Dariya Gratte - Artist - Ceramics & Paintings

Deeply inspired by the ocean and landscape in which she lives, Dariya Gratte has honed her creativity into the making of beautiful ceramics and paintings. Growing up with creative parents, Dariya’s artistic spirit was in built and she further developing her skills with a Diploma of Fine Art, an apprenticeship in ceramics, and TAFE certificates in painting and drawing. Using ocean inspired colours and shapes, Dariya’s hand thrown earthenware is intricately finished and is both functional and sculptural and her pierced porcelain range a work of art.

Artist Statement

My work is a celebration of our amazing Western Australian coastline. After completing a diploma at Claremont Collage of Fine Arts where I majored in painting, I furthered my artistic education by completing a traineeship in Ceramics. Working from my home studio located in Gnarabup a small coastal town near Margaret River I produce functional but highly decorative ceramics and also paintings. My ceramics are hand thrown and decorated therefore no two pieces are exactly the same. I am constantly inspired by the intensity of colours, patterns and changing light within our amazing environment and endeavor to reflect this in my ceramics and paintings.

Qualifications:

• Fine Art – Claremont School of Art – Diploma Fine Art
• Apprenticeship in Ceramics – Cowaramup Pottery
• Certificate 3 Education Support- Margaret River TAFE Campus
• Certificate 3 Painting - Margaret River TAFE Campus
• Certificate 3 Drawing- Margaret River TAFE Campus

Exhibitions

• 1991 – 1995: Cowaramup Pottery- Glazing and painting ceramics
• 1992 - 1994: Exhibiting Artist at Borranup Gallery
• 1998 – 2001 Dilkes Hoffman Studio Ceramics- Glazing and painting      ceramics
• 1999 – 2001 Margaret River Pottery- Potter, glazer and painting ceramics
• 2013 -2016 Margaret River Gallery- Exhibiting artist in paint and ceramics
• 2014 – ‘30 x 30 Exhibition’, Margaret River Gallery
• 2015 – 2016 Aspects of Kings Park Gallery – Exhibiting Ceramics
• 2016 – Margaret River Open Studio’s
• 2016 – ‘Designs in Nature’ Exhibition Payet Gallery
• 2016 – ‘Soup for Soup Bowls’ charity exhibition Hale Grammar School
• 2016 – ongoing exhibition and sales at JahRoc Galleries, Margaret River, WA

Mishima Technique

Mishima is a technique used to decorate ceramics, which dates back to Koryo Period (935-1392 AD}. The technique reached stunning heights in the 12th and 13th century. Mishima is a technique of inlaying slip, under glaze, or even clay into a contrasting clay body, the main clay body of the pottery piece. This technique allows for extremely fine, intricate design work with hard, sharp edges that can be difficult to reliably replicate in any other way. In my practice I have researched this beautiful and ancient technique and developed a method of Mishima that works for me. Each of my works is hand thrown on a pottery wheel, and then paint with a slip the surface is then incised to reveal the clay body beneath. The grooves are then filled with a contrasting slip when dry the works are then bisque fired to 900c. Then clear glazed and fired again to 1100c to bring out the wonderful colours hidden in the slip. I use white earthenware clay the colours and pattern that I have develop are a reflection of my wonderful coastal environment.

Sea Urchins

My morning beach walks were there are always new treasures to be discovered inspires my Sea urchin series. They are made from earthenware clay and hand thrown on a pottery wheel the decoration is then applied. A slip glaze is used to cover the surface of the clay then the fine dots are painted with a paintbrush. The pots are left to dry then bisect fired then coloured glaze is applied to the inside of the pot and then fired again to 1100C.