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Earthworks is magical
Sean Keane was swept along by the magic, beauty and form of the pottery created by three different female potters working as a co-op
A CAT by the name of Maxwell races by, catches a fly and as he does falls 10 feet through the huge open window into the millrace at the back of the Earthworks studio in Thomastown. He re-appears none the worse for wear and walks by the hundreds of beautifully and lovingly crafted pieces of pottery as if they weren't there. He just adds to the magical atmosphere being created in the studio by three very different potters, with three hugely different pasts and very singular styles. They have no difficulties working peacefully and as one in the same space.
Their co-op is situated in one of the most tranquil and inspirational settings that any craft person could want, part of a 17th century grain mill. Attached to the world famous Grennan Mill, there is something enchanting or dare I say bewitching about the three women who make up Earthworks.
There is a man with a hurley, guarding the studio on a full-time basis. He stares at you after you come out of the complex but never says anything. At least that's what it seems when you walk out and look across at the statue of Thomastown native and hurling legend Ollie Walsh. It is uncanny, he seems to watch you - almost asking if you paid for the stuff you got in the shop. The great goalie would definitely approve of the work being carried out in the place.
To really appreciate Earthworks you have to visit and that will give you a feel for the different types of pottery being created there by Oonagh Anderson, Caroline Dolan and Karen Morgan.
Fate threw them together. One spent much of her life in the Middle East (Caroline) while Oonagh was exiled in New York, before moving to Castlebar and Karen spent two years teaching pottery on a cruise ship. Her work has won many prestigious national and international awards. However, that is not to undervalue the creations of Caroline and Oonagh who draw on different raw materials, styles and ideas for their work.
They are three completely different potters who just seemed to gel when they met at the Crafts Council of Ireland course in Kilkenny. At the heart of what they do is hand made pieces which will last as long as you will provided you don't break them.
Again it comes back to class, simplicity of design, yet brilliance and that quality of the finished product. It is what makes them stand out from the mass produced stuff coming in from China and elsewhere which is flooding the market and DIY stores at the expense of our own indigenous and highly artistic craft industry, These three people are fighting against this and are winning. They are on a voyage in the pursuit of excellence. All three share the passion for their work and even though they create things of beauty on a weekly basis they are constantly striving for something a little better, a little different.
Caroline Dolan works primarily in stoneware and the secret of her pieces is the glazing. After she fires the clay first time around she places a "slip" on it and it is the oxides in this which react with the clay during the second firing which creates the colours, like the one on her mugs - pebble almost the colour of a duck egg. It is this element of the pottery process which provides her with her signature look for which her pottery is much admired. Once she finishes something she puts it behind
her and does not look back, perhaps a good philosophy for life?
She is enchanting and speaks honestly about her long and circuitous journey to finding peace and being a potter.
"It started many years ago when, after school where art really had been my passion, I found myself in Trinity 'studying' pharmacy in my parents' hope of following in my father's footsteps.
"When I should have been spending my evenings in the library studying organic chemistry instead I would be found in the little pottery studio in the laneway between Trinity and Pearse Street.
"It was many years later, having travelled the world and dabbled often in various forms of art and craft that I returned to clay. Living in Wicklow, I learned a lot from potter Brian Keogh in his studio in nearby Ashford. It was from him that I found out about the Crafts Council's course in Thomastown, where the excellent two year professional training set me up with the skills to run my own workshop and through which I met both Karen and Oonagh who were to become my partners in the establishment of Earthworks studio and gallery – the realisation of all our dreams," she said.
Karen Morgan admits that
she cannot bear to create a round bowl without putting a curl in it and her curled bowls are as she would say herself, sculptural yet functional and classical. She uses the word ergonomical to describe her work. Pressed she says that it means an efficiency of form and function working within your own environment. I don't understand it, yet it makes sense. She works in porcelain and it is more fragile and not as flexible as other forms of clay. She is famous for her pestles and mortar which are stunning yet simple in design and form.
Like her two friends and work colleagues, she didn't choose or plan pottery as a career it just kind of happened. "While at Limerick College of Art and Design I began studying Fashion and quickly realised that it was not for me. An alternative option came up to take the last available space left in Ceramics.
"Luckily for me it worked out very well as I instantly felt at home manipulating the soft clay on the wheel. After moving to Thomastown to train in the Pottery Course I worked for a number of years in various potteries throughout Ireland. Then a couple of years travelling in Australia and New Zealand and teaching pottery on a cruise ship in the Caribbean. Once back in Ireland I was lucky enough to get on the new pottery skills design course and returned again to Thomastown. During which time I had total freedom to try out my designs, find my style and coincidentally met the other two in the Earthworks trio," she said.
Oonagh Anderson works part-time in the office at Kilkenny Golf Club and her job there sees a million miles away from the wholesome pieces of earthware she produces at Earthworks. She has lived in Thomastown for the last six years and in a previous life, lived and worked in New York and Westport Co Mayo.
She worked at various jobs over the years including bar and restaurant work, music workshop and office work. Her interest in pottery really started when she took up night classes in Marlay Park with Frances Desmond.
"Having spent time studying with Paul Martin in Bray and working in Colm de Ris pottery I applied for the Crafts Council of Ireland's Pottery Skills Course in Thomastown and was accepted," she said enthusiastically.
"On my way to college each day I used to pass Grennan Mill where our studio is located and think how I'd love a pottery in the exact location we are now in, so dreams do come true," she said.
Oonagh creates hand built and thrown earthenware garden ware which includes pots, bird houses and more. Each piece is individually decorated and glazed.
So at Earthworks there are three different personalities, one working in stoneware clay, the second with porcelain clay and the third with earthenware clay, all contributing to life in Kilkenny and making a difference.
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Tuesday 22 May 2012
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