SCULPTORS QLD

HAMILTON, JUDY

Judy Hamilton has been a seconday school art teacher in Queensland and Victoria. She has a Bachelor of Education (Arts and Crafts) with a Ceramic major from Melbourne State College and has recently completed a Bachelor of Arts (Art History) with Class 1 Honours at the University of Queensland. In 2009 she was also the editor of Inform, the newsletter of Sculptors Queensland.

Since being awarded the Claycraft Prize in the Townsville Ceramic Competition in 2003 and First prize in the RNA sculpture competition at the Ekka in 2005, Judy has continued to submit work for various competitions. She was selected for the Churchie Emerging Artist Awards in 2006, 2007, 2008.

In 2008, Judy presented a successful solo sculptural ceramic show titled focus: fur’n’ feathers at Graydon Gallery in New Farm. This show was in part inspired by Garth Clark who was the keynote speaker at the Verge ceramics conference held in Brisbane in 2006. Judy was determined to have her sculpture stand on its own merits. In 2009, she curated successful group show, Vignettes, at Percolator Gallery.

Judy has used ceramics and soft sculpture as her sculptural media. Her early work in clay owed much to the pottery wheel but it is hand building that she loves. The entire process from soft malleable clay to the science of glaze technology is grist to the mill of her imagination. Malleable is a key word here. Though she recognises the beauty of stone, wood and steel, these are not for her. She also sees beauty in the texturing of fabric for the expression of an idea.

Her work is figurative. She has an empathy with animals. Grace and elegance are the hallmarks of her style whether the subject is bilbies, ducks, chooks or long legged horses. She looks for the intrinsic beauty in her subjects which she seeks to reveal through simplicity of form. Though her recent work considers the plight of the endangered Bilby, her inspiration may come from any source.

Judy’s work has proven popular with Brisbane audiences since her move back here in 2005 and she has been featured at Percolator Gallery since it opened in 2007. Though her output was restricted in 2009, she has been able to continue to contribute to Sculptors Queensland shows.