Hilary Green

TELL US A BIT ABOUT WHAT A DAY MAY LOOK LIKE FOR YOU AS AN ARTIST. WHERE ARE YOU BASED AND WHAT ARE SOME OF THE THINGS YOU DO IN YOUR DAILY ROUTINE?

A perfect day for me being creative would always start with a cup of black coffee and my sketchbook. I am an avid sketchbook user. I draw ideas mixed in with to-do lists and thoughts that pop into my head. I would say that if  you look inside my sketchbook it is like looking inside my brain - a sometimes eclectic and messy place! It has taken me a while to realise how important this is for my practice but when I go over old sketchbooks I can see how my ideas slowly came to fruition.

Before lockdown I would try and walk to a local cafe to do this because there is something important about exercise and thinking as well as being around a buzz of activity for a short time. Most of my time creating is alone so it is good to break it up.

I often plan my day around the light and the weather. I need light to paint so I do that before 12 or photograph my ceramic work outside in the courtyard. I usually have ceramic work to pick up from the kiln and it is always a delight to see how it turned out. I sit and reflect on each piece and some mistakes give me ideas for the next collection. I love working with clay in the afternoon and night - sometimes late at night while watching a movie or listening to a podcast. I love working as much as possible but I am learning to also take breaks, play with my two cats, wind down and cook or go for a walk and find new flowers in the neighbourhood. At the moment I am dreaming of visiting a waterfall and taking some reference photos for a series of paintings, but that will have to wait for now. 


HOW DID YOU START YOUR DAILY PRACTICE AND WHY?

I have always been obsessed with art since I was a child. I think my strongest memories are when I was doing something tactile and messy like pastry, clay or sand sculptures at the beach. I did study a Bachelor of Fine Art Photography at university with drawing but had a long break from creating after that. I became a teacher and rediscovered a love of stop motion animation and film. Being around kids and watching them create gave me life again and I started painting and drawing. It wasn’t until I discovered some local artists on instagram and found a creative community that I became more aware of what is possible in Melbourne and the new mediums I could explore such as textiles and ceramics. I was able to do a few courses in ceramics and built up my knowledge. In my part time teaching role I work with a lot of digital art so doing ceramics and painting in my personal art practice is very important to me. Different creative ideas come from different mediums. Sometimes I decide a drawing would be better as a ceramic piece or a ceramic piece should be in a painting. It is a journey for me and I am so happy and grateful to be able to create work and access materials I need.


TELL US ABOUT YOUR STUDIO/CREATIVE WORKPLACE?

I have two small creative spaces at home. One for painting and one for ceramics. I used to work in a shared studio space but now I find I work so much and into the night I am more productive at home. In my space I have learned to be somewhat  tidy and organised. Shelving is my new favourite thing. Making sure everything has its safe place. I try to keep things clean or else I become distracted when I sit down to work.It is also a safety issue in a ceramics studio to have too much mess. I make sure I have music or movies in the space so I can zone in on what I am doing. I sometimes like to set the mood by lighting a few homemade candles.  Anything that relaxes me is the aim. Some shelves have books from the op shop that inspired me, books no one else would be interested in like 70s flower arranging, cake decorating or dessert photography. But I mostly use pinterest to collect colour palette ideas, glaze formulas and ideas. I also have recently got a stand for my phone to help video my process and use  it with reference photos. I think it is important to photograph the process of a painting and also flip the image sometimes to check the composition balance is in harmony. I also take notes on my ceramic work but I sometimes forget!

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE IDEAS THAT YOU EXPLORE IN YOUR WORK AND THE MEDIUMS THAT YOU HAVE CHOSEN TO WORK WITH?

I am very  interested in history. Ancient memories, stories, mythologies and magic. It fascinates me that we can be touching rock that has been there for centuries and yet our day to day lives are on screens in a digital space. There is this old and new duality that exists. Our instincts, our domesticity, our relationships are all connected to the past. Working with clay is almost like telling a story from memory, trying to describe what once was.. I think that’s why I don’t  like perfect lines or forms. Nothing is exact because memory is not exact. The way culture is past down is a result of memory so I also feel that social media culture has a part in my work. Seeing how feminism takes new form in day to day life and how ideas around nature and beauty are represented. Oil paint and clay are both made up of minerals from the earth and I bend them to my creative will. I feel like human interference or manipulation of nature is something I think about when I create and I try to let nature win.


IN AN INCREASINGLY DIGITIZED WORLD, HOW IMPORTANT IS YOUR ONLINE PRESENCE? WHAT ARE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU CONSIDER WHEN MARKETING YOUR WORK?

I think being online is everything to my work and practice. It has meant community for me and opening opportunities. It has taken me awhile to  understand how I want to represent my art online  but I think having a photographic background has helped me. I feel very happy with how my ceramic work is received online but It is frustrating that you can’t capture the experience of paintings  on social media. I think I always try new things to express myself online. I am interested in storytelling through film as a way of being playful and giving context to the rest of my work. I do think the best things I have done are to reach out to  people I admire, support their work and really know the local art community.Taking the online connections into real life, face to face relationships (when lockdown is over).  


ARE YOU WORKING ON ANY FUTURE PROJECTS YOU CAN TELL US ABOUT?

I am looking forward to a group show that I am curating with Frances Cannon at Tinning St Gallery in Brunswick. It will feature 15 local female artists and is titled “ A Drop of Dew on Her Glistening Web’.  It is a collective reflection about the home and as it has been postponed due to covid, when it does open we think it will be a heightened exploration of our time in lockdown as well. Hopefully in early 2021!

Other than that I am planning a new range of ceramic vases to be available and paired with XXflos floral bouquets. It is so amazing to work with a creative florist and see my vases matched perfectly with colourful everlastings. I will also have work at Sister Studios in Fitzroy next month.

I hope  to have a solo show next year but everything is on hold for now. I guess I will just keep making at home and cook up ideas. My favourite thing to do to get me through this time.