Fantastic Forms
Feb 15, 2025 to Apr 27, 2025
Image: Merric Boyd. Fantastic Forms (installation view), Bundanon, 2023. Bundanon Collection. Photo: Zan Wimberley.
About
Fantastic Forms celebrates the creative practice of Merric Boyd (1888-1959), an artist who is often referred to as Australia’s father of pottery. Featuring over 150 drawings and ceramics from the Bundanon Collection, this vibrant selection is presented in conversation with work by three contemporary artists – Nabilah Nordin’s sculptural forms, Stephen Benwell’s delicate human figures and energetic stop-motion videos by emerging Bundjalung artist Rubyrose Bancroft.
Beginning with Boyd’s idiosyncratic approach to artmaking, Fantastic Forms expands from his well-known pottery to the playful, colourful and dynamic drawing practice that he used to portray the world around him. Depicting Australian animals, plants, people and landscapes alongside handwritten notes and free-form poetry, these works on paper reveal a singular approach to spirituality, art and life.
‘The first impulse of the maker of hand pottery is to obtain pleasure in making and decorating an article, and making that pleasure intelligible to others …’ - Merric Boyd, 1930
This exhibition is supported by the National Collecting Institutions Touring and Outreach Program, an Australian Government program aiming to improve access to the national collections for all Australians.
