Debbie originally trained as a ceramacist, completing three years of art education at Devonport Technical college in the early eighties and then three years of ceramics at what was then the Tasmanian State Institute of Technology (now Tasmania University).
I think clay is such a wonderful medium, perhaps because it is so simple (being earth) and so physical. you have to use your energy to push it around and manipulate it. It can also be useful and made into vessels or abstract and sculptural. Its other great endearing quality is that it can also be long-lasting and permanent.
Clay is also a medium that can cross genres, so frequently used for permanent community artworks, it is also used to make cartoon artworks three dimensional, and in its simplest equations, an exploration of the material itself and its possibilities.
Clay in murals
An early work by Debbie, a ceramic low relief sculpture of Alice, 2.5 metres in height, was made for this outside wall of her house. This artwork has led to many other experimental murals, using clay to create the artwork and broken ceramic tiles to fill in the background.
Clay and Metal
Debbie is a member of Blacksmith Doris, a group of Women Blacksmiths who meet monthly at the Blacksmith Association of Victoria Barn in Bundoora.On these occasions, Debbie has been making explorative artworks of clay and forged mild steel. These are fired to earthenware temperatures. After firing the two materials, clay and metal continue to interact, through the metal rusting into the clay.
for more information about this series:
http://debbieharmanclayandmetal.blogspot.com.au/
sculptural work
Debbie’s sculptural work often develops from her painting or cartooning practice. Much of the work below was part of the Alice in Tartland, FOMO and Abandoned Selves series. The exploration of the theme moves across art mediums and genres
for more archives of claywork by Debbie Harman Qadri
debbie harman qadri 