The Design Files + Laminex Design Awards Handcrafted Shortlist
From ceramics to jewellery, 2021’s The Design Files + Laminex Design Awards Handcrafted Shortlist reveals the breadth of Australian craftpersonship.
Words: Emma-Kate Wilson
A Place to Call Home by Oh Hey Grace. Photo: Jess Brohier. Art Direction: Cristina Guerrero.
Post Production by Liam Flemming. Photo: Josephine Briginshaw.
Future Curve by Jan Vogelpoel. Photo: Jan Vogelpoel.
Baladjdji (Backpack) by Marrawuddi Arts & Culture. Photo: Courtesy of Marrawuddi Arts & Culture.
The Design Files + Laminex Design Awards 2021 brings together the design community to celebrate contemporary Australian makers. The Handcrafted Shortlist is always a fun one as the diversity of this category is revealed.
This year, the shortlist uncovers tableware made from seaweed by Other Matter, metalsmith crafted vases from Alison Jackson & Dan Lorrimer, Alycia Marrday’s woven backpack made from organic material, and of course, a whole host of ceramic designs that use completely different methodologies and visuals.
For one of the judges this year, previous award-winner and acclaimed ceramist Nicolette Johnson, a work will stand out to her if the design retains signs of the maker’s hand and celebrates the materials. ‘There is also a certain feeling that emerges from these works, where you can tell that the maker has put a lot of themselves into it, which results in an object that is earnest and sincere,’ she shares.
Another notable element — and one the nominees are judged on — is a commitment to sustainable design. For example, Alycia Marrday from Marrawuddi Arts & Culture presents her ‘Baladjdji (Backpack)’ woven from all-natural materials such as Kunngobarn (pandanus) and Kala (natural dye) collected on Country. Or the incredible ‘Bioregional Rings’ by Kyoko Hashimoto, using material found in the Sydney Basin bioregion like Hawkesbury sandstone coal from the Illawarra Coal Measures.
Flow Form Vases by Alison Jackson & Dan Lorrimer. Photo: Alison Jackson & Dan Lorrimer.
Curved by Eun Ceramics. Photo: Jess Brohier.
“I am really drawn to works that retain signs of the maker’s hand and that celebrate the materials used to create it.”
Algae Bioplastic Vessels by Other Matter. Photo: Amelia Stanwix for The Design Files.
Seams by Lucy Tolan. Photo: Shelley Horan. Art Direction and Styling: Both.
‘I have noticed a big shift towards developing a sustainable practice which is really heartening,’ Nicolette reflects. ‘More artists have been exploring natural materials like clay or plant fibres and interrogating where these materials come from and how that supply chain impacts the environment.’
Nicolette was also delighted to see the various guises clay can present. The soft, organic curves of Jan Vogelpoel Ceramics contrasting the highly detailed work of Sarah Rayner and Sophie Carnell’s ‘Florilegium … traversing the poetry of plants’ sculptures. Rona Rubuntja of Hermannsburg Potters follows a traditional — abet colourful — model of pottery while Alison Frith Klein blue ‘Ceramic Plinth’ resists what we perceive as clay.
Nicolette knows only too well how beneficial these awards are, taking the 2019 Handcrafted trophy. ‘I was so grateful for the recognition from the judges who I admire very much,’ she remembers. ‘I felt encouraged and validated, and it made me so excited to continue exploring my favourite material—clay!’
Even though all the nominees could rightly take home the award (and for this, we share our sympathy to the judges!), Nicolette has some useful advice for any creatives in the pursuit of the designer life. ‘If you keep pushing the boundaries of your skills and aesthetics, you are likely to come to some exciting discoveries.’ But she reminds us, ‘to balance it out, let yourself rest if or whenever you are able to!’
Seams by Lucy Tolan. Photo: Shelley Horan. Art Direction and Styling: Both.
