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An artist standing next to her artwork in a gallery. The artwork is made of over one hundred ceramic leaves, swirls, gumnuts and fish (all of different colours) laid in a broad circle over black glass.

Reflections Exhibition

Celebrating 50 years of Tactile Arts

In the late ‘80s I took a silver jewellery making course with Marianne Eichenberg at what was then known as the Crafts Council of the NT. But an Ingrid Germanis’ Garden Sculpture course in 2012 showed me how to reclaim a creative life from the middle of motherhood and a full career in environmental science. I knew ceramics was what I wanted to follow. I learnt, I talked, I met new friends, I experimented, I failed and I kept trying. I volunteered in the gallery, in the shop, at the markets, hired a studio, and successfully applied for funding for a group of Tactile Arts ceramic artists to send their works to a national conference and exhibition. I received an email one night that I still can’t quite believe. My work had been selected as a finalist in the Waterhouse Natural Science Art Prize. It sold on opening night at the South Australian Museum. This showed me what was possible. And while creativity was always part of my soul, Tactile Arts lit the path for me to follow.

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A collage of people photos from a video meeting, with one large photo in the middle.

The art of mentoring – a rescue

Sometimes you need rescuing. Sometimes you see a shaft of light that beckons to a more hopeful path. One that sees what you’ve already done in a new light and reframes it, so you can lay down a better path ahead. A foundation, if you will. Someone who invites you...
An array of hand-made custom ceramic tiles featuring silohuettes of leaves and flowers.

When one thing leads to another

Some years ago, I met a friend-to-be. She was painting a large canvas opposite the door to her solo exhibition. She had been a practising artist all her life. She is inspirational in more ways than one. I hoped (and knew) that we would become friends. What I didn’t foresee...
An artist standing next to her artwork in a gallery. The artwork is made of over one hundred ceramic leaves, swirls, gumnuts and fish (all of different colours) laid in a broad circle over black glass.

Reflections Exhibition

In the late ‘80s I took a silver jewellery making course with Marianne Eichenberg at what was then known as the Crafts Council of the NT. But an Ingrid Germanis’ Garden Sculpture course in 2012 showed me how to reclaim a creative life from the middle of motherhood and a full career in environmental science. I knew ceramics was...
Two women artists holding watercolour artworks with an A-frame sign advertising workshops in Darwin's Botanic Gardens.

Botanically Creative Workshops

What happens when people sit and create together under the shade of a gloriously massive rain tree? They arrive sometimes hassled, always with their mind still on the way here, almost ready to steady themselves and use their brushes and colours to bring a drawing to life...
Artist Maria Kraatz speaks into a microphone in a bushland setting at the opening of the Artist-in-the-Park program at the Territory Wildlife Park.

Artist-in-the-Park

Here I sit in a monsoon vine forest, not far from the smooth and dwindling flow of a groundwater-fed spring. We’ve not had much rain this last wet season and the earth struggles to provide water for the communities and environments dependent on its flow. It is a magnificently rich and tall forest gracing this small patch of the Territory Wildlife Park...

© 2024 Maria Kraatz CERAMIC ARTIST