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The Coastal Claymakers AGM will be at 11am 20 September 2026 at the Urunga Bowling Club (20 Orara St, Urunga).

If you would like to nominate for a committee role or officeholder position you can download the nomination form.

International ceramicist Fiona Tunnicliffe came all the way from New Zealand for two workshops over two weekends with Coastal ClayMakers and Pipers Creek Pottery.

Fiona is a ceramicist with 30 years of experience hand building animal sculptures, with the use of textured slabs that gives each animal sculpture their own personality. 

Both workshops, Pipers Creek Pottery in Kempsey and TAFE Coffs Harbour were fully booked. Members of Coastal ClayMakers were given lots of inspiration with Fiona’s sculptures, and were given guidance through Fiona’s tips and tricks to create animals such as goats, rhinos and hares…some chose to make animals like camels, armadillos and elephants, giving Fiona a bit of a surprise!! Her skill was astonishing.

It was definitely an unforgettable workshop, and everyone learned a lot and boosted their skills. We would like to  thank Tammie from Pipers Creek Pottery for hosting our Kempsey workshop, and a  big thank you to Fiona for spending your time with Coastal ClayMakers and giving our members a very special opportunity to learn and connect. Once again  we thank Coffs Harbour TAFE for allowing us to learn in such a beautiful  creative space.

A beautiful mild Sunday afternoon unfolded in favour of hosting the 6^th Empty Bowls event in collaboration with and on the property of Valla Village Pottery Company at 2 Valla Road. Proprietor Matt Beggs and his apprentices Zara and Miley created a comfortable hub for people to sit down and relax in.

Macksville musician Steve Zirkler did entice us with his engaging original music throughout the evening.

About 75 bowls were on display, waiting for their prospective buyers. A line up of delicious home made soups – pumpkin, Asian chicken and noodle, beef and vegetable, Bavarian lentil and last but not least, the Happy Frog’s delicious coconut curry was waiting to fill our empty bowls and tummies. Terumi Zirkler and Erica Goodwin made sure that customers received a first class service!

A steady stream of people wandered in on opening, eagerly waiting to pay Rachael Naylor on the cash register, in order to get first choice on their favourite bowl. Students from TAFE Coffs Harbour under the guidance of ceramics teacher extraordinaire, Cath Fogarty, donated beautifully crafted bowls. The professional wares of the Bellingen potters, including bowls made of locally dug up clay by Jane Northway, were collected and delivered by Jane. Other local ceramicists also made sure the event was well supported with their handmade with love products and at the end of the day 60 bowls found a new home.

Deanne and Col Reynolds who run the outreach and soup kitchen at the Nambucca 7^th Day Adventis Church every Wednesday from 12.30pm till 5pm were present and Col gave a short speech informing the gatherers about their program and their future goals. They were delighted by the initiative of the potter’s and the support their program will receive.

At the end of the day $ 3016.32 was taken. After Expenses $ 2512.17 will be handed to the  Outreach Centre.

A big thank you must go to everyone involved in this project especially Valla Village Pottery for hosting this even free of charge and the potters for creating and giving such beautiful handmade bowls and last not least a big thank you to the public for their unwavering support!

Text and images by Tammy Kuijpers of @piperscreekpottery

Attending Clay Gulgong for the first time was an experience I’m truly glad I made the effort for, despite the sting of rising petrol prices. My main motivation was to immerse myself in the demonstrations by professional ceramicists from around the world, and it certainly delivered on that front. Alongside the demonstrations, I took time to explore the exhibitions in various locations in the town itself, each offering its own unique perspective on contemporary and traditional ceramics.

A highlight for me was visiting the Gulgong Pioneers Museum, which is extraordinary in both scale and detail. It really deserves a couple of days to fully appreciate everything it has to offer. Scattered throughout the museum was a beautiful selection of wood-fired pottery, adding yet another layer of richness to the experience.

The range of demonstrations was incredibly diverse. From the delicate, minuscule sculptures by Eiair from Thailand to the striking large-scale works of Herve Rousseau and Yannick Fourbet, there was something captivating at every turn. I was particularly fascinated by Monika Patuszynska’s process -chiselling away inside large moulds to create organic slip cast forms. It was unexpected and inspiring, and her sense of humour made it even more enjoyable to watch. I also found myself drawn to Ruby Pilven’s colourful Nerikomi work, quietly mesmerised by her process, and I always appreciate the insight and presence of Janet DeBoos.

There was a lovely, relaxed atmosphere throughout the week. A young Italian couple working steadily on their human sculptures were a pleasure to chat with, and the many potters on the wheel offered constant opportunities to pick up new techniques and great tips. The weather was a bit challenging at the start – cold and windy – which made me feel for the demonstrators working outdoors, though thankfully it improved as the week went on.

While there were fewer retailers than I had expected, likely due to another recent event in Victoria, this didn’t detract too much from the overall experience. Clay Gulgong proved to be a rich and inspiring week, and I left feeling both energised and creatively full. 

Text and images by Leni Alexander

Listen up! Have you been to Clay Gulgong before? If you haven’t this is one not to be missed, it is coming back in 2028. Lets chat about it.

It was my first time attending along with Sophie Alexander aka @Theemastoner_, we travelled 6 hours through coal mines, beautiful landscapes, and scenery when we descended on the small town of Gulgong, home of Iconic Australian Ceramicist Janet Mansfield.

The check in process was fairly easy, it was simply a matter of signing off your name and then you were given your backpack with the program, delegates lanyard and then off to select a cup made by the crew at the Ceramics Study Group. This was the time to get your merch, clarify and confirm what was happening for the week and then off we went!

There were 2 main areas, Master demo area (up the hill) and presentation area (down the hill) and then what I called specialty events such as the Throw Down Under with Celebrity Potter Keith Brymer Jones, exhibitions at the 2 museums, Delegates market, shop window exhibitions, pub crawl, The Matchbox show as well as morning meditation with Sisonke Papu and Andie Dyalvane from South Africa.

The program was packed, 7 days of full on ceramics, an absolute feast, something for everyone regardless of what your interest was there was something for you, whether it was throwing, hand building, casting, micro ceramics, kiln tech, how to change grommets for your wheel, supplier info stations and the fire sale of old merch, and ceramics magazines (of course I got some!!). It was this time I discovered our very own John Tuckwell featured interviewing Tammy from Pipers Creek Pottery in the April 2018 edition with Keith Brymer Jones Mugs of Love on the front cover! You all know I love finding things like this.

As we settled in, I found myself bouncing between the demos and The Matchbox show (images above of Coastal Claymakers’ members in the Matchbox show). I was intrigued with different approaches to slip casting and found myself glued to Ruby Pilvin and Moncia Patuszynska both extremely talented in their field. They shared their practice openly generously providing knowledge and skills that I definitely would love to try in the future.

Yannick Fourbet, a French potter living in NZ conducted a community building of mega pots on his mega banding wheel and mega ribs. People were literally throwing clay on the form and then running it through the rib to create the shape. It definitely was a wow feature.

Eric Landon aka Tortus put on performances everyday showing us how he transforms pots into bowls, and then back to big pots. A real treat to see this live, and when you see it, if confirms that the videos you see on Instagram are NOT AI, it’s the real deal!

Between bouncing from demo to demo, supplier info stations, museum exhibitions, and Delegates market, I was really interested in The Matchbox Show, a community ceramics exhibition that showcases over 800 potters work in matchboxes. I popped in most days looking for artists and creatives I knew and also getting excited about potentially submitting my own and encouraging others to do the same. I was inspired by the idea, a way for artist and creatives to be a part of an exhibition all together with no barriers to briefs other than fitting in a matchbox.

The Throw Down Under held at the “Cenny” pub was a great way to end the day, to come together with newly made friends, where we could relax, enjoy, and debrief our experience that day, often finding inspiration for new things to see the following day, and then if you had more in ya, you could do another presentation, but I’m afraid, I was pooped by 5pm. 

Day 3 and I caught the bloody lurgy, but I charged on thanks to Codeine, Panadol, Strepsils, Otrivin and a face mask, so it is a gentle reminder to pack those if you are coming in 2028 JUST IN CASE.

The final day of Clay Gulgong was a picnic day at Morning View, Janet Mansfield’s property approximately 30 mins from Gulgong up a few dirt roads through scenic view drive. It’s wild to imagine back in the day that Clay Gulgong was primarily held on this property and it was described as the Woodstock of Ceramics with caravans and tents camped up for the week. It really felt magical learning that I was in space stepped back in time that created this amazing community we have here with Ceramics.

It was here we experience Janet’s life as a potter, where she worked, her library, gallery rooms with private ceramics collection, outdoor kitchen and lots of ceramics installations on the property. The huge kiln area with trolley kilns that are so big you could stand in them, anagama kiln, gas kiln and bourry boxes still in use today through the residency programs.

It was also the unveiling of a huge sculpture made by Dale Miles, a sculpture that will be fired in-situ and remain on site. It was pretty exciting to see and experience such a huge construction built over the week.  I’m excited to see it when I return in 2028.

On conclusion, this has been one of the best experiences ever, the community, the fellowship, the learning and comradery between Masters and Delegates was heartwarming. The festival really does live up to the reputation of experiencing the ‘Gulgong Glow’. I really felt it even though I missed out on a lot with so much on, you really must be physically fit to do it all.

The crew at Mansfield ceramics did a great job, constantly on their feet making sure everything was smooth going, even making consideration around women’s needs, health and safety information easily accessible and there always was a chair for tired feet. 

If you wanted to see what went on in detail, here is a link to my poorly scanned program but you get the gist. Program for Gulgong 2026

I cannot wait for 2028, who’s coming?

By Michaela Kloeckner

October 2025

As a finalist in the 2025 STILL: National Still Life Award held recently at YAM (Yarilla Arts and Museum), Gerry Wedd was visiting Coffs Harbour to present a talk and workshop in association with the exhibition. Coastal Claymakers were fortunate to host a separate event with Gerry as a guest of the Makers Meet Up and a lucky group of members met the artist and learnt more about him and his way of working. 

With a career spanning 4 decades his work has been exhibited nationally and internationally and is represented in major collections across Australia. From making little dinner sets out of dug up clay as a child to becoming one of Australia’s most iconic ceramic superstar- Gerry Wedd remains refreshingly humble and down to earth.

Gerry is also well known for his work as graphic designer for the Australian Company Mambo. As a competent surfer his passion often features in his work.

In the morning Gerry gave a talk and presented a slide show of his varied artworks, from still life works to porcelain thongs to his 3D blue willow collection. His impressive tile work installations have been used to create entire rooms and  in created a fireplace complete with 3D vases titled Where are We Now as part of The National exhibition, at the Art Gallery of NSW.

He is known for his fine line work in cobalt blue depicting surfers and waves reminiscent of Hokusai on large jars. He also showed us a small collection works he brough with him demonstrating his sgraffito decoration through layers of coloured slips giving the impression of a lino cut. He also shared his work with delicate brushwork in cobalt.

In the afternoon we watched Gerry work (throwing and decorating cups) as he shared entertaining stories and anecdotes from his career. Story telling, song lyrics and playful use of language is a feature of his work.

Other tips and techniques he shared included the way he trimmed the hair away from the outside with the result of leaving a fine point which would create a fine line while the brush would still hold a lot of liquid; and he use of stencils of his favourite drawings to transfer images on pots using charcoal before outlining them with fine lines. A blue body stain in water is used to create a water colour finish.

We all enjoyed spending a leisurely day with  Gerry Wedd and we felt privileged to get to know him and his work on a more intimate  level. Some lucky people even took a special Gerry Wedd ceramic piece home! You can follow Gerry Wedd on instagram @gerrywedd

By Clare Danby

Being a ceramicist who often works at home, alone, can be isolating. It’s a very different experience to being in a supportive group on a ceramics course. It is difficult to find the right time to gain open and honest feedback and input from peers. I find that we meet each other at exhibitions and exclaim over each others work without there being time or the opportunity to drill down to the detail. Recognising this, a small group of 5 decided to trial an approach using the Art Quest Artist Peer Support Group guide as a starting point.

The group met twice, once in May and once in November, at the homes of group members. The members were Cath Fogarty, Susan Romyn, Rachael Naylor, Jeannie Holker and Clare Danby. Each group member brought two or three pieces of ceramics to the meetings. We followed the methodology on page 14 of the guide. In turn, each member puts their work onto the table without saying anything about them. The others state what they see and discuss their interpretations for about 10 minutes. Then the artist asks questions about the interpretations of the others and the group then responds to these questions. Each artist has an allocation of about 20 minutes. We had drinks and food to support the process and it didn’t strictly adhere to every step.

At the end of two sessions, the group agreed that it was an interesting experience, both for artistic progression and for social aspects. In the first meeting, I showed some work that is more compositional than my normal thrown work. Starting out on this new trajectory, I piled on too much and the group helped me to hone down and identify the techniques and approaches to pursue. Between the two meetings, I tried these and was able to gain further feedback on the more recent iteration. Another member found that it was a good debriefing space for unpacking artistic experiences, and others that it was a motivating process for generating work but that trying the group’s feedback didn’t always result in positive directions, and that this is useful in itself.It was also very interesting for group members who are teachers to see different learning styles in action.

We intend to continue meeting a few times a year and encourage others that are interested in a similar group to contact us for more details.