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In today’s fast-paced culture, where instant gratification dictates our concentration, emerging artist Issy Parker says the beauty of making ceramics is that it requires you to slow down.
‘There are few excitements and true surprises quite like the opening of a kiln,’ Issy says.
‘There are so many opportunities for a piece to go wrong. It might dry too fast, break, or form cracks during the firing… But these are all the same things that get me excited about this material, too.’
Rather than bemoan these potential pitfalls, Issy instead celebrates the quirks and imperfections that come with her handmade practice.
She grew up in Sydney, working in her family’s business, Parkers Art Supplies. First established in 1918, the store has been servicing the city’s art industry for more than 100 years. ‘The smell of art materials has been an underlying aroma of my life,’ Issy adds.
In 2016, after spending years interacting and learning from the artists frequenting the store, Issy began to forge her own career in the arts. It only took a few short courses in clay for the malleable — and sometimes fickle — medium to capture her attention, and by 2019 she had completed her Bachelor of Fine Arts at the National Art School.
But her family’s unique legacy supporting Sydney’s art community isn’t the only way Issy’s heritage has influenced her practice.
‘Being born into a large, mixed Australian and African-American family, I had a desire to understand my different backgrounds,’ she says.
‘I find such inspiration in seeing how each culture has their traditional shapes or symbols, and in my work, I’m trying to make my own motifs.’
Her work often features ‘lumps’ and ‘bumps’ that are painstakingly added onto her vessels one by one, before being glazed in earthy browns, creams, and terracotta tones. Others reveal layers of dripping blue and green accents, calling to mind ancient artefacts that have corroded over time.
The cups, vessels, and plates serve as pieces of art in their own right, but Issy is conscious that the best ceramics are also the most useful ones, and knows her designs only really ‘come alive’ when they find their way into other people’s homes and hands.
‘I try to make every vessel different,’ she says. ‘My surroundings serve as a big inspiration — from the environments and places I visit, my cultural background, the clothes I wear, what my eyes are drawn to, my photography, the music I listen to. The pieces that I create are a vessel of self-expression.’
While some might take weeks to make, others take months. It’s an intuitive process, moving from working at her bench in her outdoor studio, to wheel throwing, and experimenting with glazing.
Luckily, being outside gives Issy permission to make a mess. It’s a true artist’s workspace, and feels like a fitting backdrop to bring her organic and unpredictable works to life.
When the sun shines through the tree canopy and casts shadows across her latest pieces, Issy says it all feels ‘a bit magical.’
Visit Issy’s website here, and shop her art through Craft Victoria.
