Rachael Rose is a multidisciplinary artist living in the Yarra Valley, Victoria on Wurundjeri Country. Her body of ceramic work is an exploration of the vessel.

“I handbuild each piece using coil and slab building technique. My intention is for every vessel to show the traces of my hand - a direct result of feel, and to an extent feeling. I'm more interested in personality than perfection, and as I'm making their different characteristics appear, some more exaggerated than others.”

The curved bodies of the clay forms intentionally contrast with the flat, two-dimensional handles that fan out and frame them. Once fired, The uniform exterior colours are dense and velvety, they swallow the light and meet with a glossy interior. In a playful way these works are illusionary: pretending to be something they are not - fancy, like a peacock - but still just a vessel. It's at this junction that we are presented with the tension between the decorative and the functional.

Functionality

Each piece is constructed using coil and slab building technique and fired to Stoneware. The interior is glazed enabling the vessels to hold water and be used as a functional vase, while the outer is underglaze. Any scuffs or marks can be cleaned with a clean damp cloth.