Tues 5 Nov

Bamboo hut construction. Gutters and foundations dug, rains continue.








notes on the hut:


Sometimes it’s also the work around the work that becomes interesting. The preperations, or the scene, the environment, the people and the journey all form part of the work, they have their own beauty that comes together to form a new whole.



Notes on rains. Doubts kicking in.

I’m really concerned by the tropical rains that now seem to come every day. The thunder shakes me to the core, it really puts the fear of God in me it is so intense. I went out in it to film in the downpour and slipped in a waterfall of mud and I think my camera has broken. It’s currenty sitting in a bowl of rice.

I must remind myself this too will pass.






notes on techniques:

Throw small balls of processed clay onto the form.
Swipe with hands to combine and merge the clay.

Avoid working the whole form too much as this moistens and reactivates the previously drying foundations. Especially avoid slapping.

Mud consistency is much wetter than previously experienced. This creates a stronger overall form once dried with less internal voids. Construction is slower though.

Pull slumping clay from sides and reapply to top in order to continually reshape the whole.

Use wooden paddle to shape final surface by tapping and swiping to bind clay smoothely and evenly.













Fri 1st Nov 2024

Site for large scale work.
Monsoon rains come.

I have decided to create a large scale indigo clay work on TianTaru’s land here. There is quite a magical place where the light filters into an open clearing surrounded by luscious jungle near the house. The clay is nearby and the conditions seem right.

Each time I am in a new environment I find myself faced with a new challenge. The day I begin, the monsoon rains fall and it is soon clear that I will be battling the arrival of the wet season here - especially within the microclimate up here. I am worried about how to build an earthen sculpture in these conditions and if it is even possible. Putu and Made tell me it is not ideal in the wet season, but it is possible.


It will be a much slower process than I thought initially and again I must tune into the environment in order to appreciate this. Again, I am going into the unknown. This is where the learning is.







‘Self portrait in Blue’
9 x 8 x 4cm 
indigo dyed clay. (unfired)




‘Untitled’ (for Seba and Ayu)
10 x 9 x 4cm 
indigo dyed clay. (unfired)




Two works made in clay and indigo.