Woodfire Survey

27 September – 15 October 2025 | Bond Store Gallery

Opening function - 11am, Saturday September 27, with guest speaker ~ internationally renowned potter, Chester Nealie.

The Old Courthouse Complex is pleased to present Woodfire Survey, an exhibition which brings together a diverse cohort of contemporary Southwest ceramicists. The group of 12 artists, collectively celebrate the elemental and enduring practice of wood-fired ceramics - one of the most ancient and alchemical firing techniques known to clay.

Woodfire Survey invites audiences into a tactile and sensorial experience - where earth, flame, and time converge. Unlike gas, or electric kiln firing, the wood-firing process embraces unpredictability: natural ash deposits melt into glaze, flames dance upon the clay's surface, and earthy tones emerge through prolonged exposure to heat. The resulting works are richly textured, deeply expressive, and each wholly unique.

This exhibition speaks to the poetry of process, honouring the slow, physical, and elemental journey that clay undergoes in a wood-fired kiln - a transformation whose marks are never concealed, but instead become the story. Spanning functional forms, sculptural works, and experimental surfaces, the exhibition reveals a breadth of approaches to the tradition - from refined vessel-making to rugged, gestural explorations of fire and form.

Matt Almera | Ian Dowling | Marilyn Dreaver | Rachel Fall Williams | Robyn Lees | Sally May Mills | Stuart McKay | Chester Nealie | Brendon Norton I Cher Shackleton | Mary Wallace | Harry Wykman

Image credit: Large Bottle 2024 - Chester Nealie.