Neville French

From the Crest is an exhibition of ceramic vessels by Neville French presented in Gallerysmith's light-filled Annexe Gallery in North Melbourne. French’s large-scale hand-thrown ceramic pots are a continuation in his Cloudlight series, which are inspired by the mystery and beauty of the skies.

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Made from porcelain clay and hand-mined glazes, French's ceramic forms emulate the soft glow of clouds and fog illuminated by sunshine. The everchanging nature of light is captured and diffused across the fine contours and silky surfaces of his ceramics. Subtle shifts in colour and contrast caused by weather, season, and time are harnessed by his vessels. The translucency of the porcelain allows the subtlety of the glazes to sing. The milky, pastel colours and limited palette pay homage to the frescoes of Italian renaissance painter Piero della Francesca, whose work in the Basilica of San Francesco in Arezzo Italy was transformative to French.

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"From the crest behind my home in Buninyong, Victoria the road sweeps down and away to the east, past a small farm on the fringe of town and straight into the bush. I like to walk in the early morning as the sun begins to rise and take time to observe the shifting skies and atmosphere from this particular location each day." - Neville French, 2024