters making up the installation. 

After months of lock downs, The Big Clay Out was an uplifting way to bring together our staff, volunteers and studio artists and reconnect with the local community. The excitement and joy in the room is evident in the many beautiful photos taken by NAS studio artist Joerg Lehmann. 

Extra thanks go to studio artist Eila Vinwynn, who literally took one for the team as our model for the promo shots! 

The Big Clay Out was generously sponsored by Keane Ceramics, Kara Wood Ceramics and City of Newcastle. The event happened in February 2021 as part of the New Annual Artists’ Trail and linked to events happening at several venues, including Hudson Street Hum and The Creator Incubator.