Bundanon

Lives / works: Wootha, Gubbi Gubbi Country, Queensland. 

Sarah lives and works in Wootha on the Sunshine Coast Hinterland, Gubbi Gubbi Country, Queensland. As an artist she predominantly works sculpturally with porcelain, creating collections of objects, underpinned by an interest in museology. 

Living in bushland and surrounded by flora, Sarah closely identifies with Australian native plants. Her particular interest lies in the reproductive organs of plants and the by-products of plant reproduction … fruits and seedpods. Sarah scrutinizes and dissects these amazing little structures examining the form, textures, cracks and crevices and the way layers peel back to reveal sensuous interiors. 

 Over the last 2 years Sarah has been collaborating with silversmith Sophie Carnell: pairing porcelain with silver. Through attention to detail, form and meticulous construction the artists have created works which communicate, whisper and converse with each other. Individual creative comfort zones being enriched by mutual respect and trust in each other’s creative process. 

Sarah is represented by Gallery Sally Dan-Cuthbert, Sydney. 

Sarah Rayner and Sophie Carnell are the recipients of the 2021 Dobell Prize.

In residence at Bundanon

Sarah Rayner & Sophie Carnell will be continuing their collaboration, exploring methods of integrating previous works and investigating methods of connection, articulation and intervention.  

Having worked together -yet apart- for two years, this residency will give them the opportunity to experiment during the malleable stages of the making process: researching and testing ideas and observing how their chosen materials of porcelain and silver interact with one another.  

  By simultaneously exploring the natural micro-environment of Bundanon, documenting and realising different responses to plant species immediately and spontaneously, they hope to gain a better understanding of how our work can interact physically, conceptually and aesthetically.