Australia has a rich history of craft and making, and a vibrant community of contemporary makers working across weaving, fibre arts, ceramics, glass, paper craft, stonemasonry, jewellery and metalwork.
This category seeks to award one outstanding Australian handcrafted project, completed by either an individual, group or organisation between January 1st 2020 and April 27th 2021. A single handcrafted functional, decorative or wearable item, or a handcrafted product range will be considered in this category. Practitioners of any handcrafted discipline are eligible to enter.
One winner in the Handcrafted category will be awarded a $2000 cash prize. Up to two commendations will also be awarded.
Applications have been shortlisted by The Design Files team. Shortlisted entries will be assessed by three expert judges, on the following criteria :
Fulfilment of the brief / project objective
Originality – something we haven’t seen before, something invented from scratch.
Visual Appeal – beauty, boldness, aesthetic appeal.
Craftsmanship – how well does this project demonstrate mastery of a craft?
Sustainability – how well does this project contribute to positive environmental outcomes, with specific consideration of local environmental impact, management and reduction of waste, water and energy consumption?
Visionary thinking – does this project push boundaries, does it achieve something bigger than the intended commercial outcomes?
Bonus points will be awarded to projects with pro bono or community focussed outcomes, and/or projects limited by an unusually tiny budget.
Artist Alicia Marrday independently created this woven Baladjdji (backpack bag) with the support of community arts centre Marrawuddi Arts & Culture, a community Arts Centre in the heart of Kakadu National Park. Alicia’s craft first began under the guidance of her aunty, who taught her how to weave. Over the last year her unique and innovative skills have transformed and Alicia created her first Baladjdji, which came to fruition as three smaller pieces that saw her accepted into the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Art Awards.
Alicia has now expanded her idea to create this larger, brighter piece. Combining both ancient and traditional methods, it demonstrates phenomenal weaving mastery. Using the pockets and shape of her kids backpacks as a reference, Alicia weaves the design of her Baladjdji ‘from [her] own mind’. All materials used to create the Baladjdji are natural, using materials collected on Country. Alicia describes going fishing with her kids and collecting Kunngobarn (pandanus) to weave, and the Kala (natural dye colour) is found in her partner’s homeland. Alicia’s Baladjdji is a wonderful example of ancient skills and materials used by First Nations people for many thousands of years applied to contemporary outcomes.
Tempering aesthetic beauty with future thinking, Other Matter has generated a collection of bioplastic tableware made using algae polymers and pigments. These aesthetically striking pieces reminiscent of glass are recyclable, biodegradable, and can be composted in a home system.
Rona Rubuntja of the Hermannsburg Potters’ joyous style is distinctive, humorous and imaginative. Rona is a deaf and non-verbal person, and uses the medium of pottery to tell stories of her life. Each of these works emanate joy whiledepicting contemporary life in Ntaria (Hermannsburg community) and speaking to Western Aranda values.
Elisa is a Ngugi woman from Quandamooka Country (Moreton Island/Moorgumpin and Stradbroke Island/Minjerribah, Queensland). Her practice honours her cultural heritage by incorporating materials collected from Country, utilising traditional techniques and expressing contemporary adaptations through the mediums of painting, weaving and textiles. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Queensland College of Art and a Masters of Fine Art from the Queensland University of Technology.
Amanda Dziedzic is a Melbourne-based glass blower, designer and maker, and the co-founder of Hot Haus – Melbourne’s newest glassblowing studio in Heidelberg West. Amanda is not only a judge of the Handcrafted category, she’s also the creator of the awards’ stunning glass trophies, which are back again by popular demand for 2021!
Nicolette Johnson produces contemporary and unique ceramic vessels handmade in Brisbane. She was the inaugural winner of The Design Files Design Awards Handcrafted prize for her work, Dark Tower, 2019.
Liam Fleming’s practice combines mould-blowing and cold lamination. In Post-Production, he subjects objects to a rough surface treatment, fusing them at high temperatures in a kiln, then joining them in a manner at odds with the precision of cold lamination. The glass slumps and warps, collapsing under its weight and expanding with pressure.
Rona Rubuntja of the Hermannsburg Potters’ joyous style is distinctive, humorous and imaginative. Rona is a deaf and non-verbal person, and uses the medium of pottery to tell stories of her life. Each of these works emanate joy whiledepicting contemporary life in Ntaria (Hermannsburg community) and speaking to Western Aranda values.
This series of rings presents materials that can be found and processed locally in Sydney Basin bioregion. Raw materials include Hawkesbury sandstone conglomerated in the earth 250 million years ago, and coal from the Illawarra Coal Measures that formed in geological strata several kilometres deep below the sandstone.
Tempering aesthetic beauty with future thinking, Other Matter have generated a collection of bioplastic tableware made using algae polymers and pigments. These aesthetically striking pieces reminiscent of glass are recyclable, biodegradable, and can be composted in a home system.
The objective of ‘Seams’ was to investigate technique and form through the construction anddeconstruction of the vessel. The body of work explores the textile qualities of clay and convergence of materials through accentuated joins – seams.
Jenna Lee reclaims pages of ‘Aboriginal Words and Place Names’ in the ‘Body Language’ series. These paper-based cultural adornment objects explores the relationships between cultural objects and adornments as an extension of the body; the body itself as an extension of Country and language; and Country, language and body as elemental factors of connection and healing.
The Joan Series by jeweller Hamish Munro consists of interchangeable, unisex rings designed around the precise geometry and angled position of individual stones. Pieces explore the removal of surface area within the ring, instead ‘subtracting’ from the classic form of a band, and creating a dynamism between stones.
Porcelain artist Sarah Rayner and silversmith Sophie Carnell collaborated to create 42 small handcrafted sculptural works inspired by the complexity and richness of native flora. The duo’s chosen materials of porcelain and silver have been morphed from inert matter into 3D tactile, sensual and compelling works.
‘A Place to Call Home’ is a collection of sculptures made from midfire glazed ceramics using acombination of sculpting, handbuilding and wheel throwing. Sculpted utopian cityscapes and dwellings were developed in response to the often dystopian reality outside, particularly during 2020-21.
Flotsam//Jetsam is a collection of clay vessels featuring embedded materials to create unique and distinct surfaces. The collection experiments with materials found on beaches throughout Victoria such as pebbles and sea glass, and investigates how these react to the ceramic process.
Inspired by the need for function yet the desire for considered design, Frith created the Ceramic Plinth. Made entirely by hand, this item serves as a stylish side table, or a standalone sculptural object. Each plinth is wheel thrown, with composite pieces formed and joined together.
Eun Ceramics’ Curved collective is an observation on societal norms. Irregular curves meeting the narrow neck opening, representing our individuality being suppressed or shaped to fit a status quo.
Artist Alycia Marrday independently created this woven backpack with the support of community arts centre Marrawuddi Arts & Culture. Combining both ancient and traditional methods, the large and bright piece is an example of phenomenal weaving mastery. All materials are natural including Kunngobarn (pandanus) and Kala (natural dye) collected on Country.
Flow Form Vases blend small-scale metalsmithing production techniques with one-of-a-kind artwork processes to create a series of unique tableware objects. Complex hydraulic pressing tools allow the initial tubular form (in either brass or stainless steel) to be pressed repeatedly along its length, each time changing the surface.
Jewellery label erin.k jewellery created two collections featuring artist Holly McLennan-Brown of Koorie Tales’ artwork. Pieces convey elements of Holly’s Yorta Yorta culture, with the intent of making Indigenous art more accessible.
These three ceramic pieces are inspired by the curves of the Glebe House designed by Chenchow Little, and the Taal monument designed by Jan van Wijk. Restrained forms allow the form, curves and clay to work their magic without overworking or overthinking the design or the process.