Additional Info
HAYLEY ARJONA
featuring collaborative ceramics by Hayles n Link
"On & On & On & On"
This exhibition showcases recent paintings and ceramics by Hayley Arjona (Hayles), alongside collaborative ceramics created with Link.
The paintings and sculptures convey emotional, ecstatic, and often uncomfortable narratives, perhaps reflecting the very process of their creation. None of these works were born from specific intention or expectation; each was made impulsively, driven by the desire to explore what might unfold
Continuing her 30-year artistic journey, Hayley explores an intuitive, performative process that amplifies and translates the unconscious and subconscious into tangible forms. Through dialogue with her subjects and embodied transmutations, moving fluidly between paint and clay, she blurs the lines between intention and action, dreams, memories, and reality. In this body of work, the distinction between the origin of an idea and its execution dissolves, creating an infinite narrative. It just goes On & On & On & On …
Hayles and Link have been lifelong creative partners, collaborating on a diverse range of projects, from festival production and set design for film and television to free-range farming. Their artistic focus has recently merged in a shared exploration of clay, where they experiment with raw materials, form, glaze finishes, and firing techniques. This marks their first exhibition of collaborative artworks in a gallery.
Hayles specialises in hand building, while Link focuses on wheel throwing, glaze development, and gas kiln reduction firing. Their process is spontaneous, an evolving dialogue where each responds to the other. Neither assumes a role of expertise; instead, both approach their work with a spirit of creative surrender. The resulting sculptures reflect this dynamic exchange, each piece embodying a unique, intersubjective quality. Additionally, elements from their home, such as rocks excavated by local ant colonies, and shared life stories are embedded within these works.
Later this year, Hayles and Link will embark on a month-long residency at Driving Creek Pottery in Te Ika-a-Māui, Aotearoa, to further explore their collaborative ceramic practice.
The artists wish to acknowledge and pay respects to the Taungurung people, Elders past and present, who are the traditional custodians of the land on which these artworks were created.