Europe 2023 | Travel Stories

From mid-June to early October, I was lucky to travel to Austria, Germany, The Hague and Netherlands, Belgium, London and Edinburgh. I worked in Austria as a Support Officer for the Australian National University’s Criminology Department who had 23 students visiting Vienna for an immersive Summer unit. Criminology Convenor Dr Adam Masters led the course which was taught for the first time and proved to be a success. Of course, in our down time we visited many museums, galleries and parks to enjoy Vienna’s art and culture.

I have written several travel stories on my work blog which is Gallery of Small Things – a gallery I run in Canberra. I’ve been operating the gallery for more than 6 years now and love my job. It’s been a balance to manage my arts practice with the gallery and I must admit the past three years has meant my practice has been put on hold while I kept my business alive during the pandemic.

I thought for this blog, I would focus mainly on ceramics I saw during our travels. I’m going to start at the end of the trip as the highlight for me was an unexpected exhibition held in Bath, UK. Who would have thought a little town would be hosting a major retrospective of one of my ‘in awe’ muses – Lucie Rie!

Holburne Museum is a hidden gem nestled in Sydney Park. It houses an extensive private collection (more than 4000 objects, pictures & books). Lucie’s exhibition was on one floor + a little room housing test pieces. The main room had decades of her work which were curated beautifully among the regal furniture, fine art and decorative arts from the collection of Sir William Holburne.

I was emotionally overwhelmed by seeing her works in person. It’s one thing to see it in a book but to be so close to the objects and have the room to myself (apart from the staff minding the space) was an incredibly defining moment for me. I knew that as soon as got home to Australia – I needed to focus on making again. I’m delighted to say that since we’ve been home, I’ve been working on a top secret project which will be announced (cross fingers) in February 2024! Please enjoy the following photos.

New year | new look

When all good things come to an end. As much as I loved my AM PM Ceramics website, the reality of monthly fees & annual charges by an e-commerce USA host meant I could no longer afford it. Sigh! After much thinking, I decided to consolidate so I could focus on my practice & plans. I have revamped my Anne Masters Ceramics blog, so some entries are pretty old but a new look means new beginnings.

My ceramic practice
This is the first time I haven’t planned an exhibition for 2019! It’s surreal as I had three group exhibitions in 2018 & seem to thrive on doing too much! I have one body of work in mind as a result of travelling on trains in Europe. So watch this space when that comes to fruition! To support my practice as an artist, I own & operate a gallery which has kept me busy and focused on supporting and mentoring artists. I love my job and look forward to balancing the gallery and my own practice.

Travel blog
I also love telling a story! I love travel, photography, architecture and visiting galleries in Australia and overseas just to list a few. So, whenever you think of travelling and need some tips, advice on what to see and do, then pop on over to my travel blog to getaway in style! My instagram @annemastersceramics also features my travel in short snippets in case you aren’t a fan of bloggers and blogs.

Travel to inspire making new works
There are travel plans ahead – a trip to Hobart for the Australian Ceramics Triennale in May – which no doubt will reinvigorate what I would like to make. I’m also hoping, Adam and I go to Spain and Portugal in mid-June to mid-July, pending our work commitments. This photo is by Fritha Quinn who’s instagram is rich with colour, travel and her family. The tiles behind her are classic of what I’ll be drooling over in a few months!

So, welcome to the new website and I look forward to hearing from you, Anne x