Creative collab for clay showcase

SINCE early last year, a small group of Ballarat ceramicists and potters has been working to promote their creative practice in the region.

Coordinated between artists Maddison Trezise, Sarah Mishker, Ruby Pilven and Steph Wallace, the Ballarat Clay Collective is a non-profit initiative aimed at highlighting creative opportunities for those that work with the material.

Trezise said the group is looking to maximise what’s available for clay-based artists in Ballarat and surrounds.

“It’s harder to receive opportunity when you’re an individual but when you’re banded together in a group, they can receive for the individual,” she said.

“That’s basically what we do. As an artist, you can feel like you’re on your own little island so it’s really important to create bridges between opportunities and individual artists.”

Last year’s activities saw the group host a popup shop during the annual Craft Lab initiative which included 17 local makers, an artist talk session at Kyneton’s Stockroom Art Gallery, and an Art Hub residency, as well as travel to the biennial Clay Gulgong event in New South Wales.

They kicked off 2025 with another Art Hub residency throughout January, which showcased ceramicist Kirsten Ives.

“We had a high output last year, which is amazing since we’ve just started,” Tresize said.

Wallace helped initiate the idea for the group following discussions with Creative Ballarat’s Tara Poole.

She said the group is almost a formalisation of what’s long been a rich collaborative history of the region’s clay creatives.

“Ballarat traditionally has a really strong tradition of potters. It has amazing natural clay in the ground,” she said.

“We have this abundance of clay makers and potters in the region.

“We’ve already been collaborating but we’ve been individual so we wanted to come together and leverage all these amazing things we’ve been working on into a formalised community.

“That existed in Ballarat in the ’70s and ’80s before fizzling out so it’s like we’re honouring that lineage too.”

The group will next take part in the upcoming Unicorn Market on 15 March, designed to activate the Unicorn Lane car park.

Also on the group’s agenda for 2025, Mishker – who joined the team in December – is looking to lead an initiative based around artist studio visits.

“It’s interesting as artists to see how other artists work,” she said.

“Going to other people’s studios and seeing how they work, it really opens up different ways of working you might not consider when you’re by yourself.

“As a collective, we want to encourage that sharing of information between the artists of this region.

“That’s a way we can facilitate that.”

Visit the Ballarat Clay Collective’s website or Facebook page or follow @ballaratclaycollective on Instagram to stay updated on the group’s activities.