News & Events

Winter School – Monday 6 - Friday 10 July

This year’s Winter School sees 16 courses on offer for adults, plus daily classes for children. The full programme is now on the Sturt website, while the print brochure and online booking will be available later in March. We offer competitive accommodation and meal packages, which makes the Winter School a unique cultural experience. 

Colours in landscape, Juliet Holmes a Court; Watercolour - impressionistic style, Tony Belobrajdic; Still life - painting in acrylic, Charlotte Thodey; Monotype Printmaking, Tony Ameneiro; Ceramics - working with glazes, Greg Daly; Ceramics - handbuilding, Helen Earl; Wood project - Assembly Mallet, Roy Schack; Printmaking – coloured multi - block woodcut, Roslyn Kean; Artisan blacksmithing for beginners, Steve Hogwood; Saori weaving - textile to art, Kaz Madigan; Knitting Socks - with the queen of tea cosies, Loani Prior; Connections in cloth - improvisation in stitching & botanical dyeing, Ellie B; Jewellery, Kristina Neumann; Basketry - traditional Maori weaving, Alice Spittle; Wood carving - what a relief!, Teresa Hunyadi; Smartphone photography, Corinne Podger.

Children’s One-Day Courses: $95/course – $440/week (includes lunch and materials) 7-12years: 
Mixed media and drawing, Sue Meredith, Monday 6 July; Paint a canvas! , Sue Meredith, Tuesday 7 July; Shadow puppetry, Sue Wallace, Wednesday 8 July; Clay: A thousand years of pots!, Machiko Motoi, Thursday 9 July; Clay face, Machiko Motoi, Friday 10 July.

Short Courses 2020

As courses are programmed, they will be posted to the website. Confirmed courses include a three-day woodturning course with Richard Raffan on 31 July and 1-2 August and spoon carving with Fiona Glover on 24-25 October.

Current exhibition …

Edge – Exploring Boundaries – Studio Woodworkers Australia – 16 February-29 March 2020
What is it that compels people to make beautiful things from wood? For a remarkable few, the call is so strong that they leave behind their former life as a pilot, GP, research scientist, tax expert and even reality TV star to spend thousands of hours cutting, carving, sanding and polishing objects that may be cherished for generations to come.

The Studio Woodworkers of Australia are the best of the best, and since finding their calling with timber, these special men and women have spent years mastering their craft. Many are now guiding new generations of craftsmen and women with the same powerful compulsion to do incredible things with wood.

Twenty expert makers have been invited to design and create work beyond the boundaries of their comfort zone, pushing them to the limits of their creativity in Edge. From Adelaide to Warrandyte, Bungendore to Byron their work springs from the studios of the most diversely skilled artisans in the country. The result is an inspiring show that renews faith in the value of beautiful things made with incredible patience, skill and intent.

Upcoming exhibition …

Biogenesis – 5 April-4 May
Mothers and daughters explore their shared and separate creativity through various mediums including ceramics, paintings and woven forms. From Mercy Jo Sumner and Nettie Sumner, and Libby Hobbs and Dimity Kidston.

The desire to explore a lifestyle suitable for a young family led Nettie Sumner to move from London to Australia, where she found creative inspiration in the Australian landscape.  This landscape became the narrative for her wire and ceramic sculptures.

The bond between family and nature inspired Nettie to delve into Biogenesis and the concept of ‘like producing like’. Nettie uses wire and clay to create works around this theme. The wire elements are hand-knitted using various tools and techniques.  Natural elements like rain, sea and fire are used to create patinas and texture in her work.  Nettie’s daughter Mercy Sumner creates assemblages using porcelain, hand crocheted silver plated wire and detailed hand painted surface decoration.

Dimity Kidstone has created a collection of tapestries contained within a variety of vintage containers, inspired by collections of objects that she would admire at her grandmother's house as a child. Her dressing table was covered in jewellery boxes filled with exotic treasures.  Dimity’s mother, Libby Hobbs, has created woven dolls with porcelain faces combining a lifelong love of fabrics and ceramics, both of which have been passed on to her daughter Dimity.

The exhibition will open on Sunday 5 April at 11.00am.

Full details of all Sturt courses, exhibitions, residency programmes and events can be found on this website. To make a booking or enrol, call Sturt Shop on +61 2 4860 2083 or email shop@sturt.nsw.edu.au.

Mark Viner
Head of Sturt