Artist : Lotte Schwerdtfeger

It wasn’t until after Lotto’s residency that I truly saw how deeply connected her ceramic practice is to the landscape. You can see it in the photographs she took, emu footprints in the sand, the textures of the land, and the natural forms she documented and later translated into her work. I’ve never seen a ceramic artist draw on their surroundings in quite this way before. I hope you’re as inspired by Lotto’s work as I am. - Kate

Artist Bio:

Lotte Schwerdtfeger primarily hand builds ceramics both functional and sculptural works, combining tendrils of research spanning historical ceramic traditions.

Often beginning with Classical vessels, ceramic archetypes are expanded by the artist’s experimental approach to clay bodies and glazed surfaces.

References to natural forms and processes, utilitarian objects and cultural artifacts, arise from Lotte’s interest in anthropology, symbolism and ritual.

Lotte is a graduate of the Victorian College of the Arts and JamFactory Ceramics Associate Program; regularly working on commission, collaborative projects and gallery exhibitions.

Card/Quote:

Solving the mystery of how something is made, looks or used keeps me constantly enquiring through process and experimentation.

I’m interested in deep time, uncertainty and the secret lives of objects, hoping to represent a spark of narrative in a piece or patinaed surface.

Objects shape how human lives are lived from everyday rituals to monuments and happenings. I hope to create pieces and installations that evoke these feelings of timeless experience.

Q :What did a typical day at Coorong Life look like for you during the residency?

A: Try to wake up early to catch the changing of the light. Then a slow rousing and packing of supplies before heading out for a roam around the nearby surrounds. The afternoon was getting hot, so it was a pleasant time to sit in the studio with hands working the cool clay till dusk. There is little besides the bird life to distract from working so there is plenty of mental space to take things slow.

Q: How did the natural surroundings of the Coorong influence your work or creative process?

A: My walks around the Coorong gave me reference points for forms, textures and even materials to use in my sculptural ceramics practice. Quick sketches, photos and even a little collecting of shells, bones and mud, informed what I would make for the afternoon. In the stillness and isolation, I was able to take slip clay with me into the landscape to make casts of the impressions left by flora, fauna, tides, wind and rain on the mud flats and sand.

Q: Were there any unexpected moments of inspiration, challenge, or reflection during your stay?

A: Opens up space for storytelling and emotional insight into their experience. Having a dedicated time and space away from regular life and responsibilities, creates room for introspection, doubt and reinvention.

Q: What have you taken away from your time so close to The Coorong?

A: Gives you a chance to showcase their art and what was meaningful about it. My time at the Coorong really emphasised that the process of immersion in new landscapes is integral to my work. It keeps the ceramic practice honest and connected to the essence of the earthen material.