Christine Thacker - Is There Clay on Mars?

26 April - 10 May 2016

Is There Clay on Mars?

In the world today many people are having to relocate and eventually, scientists tell us, the human race will have to relocate.
Imagine if you had to leave your life and the activity, that in part defined you, was unavailable. For example, if there was no clay at all. For one who loves clay that would be difficult.

I watched a YouTube clip about the feasibility of humans living on Mars which probably sparked this train of thought.

There is also a nod to David Bowie in the title as his absence/presence pervades.

I have returned to using iron-bearing red clay because I have a small mountain of it lying around and because it relates to Mars as the 'red planet'. The Martian surface is made of a thick layer of oxidized iron dust and rocks from which future colonists could apparently make bricks.

In the way that thoughts trigger thoughts, this title seemed to have currency.

Christine Thacker 2016

A practicing ceramicist since 1974, Thacker worked at Cambridgeshire Pottery, Cambridge, England in 1978, and in 1980 established her own studio in Auckland.

In 1992 she took up a residency at the International Ceramics Studio, Kecskemet, Hungary and since then, has gained a significant reputation exhibiting throughout New Zealand, Australia, Japan, England, Germany and Hungary.

As an established practitioner, Thacker is regularly invited to present workshops and act as a selector for competitions in Australia and New Zealand.  She currently lives on Waiheke Island, where she has worked since establishing her studio there in 1987.

She has received many awards, grants and residencies, including the Fletcher Challenge Award, Premier Award NZ Ceramics and Glass XPO. Her work is held in private, corporate and public collections.

See more work by Christine Thacker