‘PASSING TIME’ In the 1960s my grandmother, a British Army widow and mother of eight, sat in her empty nest and played cards. She also played board games, bingo and backed the horses. She called it ‘Passing Time’. All her children, except my mother, left home in the 1950s to seek their fortunes and settle abroad. Two of them travelled around the world as Merchant Seamen, another as an aircraft engineer. From England and America to Asia and south America souvenirs were brought from places my grandmother had never visited, nonetheless she treasured them all. Surrounded by exotic curios and her proudly displayed photographs, she entertained us with games, songs and family stories. She taught us to play cards – we learned to win or lose. She taught us resilience and gave us our windows on the world. My current body of work reflects childhood memories of my Nan, her life and home; a strong independent woman diminishing gradually through the loss of her own memories towards the end of her days. It also speaks to the ‘Empty Nest’ and compares my grandmother’s options with my own which have in contrast allowed me to return to education and complete an honours degree in Contemporary Applied Art. My practice focusses on sculptural ceramics using hand-building techniques. I create playful totemic sculptures which comment on themes drawn from my own life experiences. Often influenced by my interest in architecture and furniture design, my work draws on my construction, joinery and sewing skills. I combine textiles and ceramics using a method of sewing into porcelain. Jane Barclay (July 2024)
