Di Curtin
has been painting porcelain now for 34 years and manages her own studio in Thirroul (near Sydney), New South Wales in Australia. I often came across her exclusive designs when I was looking through the internet web sites and was able to see her works shown on the Platform “Firebrick Art”. I was constantly impressed by the fact that her creations possessed a typically individual decorative style which was made up of different patterns which are shown on several different plains. These combinations meant that Di often painted tiles (known as canvas tiles) and then fixed them on to painted square plates which gave an additional and exceptionally clever 3D effect. Di Curtin created and produced these additional tiles herself; often having interestingly shaped edging but these were a challenge to fire (more often than Di expected!). Her own hand-made tiles would break in the kiln, but this did not bother her too much as it then brought another aspect of her design into the lime light and she continued to create an even more individual piece. Good examples of such works are to be seen in this book and you will be astonished how wonderful they are.
Another aspect of Di’s knowledge as a porcelain painter is her incredibly precise and sensitive portrayals. There are teenagers smiling at us with their mouth closed, and there is a cute pouting expression on the portrait of a little Tibetan girl just as if she’s going to burst into laughter. These women and children appear to be very much alive and are communicating with us in their own special language.
And what does show us from the animal kingdom? Also in this book we find very unusual examples of animals typical of the Australian outback. You will see a little frog, for example, which is clinging on to vegetation after escaping from a raging bush-fire; an Emu with an extremely arrogant expression and a super hair-do – or a funny little Feathertail Glider: This little marsupial looks just like an ordinary house-mouse but it can glide through the air.