My name is Miriam Charlesworth. I am a ceramic artist. I live in glorious South Australia which has some of the most striking country on our planet. I am blessed with a beautiful family who inspire, love and support me.

My art

My work reflects what I feel and see in the scapes of South Australia, capturing the ‘essence’ of spaces and places in wheel thrown sculptural form.

I explore the dramatic, but sometimes subtle, contrasts in the tonal layers of earthenware clay bodies – searching for the shadows and movement that white on white can create as well as the interplay of clay types and colours moulded into one landscape, with many views.

I often use sgraffito and other carving techniques to emphasise movement, depth and detail. I also enjoy the imperfections that can be created from heat and cooling in firing processes that reflect the same.

Themes of nurture, nature, native, local, home and familiarity are associated with my work, with audiences often commenting: “that reminds me of ...”

My vision is to use clays from local areas in South Australia to create forms made from the earth from which it came, connecting my hands with the scapes of South Australia to enable memories and connections for others.

I have a whole expanse of chemistry and a canvas of clay to play with. No two thrown items are the same - (despite how hard you might try to make them so). No two firings are the same, no application and mix of recipes are the same and the unexpected results are sometimes the most spectacular!

The time for each piece to be finished is quite long, with several critical processes to ‘survive’. From beginning to end, a single piece of work may be up to two months in the making - from preparing the clay, throwing, trimming, decorating, drying, firing, glazing, firing again - with no absolute certainty that what you planned from the onset is what you get at the end!

Therefore, each and every piece is a once off, each is unique, each has its own perfections and imperfections and I have stopped being disappointed in not achieving an expected outcome and now very excited to see what it becomes :)

I hope you might see in my art the South Australian landscapes and spectacular nature where we live, work and play.

I would love to hear from you too - see my contact page to get in touch.

Peace to you,

Miriam